Just Christians: Justice & the Second Greatest Commandment

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Now turn in your Bibles to Luke 10:25 as Ramona Rogers comes to read for us.

Scripture Reading (Luke 10:25-29)

Prayer of Praise (Ramona Rogers)

I Stand Amazed (How Marvelous)

Prayer of Confession (Cliff Hall)

Lead Me to the Cross

New City Catechism #6

Pastoral Prayer (Mike Lindell)

SERMON

This is a story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody.

There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it.

Somebody got angry about that, because it was Everybody’s job.

Everybody thought Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn’t do it.

It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have.

The story may be a bit confusing, but the message is clear: when nobody takes responsibility nothing gets accomplished.

Talked about a host of justice issues and concluded that the mission of the church isn’t to fight injustice, but to make disciples.

That does not mean that it’s nobody’s job to fight injustice.

Last week we said that the church’s job is to make disciples, the Christian’s job is to be a disciple.

If your job is to be a disciple, then part of being a follower of Jesus is learning and applying what it means to be a just Christian.

A just Christian loves his neighbor as himself.

Turn to Luke 10:25

Written by a physician named Luke (one of Paul’s traveling companions) so that God’s people may know with certainty the things we’ve been taught by and about Jesus.

By the time you get to Luke 10, Jesus has already prophesied twice that He’s going to die

In Luke 9:51 we learn that Jesus has “set His face to go to Jerusalem” meaning that He’s resolved to go to the cross

From this point on, every story in Luke’s gospel is just setting the stage for Jesus’ crucifixion

Including our story today, where Jesus tells what is perhaps the most popular parable He ever told. . .

Read Luke 10:25-37

25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “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 he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”

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. 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.’ 36 Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” 37 He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”

Even though this story is perhaps the most popular parable Jesus told, it may also be the most misunderstood.

Far too many explanations of this story seem one-dimensional:

This story is only talking about justice and mercy OR this story has nothing to say about justice and mercy

This story is all about Jesus, the real Good Samaritan OR this story isn’t about Jesus at all

I want us to have a three-dimensional view of this story, so together let’s examine it from three angles.

And along the way, we’ll learn that a just Christian loves his neighbor as himself. Let’s begin by considering the first angle . . .

1) Without Christ, You Can’t Love Like This.

This is the main point of the story.

Jesus’ main point in telling this story is not to show us how to be a Good Samaritan. His main point in telling this story is to show us how desperately we need the Gospel.

Structure of the passage:

SHOW CHART

Lawyer asks a question >Jesus asks a question > Lawyer answers Jesus > Jesus answers the lawyer (repeated 2x)

Lawyer asks a question > v. 25 “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

Lawyer = expert in the law and a theologian, since the law he’s an expert on is the law of God in the Pentateuch

His question is your clue this is a story about inheriting eternal life

Receive inheritance by being born into the right family, not by doing! (this man doesn’t understand the Gospel of grace)

Jesus asks a question > v. 26 “What is written in the law? How do you read it?”

Why doesn’t Jesus answer His softball question by telling the lawyer to repent and believe?

Jesus knows this man isn’t ready to receive the Good News. He’s not sincerely asking. He’s trying to test Jesus. (v. 25)

Christian: before anyone is ready to receive the Good News, they must understand the bad news. You have to get them lost before you get them saved!

Lawyer answers Jesus > v. 27 “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.”

On the one hand, this is a brilliant answer!

In Mark 12 and Matthew 22, Jesus says these are the two greatest commandments in the entire Old Testament law

Greatest Commandment = love God (Deuteronomy 6:5)

2nd Greatest Commandment = love neighbor (Leviticus 19:18)

On the other hand, this is a horrible answer, because Jesus never said that by doing these we would inherit eternal life

Jesus answers the lawyer > v. 28 “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”

I imagine Jesus has a twinkle in His eye and a slight smirk on His face, when He says this

He uses the present tense, meaning “keep doing this” . . . the requirement is PERFECTION

Can and of you do this perfectly?

