This message, titled, The Good Samaritan, from Luke chapter 10, verses 25 through 27, was preached at Winchester Reformed Presbyterian Church in Winchester, Kansas. For more information, visit us at winchesterrp.com. Well, brothers and sisters, I don't think I need to tell you this morning. that we really come to what is likely the most well-known parable in all the Bible, the parable that we know as the Good Samaritan. In fact, it is a parable that is so well-known by so many people that this idea of being a Good Samaritan is still an idiom that we use in almost everyday language. You can think of instances where we hear stories about somebody who goes out of their way to show somebody kindness. Stories about people who go out of their way to help others. And even today in 21st century America, we often call those people good Samaritans. And it all comes back to Luke chapter 10. It all comes back to this parable that Jesus told on this occasion, which is recorded for us only in the Gospel of Luke. It is, perhaps, the most well-known parable in all the Bible. And yet, brothers and sisters, despite being well-known, I wonder if it is a parable that is very little understood. It would be a fascinating exercise this morning to ask each of you to take out a piece of paper, to grab a pen or a pencil and to scribble on that piece of paper what you understand or have learned to be the meaning and the point of this parable. And I imagine if we were to take time to do that this morning, we would get several different kinds of answers. But the answer that we would probably hear over and over is that it's really a parable that teaches us how to be nice. It's a parable that teaches us how to be kind, how to help people who are in need. Perhaps some of you would find, as many have, especially in our contemporary day, that this parable really promotes what some people call social justice. I wonder, despite being one of the most well-known parables, if it is actually, at the end of the day, one of the parables that is most misunderstood. And this morning, I don't intend to linger long on this introduction, because I am eager with the help of the Spirit to proceed almost immediately to the subject. And I want to look at these words as we have them in verses 25 through 37 under four main thoughts. And the first thought this morning on these words, the first thought is a question answered. A question answered. It's very important, brothers and sisters, that we see and remember that this parable that Jesus tells, this parable that begins in the 30th verse and the parable that runs through the 35th verse, it's very important that we see and remember that this parable really comes out of a dialogue that Jesus is having. We read in the 25th verse, and behold, a lawyer stood up. I want you to know this morning, you can probably figure it out pretty easily, but a lawyer here in the context is not exactly what you and I think of a lawyer. When we think of lawyers, we think of those who go to the civil courts, who argue a case for or against someone. A lawyer in the biblical terms, in the New Testament terms, the lawyers that we read of in the Gospels are not civil lawyers. Rather, they are men who understood and studied and knew Old Testament law. They were, for all intents and purposes, they were experts. on the law of God. In today's world, you could probably expect that one of these lawyers would hold a PhD, and the specific area of study for that PhD would have been the law of God. A lawyer was one who read the law of God, especially Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. They were those who claimed to be able to interpret and to understand that law. Most of them, this lawyer included, probably had the first five books of the Bible committed to memory, able at the drop of a hat to tell you exactly what this law was or exactly what that law was. This is a man who claims to understand the law of God. And we read in the 25th verse that he stands up, that he puts Jesus to the test, and he asks this question. Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? And we need to pause there for a moment, because this question becomes the backbone of the parable Jesus is about to tell. And we need to see that the lawyer doesn't stand up and he doesn't say, Jesus, how should I be a good person? Jesus, how am I to help those who are around me? Jesus, what does it mean for me to be kind and hospitable? But this lawyer stands up and he asks Jesus, what do I have to do to inherit eternal life? And brothers and sisters, that is a fantastic It's a fantastic question. It is, to put it simply this morning, the most important question anybody can ask. What do I have to do to inherit eternal life? And it's a fantastic question. It's a remarkable question in which there is so much. What do I mean by that? Well, the very question itself assumes, doesn't it? That this lawyer understands there is more to this life than this life. There is more to this thing we call life than the here and the now. There is something beyond death. There is something beyond the grave. There is this thing that we call eternal life, which scripturally speaking is described and understood not only in its quantity, that it goes on forever, but also its quality, that it is a good life, that eternal life is not the question, well, would you rather have quantity or quality? But that biblically speaking, eternal life blends these two together. And the idea of eternal life is