Expanding the Neighborhood

Preliminary

GOOD MORNING VINEYARD WESTSIDE!

Psalm 118:24 ESV

24 This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

I’m Christine Patel and I am glad to be bringing you the message this week, yet sad at the same time because me standing up here means that our beloved pastor, Ryan Is not well enough to be back with us. It grieves me to know that he continues to be in so much pain. I know that he looks forward to being back with us and appreciates your continued prayers.

Announcements:

Due to the holiday, Chosen Group, Community Dinner and Food Pantry will not happen tomorrow. The Food Pantry is also closed on Thursday this week. If anyone is in need of food, see me after service.

Creative Worship on Tuesday at 5:30. Art supplies are provided and you can bring your own.

Next Sunday after service the newly formed Peacemakers Ministry for Vets and 1st Responders will meet in the loft.

On Sunday September 14 we will be hosting Jason David as a guest speaker during our regular Sunday service. You can read a bit about his inspiring the bulletin.

Rick Schwemberger is organizing a group to go to Big Creek in mid October Again, check the bulletin for details.

Prayer over Offering Lord, you are such a great provider… Help us to be good stewards of all that you give to us—both as individuals and as a church. Please teach us kingdom math which allows us to step out in faith when our bottom would indicate that we hold back. Show us where these resources would enhance your Kingdom best, whether that is something for this house you have so generously provided for us, or for outreach to our neighbors. Lord, I ask your blessing on our leaders—our board that who do such a good job stewarding our finances. Guide them, reassure them, give them wisdom. In the name of Jesus

Introduction

Reintroduce self First visited VWS in September 2015 and became a regular here sometime in 2016.

Some of you know that I have done the communion meditaitons recently. I’ve never been center stage like this before as I like to keep the communion elements central during those meditations—and I think that you can’t see me because I’m off to the side.

A little nervous to be here center stage,

No worries, not picturing you all in your underwear

Hail Mary Story So, if I anything about chickens in my yard you will know that I am losing it…

This morning we will be diving into parable of Good Samaritan found in Luke 10. Despite its biblical origin, it is widely quoted in secular circles and speeches by politicians and educators alike. It is used as a shorthand for the humanitarian value of doing good. Perhaps it’s so secularized that we think we know the meaning but what did Jesus want to teach through this parable?

A parable is just a short simple story usually taken from everyday experiences, meant to communicate a spiritual truth or moral lesson. It comes from the greek word (pada-bowl) parabolē meaning “laying by the side of” implying a comparison or likeness. The imagery in parables from the Bible might not be relatable today as they would be everyday experiences common in biblical times.

Let’s look at the text

Scripture

Luke 10:25–37 ESV

25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put Jesus to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 Jesus replied, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” 27 And he answered, “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.” 28 And Jesus said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.” 29 But the lawyer, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30 Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where the man was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and 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, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ 36 Jesus asked Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” 37 The lawyer answere, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”

Let’s look at some aspects of this story.

Setting

Luke doesn’t give us much information on the setting for this parable. We do know from verse 9:51 that Jesus is well into His ministry and that He is on His final journey to Jerusalem where he will be tried and crucified. This perhaps gives a certain urgency to His message, as His time with His disciples is running out. We know that He is somewhere between Capernaum and Jerusalem and that His disciples are with Him. How large the audience was is unknown.

Luke 9:51 NIV

51 As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.

Lawyer

Luke 10:25–28 NIV

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.”

First, the lawyer here is not the ethical, generous, kind professional that we think of today when somebody says lawyer. A lawyer back then would have been an expert in the Mosaic law—the Law of Moses. This guy would have been a part of the religious hierarchy.

Which explains why he would be putting Jesus to the test — by this time, Jesus had performed a lot of miracles, well known, radical message… but He was resonating with the people, which was a threat to the religious hierarchy. So, they were looking to trap Him in what he was saying so they could find a reason to have Him executed.