R.C. Sproul—"Imagine, if you will, that someone did actually succeed in loving God with all his heart, strength, soul and mind. Even then, he would still be only half-way home, because he would still have to fulfil the second part of the Great Commandment: Love your neighbour as yourself. That, at times, is even more difficult than to love God, for God is altogether lovely. There is no just reason for us not to love God, but there are plenty of reasons why we would find it difficult to love all of our neighbours as much as we love ourselves."

Then the cycle repeats itself again. . .

Lawyer asks a question > v. 29 “And who is my neighbor?”

Luke tells us this lawyer is trying to justify himself. He’s feeling guilt and conviction. He knows that the law is an impossible standard!

It’s interesting that the lawyer asks about the second greatest commandment, not the first

I think that’s because most religious people think they love God well. But they know they do not love everybody as they should.

“It is easier to profess love for God and to observe religious rituals as proof of this love for him than it is to show love for one’s neighbor.” (Craig Evans, Matthew—Luke)

Now in those days, it was common for the religious elite to teach that your neighbor was your fellow Jew, but certainly not everybody. We know this because . . .

Matthew 5:43-44—“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you”

This lawyer is hoping that Jesus will allow him to get away with only loving the people who are like him

Jesus asks a question . . .

Before Jesus asks the question, He tells the parable of the Good Samaritan. But He tells that parable in order to set up His question

This entire story is set in the context of an evangelism encounter between Jesus and a religious lawyer

Jesus’ question . . . v. 36 “Which of these three [priest, Levite, or Samaritan], do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?”

Lawyer answers Jesus > v. 37 “The one who showed him mercy.”

Interesting that the lawyer can’t bring himself to say “Samaritan”

Samaritans were hated by the Jews. They were religious and ethnic half-breeds

John 8:48—The Jews answered [Jesus], “Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?”

But he can’t avoid the obvious answer to Jesus’ question. It is the Samaritan who proved himself to be a good neighbor.

Jesus answers the lawyer > v. 37 “You go, and do likewise.”

This is brilliant. The lawyer asks, “who’s my neighbor,” and instead of talking about who our neighbor is, Jesus wants us to see what a good neighbor looks like!

Again, Jesus’ main point in telling this story is not to show us how to be a Good Samaritan. His main point in telling this story is to show us how desperately we need the Gospel.

Do you always love those near you with this kind of love?

We don’t know how the lawyer responds to Jesus’ story, but the first right response for all of us is “Lord be merciful to me, a sinner.”

A just Christian loves his neighbor as himself. But without Christ you can’t love like this. Let’s consider a second angle to this story. . .

2) By Christ, You Are Loved Like This.

Throughout church history, this parable was often interpreted allegorically

Common method of interpretation that saw a hidden meaning in every element of the story

Origen of Alexandria (2nd century theologian)—The man who was going down is Adam. Jerusalem is paradise, and Jericho is the world. The robbers are hostile powers. The priest is the Law, the Levite is the prophets, and the Samaritan is Christ. The wounds are disobedience, the beast is the Lord's body, the [inn], which accepts all who wish to enter, is the Church. ... The manager of the [inn] is the head of the Church, to whom its care has been entrusted. And the fact that the Samaritan promises he will return represents the Savior's second coming.

Similar interpretations were held by Irenaeus, Clement, Chrysostom, Ambrose, Augustine, and many others

Allegory is not a helpful tool for interpreting the Bible. We should interpret the Bible according to the plain meaning that the author intended.

However, I do think that Jesus wants us to see Himself in this parable

Not necessarily as the Good Samaritan, but as the perfect example of the love that the Good Samaritan exhibited

John 15:12-13—This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends

Consider two parallels between this story and the Gospel story. . .

A) The man’s condition and the condition of sinners

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.

Road from Jerusalem to Jericho is a 17 mile descent. In that day was one of the most dangerous roads on earth (called “the way of blood”)

The man is beaten and robbed and left penniless, naked, and dying. There is nothing he can do for himself. His future will depend on the care of another.

