Luke 10:25-37 New International Version (NIV)

The Parable of the Good Samaritan

²⁵ On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

²⁶ “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”

²⁷ He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.”

²⁸ “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”

²⁹ But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

³⁰ In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. ³¹ A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. ³² So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. ³³ But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. ³⁴ He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. ³⁵ The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

³⁶ “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

³⁷ The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”

Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

The Traveler

Rocky, narrow, and steep, the hairpin turns on the road from Damascus to Jericho made perfect hiding places for robbers. For centuries it was notoriously dangerous, and no more so than in Jesus’ time. The traveler couldn’t have been the sharpest knife in the drawer, since this fact was well-known. Almost everyone traveled in caravans for safety’s sake.

The Holy Men

Three men came upon the injured traveler. The first two, a priest and a Levite, were considered holy men. Both had a multitude of valid reasons for passing him by, ranging from the danger of becoming ceremonially unclean to concern for their own safety, lest the robbers still be lurking nearby. This man had gotten himself into this mess, and they felt by no means obligated to risk their status or their lives for his foolishness.

The Good Samaritan

The third man was a Samaritan. It’s unclear as to whether or not he was a Samaritan by race, or simply considered a heretic and a breaker of the ceremonial law. Either way, Samaritans were despised by good Orthodox folks everywhere. It was kind of like calling someone white trash, or a wetback.

Good Orthodox folks may not have liked him, but Jesus held the Samaritan’s actions up as the gold standard for how we are to treat everyone in need.

Separating Families At The Border

It would be so simple here to launch into a diatribe against the diabolical policies of separating families at the border, or denying entrance to the desperate fleeing violence from Central America. But anyone who says they love Jesus should ask themselves if obeying His teachings is part of the deal.