Eternal Life

The lawyer asked Jesus what he would have to do to inherit eternal life. This was a common question that rabbis of that time were asked. It was a common teaching that people had to do things in order to inherit the Kingdom.

Perhaps this is a bit confusing because as Christians we know that we are saved by grace through faith. We are not saved by the law. We are not saved by doing. Jesus knew that despite the man’s answer, no one could follow the law perfectly to love God with all of your heart, soul, strength and mind and love your neighbor as yourself. We need Jesus to do that.

More on that later.

Jesus knew that people could not follow these laws. While loving God and loving people should always be the ambition of our hearts-the reality is if eternal life hinges on how perfectly we follow the law to love God and love others as we love ourselves, we are all doomed.

The Law

Leviticus, Deuteronomy The man answers answers with laws that are written in Leviticus and Deuteronomy.

You have answered correctly, do this and you shall live. Though he had the right answer, Jesus knew that the man would not be able to live up to those laws. But, the lawyer likely didn’t realize that. These religious folks equated knowing the law, with following the law. And we see this because he’s looking for the loophole…. What’s his second question?

Who Is My Neighbor?

Luke 10:29–32 ESV

29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30 Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.

(My husband likes to say “don’t ask a question unless you really want to know the answer”

Perhaps the lawyer felt like that after Jesus told the parable.)

By asking “who is my neighbor” we see that the man doesn’t believe that everyone is His neighbor. Jews of that day thought they were only obligated to help other Jews.

From Jerusalem to Jericho

Jerusalem is here and Jericho is about 17 miles to the north. They say going down to Jericho because Jerusalem is about 3000 feet higher in elevation than Jericho. And it is a pretty treacherous descent. Its a winding road down a mountain with steep cliffs and canyons on each side. There were also wild animals and dangerous weather conditions. But people making pilgrimage to Jerusalem and those who had business there had to travel this road. And, had to bring their money and whatever else with them. Priests had to go and serve in the temple twice a year. And Jericho was a fairly wealthy city. King Herod had a palace there.

The road was also notorious for thieves. People traveling the road alone were subject to being robbed in violent attacks by criminals who had not shortage of hiding spots along this road. Some say that the Valley of the Shadow of Death is found along this road. I think it is more of a metaphorical place, but it is nicknamed the Blood Road.

So, it was a dangerous road back in the first century, and remained so well into the 20th C. Even today people who take trips to Israel will tell you about terrifying bus rides along the road between Jericho and Jerusalem.

We are not told any identifying information about the man or why he was on this road to Jericho. Since Jesus was addressing a Jewish audience, most think He was talking about a Jewish man.

Priest and Levite

It’s well known that the priest and the Levite—also part of the religious hierarchy at the time did not help this poor guy dying along the side of the road. And there could be good reasons for that. They don’t want to get attacked themselves. The thieves could still be lurking behind a boulder… And there were legalistic considerations. Under their laws a priest would be defiled if he were to touch a dead body and both of them would be unclean if they came in contact with blood. The irony is that they were coming from Jerusalem where they both likely had performed religious duties in the temple. We can see how Jesus would have a problem with religious people who perform legal duties to the letter but ignore a person in great need.

Samaritan

Luke 10:33–35 ESV

33 But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’

Then, along comes a Samaritan.

Here’s Jesus setting up someone the Jews absolutely despised as the hero of the story! The expectation probably would have been for a Pharisee to come in as the third person and be the hero of this story.

Why did the Jews and Sams hate one another? it’s a animosity older than Ohio State and University of Michigan or the Bengals Steelers rivalry.