eternal joy and eternal happiness. And this lawyer understands there's something more than today. And in that sense, brothers and sisters, even in asking this question, this lawyer goes beyond so many people around us and goes beyond perhaps even you and I. Because so often we find our hearts and our desires and our ambitions to be bound to this world. to think that today is the most important day, that here and now is all that matters. And this lawyer comes and in this question, he recognizes there is something more than today. In this question, he not only recognizes this wonderful idea that there's more to living than this life, but he also recognizes, doesn't he, that eternal life is not just something that happens. He asked the question, what must I do? What needs to happen, he is asking, in order for me to have eternal life? What's necessary? And again, that is a tremendous recognition on this lawyer's part, because I think the innate temptation of our hearts is to think, well, if there is this thing called eternal life, if there is this thing called heaven, well, then I deserve it by the simple fact that I am who I am. Because I am me, if there's eternal life, if there's a heaven beyond this world, I deserve it. that is the innate assumption of many, many people, perhaps your assumption this morning, but this lawyer does not understand it that way. He says, what has to happen? Recognizing that eternal life is not something, to put it this way this morning, it's not something that falls into the lap of everybody. And so this lawyer wants to know, what do I have to do to inherit eternal life? It is, brothers and sisters, a remarkable Question. And then what happens? Well, in these verses we have the unfolding of a dialogue. Here this man in verse 25 asks Jesus, what shall I do to inherit earth? And Jesus in verse 26 responds, and Jesus responds the way that Jesus often responds. He doesn't give him an answer, does he? He answers by giving him a question. And he says in verse 26, what is written in the law? How do you read it? Jesus is falling back on this man's expertise. He's saying, you're a lawyer, you know, the law, you know, the scriptures tell me. What do the scriptures say? What does the Old Testament say? Lawyer? What does the Old Testament say is the means by which you inherit eternal life? And Jesus says, how do you read it? How do you understand the scriptures, is what Jesus is saying, which has profound implications, brothers and sisters. We need to remember, Jesus drives this man to the Bible. He drives this man to the scriptures that would have been there to the Old Testament. And Jesus is saying, there, friend, the answer is laid up for you in the Old Testament. How are you to inherit eternal life? And in verse 27, the lawyer answered, how does the lawyer answer? You shall 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 your neighbor as yourself. This lawyer, this man, this expert in the law simply quotes scripture. He goes to Deuteronomy chapter six, which we've read this morning. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, with all your mind. And he goes to Leviticus chapter 19. You need to love your neighbor as yourself. And then Jesus responds in verse 28. He said to him, you have answered correctly. Do this and you will live. Jesus doesn't upbraid him. Jesus doesn't say, you've got it all wrong. Jesus doesn't say, you've got it all backwards. Jesus actually commends this lawyer and says, you've answered your own question. And Jesus says, you have answered it correctly. Do this. What is the this? Love God. with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, with all your mind, what is the this? Love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus says, do that, you will live. Do that and you will inherit eternal life. That's how Jesus answers the question. And we need, as we walk through this parable, to keep that in mind, to keep this as the context in which this parable comes. That brings us then this morning to the second thought. And the second thought from these words is an attitude exposed. An attitude exposed. I wonder this morning if you find Jesus' response a little disturbing. Is there something in those words that Jesus has spoken in verse 28 that cause you for a moment to pause, to kind of stop in your tracks? Here Jesus says, do this and you will live. Obey God, follow the commands, love God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, with all your mind, love your neighbor as yourself, do that and you will live. And it ought, in a sense, for those who know something of the gospel, for those who know something of the scriptures, it ought to stop us for a moment in our tracks. Why? Well, because we know, for instance, when Jesus began his ministry, as we've been looking at, As Jesus is baptized, as he's led into the wilderness to be tempted of Satan, as he comes back from the wilderness and begins his public ministry, the summons of the gospel is what? Repent. Repent and believe the kingdom of heaven is at hand. And we saw as we looked at the beginning of Jesus' ministry that repentance is that door through which, by the grace of God, we must enter the kingdom of heaven. Or you might think this morning of Acts chapter two, that blessed day of Pentecost, when Peter goes to the streets of Jerusalem and he makes known Jesus Christ and him crucified. And you remember the people pricked in their hearts and they come to Peter and they say, Peter, what must we do to be saved? What does Peter say? Peter doesn't say, well, you gotta do the commands and you gotta do the law of God and you will be saved. Peter says, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. Some of our young people this morning quoted from Acts chapter 16 to the same effect. What must we do to be saved? Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. And this lawyer comes to Jesus, what do I have to do to inherit eternal life? Jesus doesn't say believe, Jesus says do. Jesus doesn't say, rest in the promises. He says, do something. Jesus doesn't say, believe in me. He says, love God with all your heart, with all your mind, with all your strength. Love your neighbor as yourself. There is something here, brothers and sisters, that ought to be a little disturbing. And we need to understand this. We need to understand this. As Jesus tells this lawyer, you have answered correctly, do this and you will live. If I can put it this way this morning, there really are only two responses to give to Jesus at this point. There's only one of two responses. The first response could be, let's call it this morning, the response of humility. The response that comes And under the awareness of what the law requires, that I am to love God with all my heart, with all my soul, with all my strength, with all my will, the humble response that says, my goodness, I can't even do that for an instant. I have never loved God with all my heart. I have never loved God with all my soul and all my strength and with all of my mind. The first response to give to Jesus here would be a response of utter contrition and humility, saying, if that's what eternal life requires, I don't have it. So that all we can do is cast ourselves at the feet of Jesus to plead for grace, to plead for pardon, to plead for forgiveness, to plead for mercy. To say, I don't have it. I can't do it. I've never done it. I've never loved God the way that I should. And I've never loved my neighbor as I ought. And to prostrate ourselves in humble repentance before Jesus Christ. to say I am undone if that's what eternal life requires. And brothers and sisters, that's, if I can just put it to you this morning, that's the right response. That is a response of a heart that is prepared by grace for the gospel, for the good news of Jesus Christ. To realize that God sent his son, as Paul says in Galatians 4.4, that God sent his son to be born under the law to redeem those who were under the law. To fall humbly before God and say, I can't do it, I haven't done it. is to have a heart that is prepared by grace to be able to see that the glorious good news of the gospel is that God has made him who knew no sin to be sin for me, that in him, as Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5.21, I might be the righteousness of God. That is one response that can be given to Jesus at this point. But there's a second response, and it's the response that this lawyer gives to Jesus. In verse 28, you have answered correctly, do this and you will live. In verse 29, listen to what Luke writes. But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, and who is my neighbor? Who is my neighbor? And it's not without purpose that Luke includes that little commentary that this lawyer at this point, rather than falling humbly before Jesus and saying, I'm undone, what does he do? He desires to justify himself. What does it mean to justify yourself? Well, parents, you know exactly what it means to justify yourself because your children are probably experts at it. And they probably are experts at it because you're an expert at it. To justify oneself, think of the way sometimes in which we need to point out to our children. Well, you've done something wrong. I told you to do X, Y, Z. You did A, B, C. And what happens? Our children are so quick. Well, let me give you a whole list of excuses. to prove to you that actually I'm in the right. I'm going to maintain my innocence in this. And brothers and sisters, that's a learned trait. Our children get it from us because you and I are so good at this. When somebody tells you, you know, you've done something wrong, you probably shouldn't have done that. What often follows is not a humble recognition. Yeah, you're right. My natural response, and I assume this morning, the natural response of most of us is to say, now, wait a second. And we justify ourselves. We come up with all kinds of excuses. And that's what this man does. Luke says, seeking, desiring to justify himself, to maintain his innocence, to clear his name, to declare himself to be in the right. And you see what happens, friends. is that we immediately perceive the attitude of this man's heart. We immediately perceive his attitude. Jesus has said, do this and you will live. And this man comes, hoping to maintain his innocence, to clear his name, to write himself in the presence of Jesus and all others. And he says, well, Who's my neighbor? Who's my neighbor? And it's interesting, isn't it, that that's where this man immediately goes. Jesus has told him, you've got to love God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, with all your mind. You've got to love your neighbor as yourself. This man just skips over the first part, as if to say, check, I've got it done. I've loved God in that way. Now let's talk about my neighbor. figure out who it is, Jesus, that I'm supposed to love as myself. And he comes with his excuses because brothers and sisters, despite the fact that