Luke 10:25-37 - Prove to Be a Neighbor

Notes

#1: The Word of God understood is the truth (vv. 25-28a)

We cannot understand the Word of God apart from Jesus, the Word made flesh. He is the interpretive key that unlocks the Bible. He is the judge of our understanding Scripture. That’s why here, when the lawyer answers, it is Jesus who says, “You have answered correctly.”

We shall not understand how to inherit eternal life unless we understand the Word of God through the person of Jesus Christ. When we do understand it through Him, we understand that inheriting eternal life is not something we work for—no; the inheritance of eternal life is something given to us because of what Jesus did for us.

We can only understand the truth of God’s Word through Jesus who is the truth.

#2: The Word of God is the way

#2: The Word of God obeyed is the life (vv. 26-28)

If we could obey the Word of God perfectly in loving God with our whole person and loving neighbor as we love ourselves, then we would be saved, because these two commandments sum all the Law and the Prophets (i.e., they sum up the whole of God’s Word given to His people before Jesus came in the flesh). We cannot, however, obey God’s Word perfectly. We will not love God with our whole person. Nor will we love our neighbors as ourselves.

[Illus: William Carey, Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength…]

We will not and cannot do this as we should so we will not live. The price for sin (i.e., failing to obey God’s commands) is death. What we need then is someone to perfectly keep the Law for us and to pay the price for our failure to keep it.

Jesus, the Word made flesh, obeyed the Word of God perfectly and died on the cross to pay the price of death, which should’ve been ours because of our failure to keep God’s Law.

<Failure might be a bad word because it brings up the idea that we were trying to keep God’s Law but just came up short. From time to time, that may have been true, but there were also many times when we didn’t just fail to keep God’s Law—we also intentionally broke His Law.>

#3: The Word of God lived is the way (vv. 29-37)

Knowledge of the Word of God is not enough—it must be lived. His Word shows us how to live. Indeed, if we truly are alive to God through faith in Christ and understand His Word as we should, we will strive to live according to His Word. The NT has various ways of calling for this—we are told to put on the new man in Christ Jesus or to bear fruit in keeping with repentance or to simply bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit living inside of us. In the Parable of the Good Samaritan, living the Word of God leads the Samaritan to show compassion to a man robbed and left for dead—a man others (who supposedly lived according to God’s Word) intentionally passed by. In effect they were also leaving him for dead.

Jesus, the Word made flesh, shows us the way of obedience to the Word of God in this situation. The one who obeyed God’s neighbor command was the Samaritan who saw what the priest and Levite saw but felt something different. They saw a half-dead man and so did the Samaritan, but whereas they felt disgust or inconvenience, the Samaritan felt compassion, and His compassion led him to act differently. He came near, bandage and treated wounds, took the robbed man to safety, cared for him, and paid for extended care.

This is the way of Jesus who felt compassion toward us; who came near to us in His incarnation; who healed us with the stripes He bore in His body on the cross; who paid the price for our eternal life through giving of His own life.

He was raised from the dead, ascended to Heaven, and will return to carry us to the eternal safety and healing of Heaven. And we shall not every worry about how to pay for it all—Jesus paid it all!

This is His way and we are to follow Him in it as we care for our neighbors.

We are neighbors to those we on whom we have compassion and to whom we show mercy.

Conclusion

Jesus is the truth, the life, and the way. Or as says, He is the way, the truth, and the life. No one will come to the Father but through Him.

No one will know the truth but through Him.

No one will know the life but through Him.

No one will know the way but through Him.

The real question at the end of this parable is, “Do you know Jesus? Have you trusted Him as Savior? Have bowed before Him as Lord? Will you give yourself completely to Him? Will you follow Him?”

Because of Him, you will inherit eternal life.

Because of Him, you will love God.

Because of Him, you will love your neighbor.

And because of Him, you will do this and live.