In Luke 10:25–37, Jesus answers the lawyer’s question, “Who is my neighbor?” with the parable of the Good Samaritan, where the unlikely hero is not a priest or Levite but a Samaritan—an outsider despised by the Jews—who shows mercy to a wounded man. By making the Samaritan the model of neighbor-love, Jesus teaches that God’s grace crosses every boundary and that true faith is measured not by ritual purity or status but by compassion in action. The challenge for us today is to see the “Samaritans” in our own lives—the people we’d least expect or most want to exclude—and to recognize that God loves them too. Jesus’ command remains clear: “Go and do likewise.”

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Good morning! It’s good to be with you on this Tuesday as we continue together in Luke. I love unpacking God’s Word with you. Some days when I sit with the text I think, “Okay, Lord, what do you want to say here?” Other days it’s like, “Lord, I’ve only got 10 minutes, how am I going to fit it all in?” Today’s one of those days—because we’re looking at the parable of the Good Samaritan. So buckle up, boys and girls—we’ve got a lot to cover.

Luke 10:25–37 tells us about a lawyer who comes to test Jesus. He asks, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus turns the question back on him: “What does the law say?” The lawyer quotes the Shema—love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind; and love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus says, “That’s right. Do this and live.” But the lawyer, wanting to justify himself, presses further: “And who is my neighbor?”

That’s when Jesus tells the story of a man traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho who gets attacked and left half-dead. A priest comes by, sees him, and passes on the other side. Same with a Levite. But a Samaritan—of all people—stops. He bandages the wounds, pours oil and wine on them (wine was a disinfectant back then), puts the man on his own animal, and pays an innkeeper to care for him. Jesus asks, “Which of these was a neighbor?” The lawyer answers, “The one who showed mercy.” Jesus says, “Go and do likewise.”

Now, a few things worth noticing. First, about Jerusalem—you always go up to Jerusalem, no matter what direction you’re traveling. From Madison I’d say I’m going up to Memphis or down to Hattiesburg, but for Israel, Jerusalem was always “up,” because it’s on Mount Zion, the place of God’s temple. So the man is “going down” to Jericho, even though geographically it’s north.

And here’s the shocker for Jesus’ audience: the hero is a Samaritan. That would’ve blown their minds. Jews and Samaritans had centuries of tension—ethnic, historic, and theological. The Jews believed you worshiped at the Temple in Jerusalem. The Samaritans, going back to the old northern kingdom, worshiped at a high place in Samaria. They were considered heretics. So to tell this story with a Samaritan as the one who truly lived out God’s law—it was unthinkable.

The priest and Levite avoided the man because touching someone half-dead would make them ritually unclean, unable to serve at the temple. But the Samaritan—the enemy, the outsider—is the one who fulfilled the Shema.

To bring it into today: the Samaritan is whoever you think could never be the hero. The Good Woke Person. The Good MAGA Person. The Good Global Methodist. The Good United Methodist. Whoever you’re most likely to say, “Not them. Anybody but them.” That’s the Good Samaritan in your life.

Jesus is teaching us that God’s grace crosses every boundary. The very person we’re tempted to despise is often the one who shows us what true neighbor-love looks like.

Friends, this parable calls us not only to care for the hurting, but also to recognize the Samaritans in our lives—the ones we’d rather exclude—and remember that God loves them too.

May we have the ears to hear and the courage to “go and do likewise.” In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.