he is an expert in the law of God, his pride keeps him from rightly knowing what that law requires. And so he excuses himself He wants to find a loophole. Who's my neighbor? He's asking Jesus, come on, just tell me, what are the qualities? What are the characteristics? What defines who my neighbor is? It's a fascinating response. It's fascinating because I think this man feels the weight of what Jesus has said. He feels the weight, do this and live. but instead of letting the weight of that crush him and bring him to humble repentance, he does whatever he can to avoid conviction. And it's such a commentary on our own hearts. How hard we try to avoid conviction. how hard and what gymnastics we do to avoid the sting of God's law. to avoid having our hearts condemn us for our failure to do what God has done. There are some brothers and sisters who call themselves Christians, who act like the conviction of sin is probably the worst possible thing that can ever happen to us. And if you are there and that's your mind and that's your heart, then that is a sign and it is evidence of hardness. And that's what's happening here. This man's attitude is immediately exposed to us. This lawyer is one whose head is full of knowledge, but whose heart is empty of all humility. This lawyer is a man who knows so much theology, but he knows nothing. of the conviction of God's law and he does whatever it takes to avoid it and to avoid the conviction, to find an excuse. He is in the grip, brothers and sisters, we need to see this and we need to understand this. This lawyer is in the grip of arrogance. He is being held fast and held tight by pride and by self-righteousness. And that's not a little thing because in that this man is gripped by things that are contrary to the gospel of free grace. What is it that the Apostle Paul says so strongly in the book of Romans, Romans chapter 3 verse 20, by the works of the law, no human being will be justified in the sight of God. By the works of the law, no human being can be justified in God's sight, but the law shuts every one of us up under conviction. Paul so graphically describes that in the third chapter of Romans. He says, here's what the law does. The law condemns us so that all you and I can do is clap our hands over our mouths and remain silent at the bar of God's justice. But this man knows nothing of keeping silence. He only knows what it is to excuse and justify himself by his own works. His attitude is exposed. Which then brings us to our third thought from these words, and that is mercy illustrated. Mercy illustrated, now we come to it, don't we? In verse 29, he desiring to justify himself said to Jesus, and who is my neighbor? And Jesus in verse 30, we read Jesus replied. And Jesus replies with a parable, with a story, with an illustration, a parable that most of us have learned if we've been born and raised in the church, Parable we probably learned when we were the age of our youngest children. Parable of a man who goes down from Jerusalem to Jericho on a very rugged and dangerous road. And he's robbed, he's not only robbed, he's stripped, he's beaten within an inch of his life. He's left there bloodied on the side of the road. A priest walks by, a Levite walks by, neither of them stop to attend. Then a Samaritan comes by. And what is the driving point? What is the point of this parable? It's this, that this Samaritan, as Jesus says in verse 33, had compassion. The theme of this parable is one of compassion. It is one of mercy, right? Even in verse 37, the lawyer recognizes this. This parable is about mercy. What is mercy? Simply defined, mercy is compassion. Mercy is looking upon the needs of others and having an empathy and a sympathy for that. And that's what this parable is all about. It is about mercy. And what's fascinating is that every little detail of this parable, brothers and sisters, it drips with mercy. And Jesus gives, in just a few words, such a vivid picture of what true compassion and true mercy is. And what do we see? How is mercy illustrated for us? Well, let me give you some ideas. We see that mercy is a rare thing. Mercy is rare. You know, there's so much here and I wish we had more time to go into it, but a priest comes, one who has just been in the temple worshiping God, and he walks down this road and he ignores the man. And then that man's laying there, and you can perhaps almost enter into his experience, oh, the priest has passed me by, but he looks, and there he sees a Levite coming down the road, and he says, well, surely this man will now stop and help me, this Levite, this man who had been set apart and consecrated to maintain the holy things in the synagogue. And the Levite passes him by, goes on to the other side of the road to avoid even coming near to this man. And then a Samaritan comes. A Samaritan comes. Two out of three people that came across this man ignored him. Brothers and sisters, true mercy is a rare thing. We see that mercy is not only rare, we see that it is risky. Jesus very intentionally chose, even though it's a fictional story, he very intentionally chose a very real setting. This road that goes down from Jerusalem to Jericho, literally a road that goes down, it descends. It's a very steep descent. And by that fact alone, it was a very dangerous road for people to walk on. It was a very rocky road. It had many caves. And it was a road, even in the days of Jesus, which was notorious for dangers, for thieves and for robbers. They would hide