The united kingdom consisted of the 12 Tribes of Israel . Following King Solomon’s death 920-930 BC his son Rehoboam became king. The 10 tribes in the north didn’t like Rehoboam so they split from the 2 tribes in the South. Many in the he northern kingdom began worshipping other Gods. And God left them to the consequences of their betrayal. About 200 years later, the Northern Kingdom fell to the Assyrians. Many of the people of Israel were taken captive and otherwise scattered throughout the Assyrian Empire. At the same time, Assyrians and other Gentiles who had been captured by the Assyrians moved into this area and intermarried with the remaining Jewish people. Because they had married Gentiles,

The Jews in the south were also having problems. Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians and the Jews were taken captive and shipped off to Babylonia. Before the Jews could return to Jerusalem the Babylonians destroyed their temple on Mt Zion.

Once they returned, they wanted to rebuild the temple. And the Samaritans, considering themselves at least part Jewish, came to help. Only to be rejected by the Jews in the south. So, the Samaritans tried to ;thwart the efforts to rebuild the temple by attacking and hindering progress. Eventually they built their own temple on Mt. Gerizim which the Jews then destroyed. So

the Jews from the south no longer considered them to be Jews. The Sams tried to help the Jews rebulid the temple and were rejected. So they tried to stop the rebuilding of the temple. Built their own temple on Mt Gerizim which the Jews destroyed in 128 BC

When Jesus first told this parable the term Good Sam oxymoron. The only good Samaritan would have been a dead Samaritan. It is only in modern times where the parable is held up as a model for kindness that the Samaritan is seen as good.

The lawyer that Jesus was talking to would have cringed at the mention of a samaritan.

Actions of Samaritan

And, how does Jesus portray this Samaritan?

The Samaritan saw the man with compassion. When the priest and Levite saw the man they saw him with concern—for themselves. To bind up his wounds the Sam would have likely had to use his own clothing. The wine and oil came from the limited provisions he was traveling with.

Danarii was a day’s wage. He spent 2 of them. Think about the last time you spent 2 days wages on something. Not an insignificant sum. The Inns of that day were not like the Holiday Inn. More like someone with extra space in their house or barn. A danarii would have paid for a stay of anywhere from one week to one month. And the Samaritan was willing to spend more than that if that is what it took.

Jesus’ 2d Question

When Jesus finishes the parable, he flips the lawyer’s question around. He didn’t answer who is my neighbor—If a Samaritan is going to go to such lengths to help a Jew in the 1st Century, then there is no scenario where someone is not your neighbor. Instead, Jesus taught what it means to be a neighbor.

And for his part, the guy wouldn’t even say Samaritan! instead he said “the one who showed him mercy”.

“…go and do likewise.” Show mercy to people in need of mercy. Who is your neighbor? anyone in need of mercy.

And, oh by the way. The old testament law of loving your neighbor as yourself has been elevated to the higher command to love one another as Christ has loved you. John 13:34

John 13:34 NIV

34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.

And how has Jesus loved us? Jesus loved us as the Good Samaritan in His story. Despised and rejected, it is Jesus who rescued us, bound up our wounds and paid the price for us. And He calls us to go and do likewise.

What does it mean?

What does it mean for us? Jesus has busted down the boundaries of the neighborhood. He doesn’t look at the world and see groups of people who are different from each other. He sees a broken world full of people in need of love and mercy. And He’s calling on us to deliver that love and mercy to everyone we encounter. And the only way we are going to love people properly is if we love Jesus first. Then, he’ll give us the ability to love one another as He has loved us. The deeper we grow in our relationship with Jesus, the greater our capacity to love all kinds of neighbors.

Matthew 5:7 ESV

7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

Sometimes we’re called to be the Samaritan, and sometimes we’re the guy lying by the side of the road.

He doesn’t see us as categories—as others, only family. And to love as He loved we are to do the same. We are to broaden the neighborhood until there are no more others, only neighbors.

Prayer

Let’s pray…

Peace be this house, and to the households of everyone gathered here this morning. Jesus, we ask for your courage in loving our neighbors. There are so many in this world of over 8 billion people that need your love and mercy. You know everyone of intimately, and you know who each of us will encounter Show us how to be the conduits of that mercy to the people you put on our paths. Strengthen us so that we can love one another as you have loved us. In Jesus’ name. Amen