in the caves, they'd hide behind rocks, they would beat people, they would rob from them. Jesus very intentionally chooses this setting. And here we have a Samaritan who, despite the risks and the dangers, here's a man who is broken and bloodied and almost dead. And you can think what might've gone through the Samaritan's mind. Perhaps it went through the priest and the Levite's mind. If I stop, the robbers are gonna get me. So I'm just gonna keep going. But this Samaritan knows, despite the risks, I'm gonna stop. I'm gonna show mercy to this man. Brothers and sisters, mercy is sometimes risky. We have got to get out of our minds that safety is a Christian virtue. It's not. And mercy sometimes calls us to do risky things. We see, too, another element of mercy, and that is that mercy rejects. What do I mean by that? It's not without purpose that the one who stops is a Samaritan. Remember who the Samaritans were? Very briefly, Samaritans were, for all intents, they were half-breeds. In the Old Testament, when the Assyrians came to the Northern Kingdom, they didn't seek to destroy them, they sought to breed them out, intermixing the Assyrians with the Israelites so that the result was impure Israelites is how they were thought about. And through the years and through the centuries, the Samaritans became regarded as rather filthy dogs by the Israelites. Those are half breeds. We want nothing to do with them. And it's not without purpose that it is a Samaritan who stops. We're not told if the man who is broken and bruised is an Israelite, but it's a very good likelihood. The priest doesn't stop, the Levite doesn't stop, but the Samaritan does. And we find that for this Samaritan, for the mercy and the compassion that he's going to show, that brothers and sisters, to put it this way, mercy rejects distinctions. It does not look upon people and say, well, you're not the same skin color as me, so forget you. Mercy doesn't look at people and say, well, you're not my gender. I'm a man, you're a woman, forget that, no mercy, or I'm a woman, you're a man, not gonna do it. You're from a foreign land, you're from a different place, you look at things differently, you understand the world differently, you've got a different religion. Brothers and sisters, mercy rejects those distinctions. This Samaritan, all he sees is a man. A man who is bloodied and bruised and nearly dead. And that alone is enough for him to show mercy. Mercy rejects distinctions. It doesn't matter if you're poor. It doesn't matter if you're rich. It doesn't matter if, you know, think of this Samaritan. Think of this Samaritan just said, well, you know what? He got what he deserved. What an idiot. Walking this dangerous road by himself. He got what was coming to him. The Samaritan rejects all of that and shows mercy. Mercy also recognizes, doesn't it? It recognizes the need. We read that in verse 33, a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was and when he saw him, he had compassion. It is just a simple point, but mercy recognizes the needs around it. This man on this road recognizes before his own two eyes a tremendous need. And I wonder this morning, do we recognize all the needs around us? I'm not talking about needs in third world countries, I'm talking about needs that are present here. Needs that are present in our community. Young boys, young girls who are in need of mercy. aged men and aged women who are in need of mercy, poor people who are in need of mercy, rich people who need mercy. You see, mercy recognizes the needs that exist around us. Mercy takes responsibility. It takes responsibility. This Samaritan, unlike the priest and the Levi, it doesn't just walk by this man, but the Samaritan assumes responsibility to himself. This man is in need, and I am the one who is responsible to help by the providence of God. As God has brought this Samaritan and this broken and battered man together, the Samaritan assumes responsibility for the needs. That, brothers and sisters, is what mercy does. It sees a need, and it says, let me be responsible. Let me take this need upon myself. Let me do what I can to help. Mercy uses its resources. It's so interesting there in verse 34, he went to him and bound up his wounds. Most commentators agree that what this Samaritan likely did was pull strips of cloth from his own clothes. Do you think that Samaritan bought his clothes for that reason? Like, I'm going to wear this shirt today in case I find somebody that I can... No. But he used the resource that he had to bind up the wounds of this man. He pours oil and wine on his wounds. You don't buy wine in order to put on wounds. You buy wine to drink. But this Samaritan says, here's a need. Let me use the resources that I have, the things that I have been given, and I will do what I can with the resources that I have to meet this need. And it's a reminder to us, brothers and sisters, we have been given so that we can give. We have been blessed so that we can be a blessing. We have because others don't. And mercy drives us to use all of our resources as we can, as good stewards, to help those who are in need. Mercy relieves. It relieves. This Samaritan looks for every possible way that he can relieve the needs of this man. He binds his wounds. He pours oil and wine for their medicinal value upon him. He sets him upon his own animal. He takes him to an inn. He gives him to the innkeeper. He tells the innkeeper, you need to take care of him. When I come back, I will pay the difference. Whatever he costs, let me take care of. He goes to every extent he can to relieve the needs of this man. Mercy doesn't ask for repayment. It doesn't ask for repayment. This man beaten and bruised has nothing to give. He has been stripped naked. All the possessions that he had with him have been taken. His very life hangs in the balance. And this Samaritan does not come and say, you know, I'm going to do you a lot of good if you'll just do me a little favor in return. This Samaritan doesn't put, doesn't attach strings to his mercy. We'll all scratch your back if you scratch my back. The Samaritan doesn't ask for any repayment. He just gives and he gives and he gives some more. We find that mercy returns. He says to this shop owner, to this innkeeper, I'll return and I will continue to pay. I'm not just going to simply help him in the immediate moment, but I will come again to see that he's continuing to be taken care of. Every detail drips, brothers and sisters, with the glory of mercy. There's nine Rs for you this morning. Mercy is rare, and it is risky, and it rejects. Mercy recognizes, and it takes responsibility, and it uses its resources, and it relieves needs, and it doesn't seek repayment, and it returns. And I know that as we read this, the inclination of my heart, maybe it's yours, is to say, well, wait a minute, put on the break. Stop for a second. Surely there's got to be a qualification here. Surely we've got to find a way to reason ourself out of this. What about this? What about that? And we want qualification upon qualification, but Jesus doesn't give a single qualification here. He says, here's mercy. Here's what compassion looks like. Here is the perfect and pure full forced mercy. And what is Jesus doing in illustrating mercy, to put it this way, I know it's a little graphic, but to put it this way this morning, he is plunging the knife of conviction deep into the heart of this lawyer. Here's what it means to love your neighbor. Which brings us to our final thought briefly this morning. Our final thought, which is a subject changed. A subject change. One of the most striking things about this parable, let me put it this way. Remember the question that this lawyer asks. He asks, who is my neighbor? How do we expect, if we don't know what Jesus is going to say, how would you expect Jesus to answer? You would expect Jesus to give this parable and to say, now, Mr. Lawyer, tell me who is your neighbor? And we would expect Jesus to say the man who was in need, whoever that man is and whatever the need is, that's your neighbor. That's what we expect Jesus to say because that's the question the lawyer asked, who is my neighbor? But what I want you to see, because this is the most striking thing about this parable, is Jesus doesn't do what we expect Jesus to do. He doesn't say, now, Mr. Lawyer, the man who is broken and bruised is your lawyer, but look at it, Jesus very subtly changes the subject all together. The lawyer says, who is my neighbor? And it's as if Jesus doesn't even like the question, because he doesn't answer the question. Rather, look at what Jesus says in verse 36. Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers? The lawyer says, Jesus, you tell me who my neighbor is. And Jesus is saying, no, no, no, no. The lawyer is saying, tell me Jesus, give me the qualities, give me the characteristics, describe for me who my neighbor is that I am to love as myself. And Jesus is saying, it doesn't matter who your neighbor is, it matters who you are. Who among these three proved to be a neighbor? not who is my neighbor, who proved to be a neighbor. And the lawyer says, and it's interesting in verse 37, he can't even bring himself to say the Samaritan, can he? He just says the one who showed mercy. And Jesus is changing the subject. He's turning the tables on this man, this lawyer who says in his self-righteousness as a way to justify and excuse himself, Jesus, who's my neighbor? And Jesus says it's the wrong question altogether. The question is not who is your neighbor, the question is what kind of neighbor are you? The question is are you a person of mercy? Are you a person who shows love and compassion to those around you? The lawyer says, who is the neighbor? And Jesus is saying, who are you? And you see the driving application of it all, Jesus himself provides in five words, you go and do likewise. And when we feel the force of that, when we understand what Jesus is saying, The natural question must be how. If that's what it's like to love my neighbor, I haven't even begun to love my neighbor. If that's what mercy looks like, and there's probably so much more that we could add to that list, I question whether I've ever shown an ounce of mercy to anyone. The question is how? We don't know what this lawyer did, but Jesus is driving home this point. The only way to do this is to be a person who humbly comes, prostrates themselves before God in humble repentance, pleading for forgiveness and pardon. and out of the grace and the strength and the power that his gospel gives, endeavors to be one who loves their neighbor as themselves, to be a person of mercy and compassion. The parable of the Good Samaritan, brothers and sisters, first and foremost, drives us completely out of ourselves and drives us to Jesus. And out of the glorious truth of his gospel, the one who has shown us mercy and unlimited compassion, says, Lord, by your gospel grace, make me that kind of neighbor. Let's pray.