Apart from Christ, the sinner’s condition is far worse. . .

Ephesians 2:1-3—And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

Not merely half-dead, but entirely dead!

Not victims of robbers on a road. This is self-inflicted.

But like the man in Jesus’ story, there is nothing we can do for ourselves. Our future depends on the care of another.

Jonathan Edwards—"You contribute nothing to your salvation except the sin that made it necessary."

B) The Samaritan’s care and the care of Christ

Jesus’ story is surprising because it’s not the priest or the Levite who care for this dying man on the side of the road. Those men were the religious elites (like the lawyer). But they moved away, not towards the dying man. It was the hated Samaritan that went to help.

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.’

The Samaritan sees the condition of the man, he feels compassion, he goes to the man in his need, he treats his wounds, he pays for his treatment, and he promises to return (important because the man would be enslaved if someone doesn’t pay the bill)

Jesus sees our condition and feels compassion for us

Psalm 103:13-14—As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.

Matthew 9:36—When [Jesus] saw the crowds, He had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

Jesus came to us

Luke 19:10—For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.

Jesus treats our wounds

Mark 2:18b—“Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”

1 Peter 2:24—He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.

Jesus pays our fine

Revelation 5:9—And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed [purchased!!!] people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation”

Jesus promises to return to deliver us

Revelation 22:12-13—“Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”

Have you received this love? The lawyer was wrong. You don’t inherit eternal life by anything you do. You receive it as a gift. All God requires is for you to turn from your sin and trust in Jesus alone.

Come, ye sinners, poor and needy, weak and wounded, sick and sore; Jesus ready stands to save you, full of pity, love, and power.

Come, ye thirsty, come and welcome, God's free bounty glorify; true belief and true repentance, ev'ry grace that brings you nigh.

Let not conscience make you linger, nor of fitness fondly dream; all the fitness he requireth is to feel your need of him.

Come, ye weary, heavy laden, lost and ruined by the fall; if you tarry till you're better, you will never come at all.

A just Christian loves his neighbor as himself. By Christ you are loved like this. Let’s consider a final angle to this story. . .

3) In Christ, You Must Love Like This.

Yes, Jesus’ main point in telling this parable is to expose our sinful failure to love as we ought. That said, I don’t think we should stop there. After all, Jesus is telling a story to illustrate what it looks like to fulfill the second greatest commandment.

Therefore, if you’re a Christian, you must love your neighbor like this.

1 John 4:7-8, 20-21—Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. . . . If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.

The Christian’s response to an unjust world is to love his neighbor as himself.

Am I loving like this? Five Questions:

A) Who are you near?

The word neighbor literally means “one who is near”

The Good Samaritan isn’t a social justice warrior, scanning the Jericho road looking for injustices to fight against. He’s a traveler who happens to come across a needy neighbor.

Who are you near? —People that live in your neighborhood, co-workers, friends, family, people you regularly interact with, etc.

My sister lives 6 hours away in West Virginia, but I have a greater responsibility to be a neighbor to her than most of the 178K people who live in her county. Why? Because most of them will never interact with her.

B) What do you see?

What is Biblical justice?—Conformity to God’s moral standards as revealed in Scripture (1) by giving all humans their due as image-bearers of God, especially the most vulnerable and (2) by impartially rendering judgment, righting wrongs and punishing lawbreakers.

This is not a command for every Christian to remedy every injustice. Instead, what needs do you see near you?

Kevin DeYoung—the Principle of Moral Proximity: “the closer the need, the greater the moral obligation to help.” (What Is the Mission of the Church, 183)

James 2:15-17—If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

Yet in 2 Corinthians 8-9, Paul doesn’t command the Corinthians to give to meet the needs of the poverty-stricken Jerusalem church. He invites them to help. What’s the difference? The closer the need, the greater the moral obligation to help.

What needs do you see near you?

C) What do you feel?

We’re not sure what the Levite and the priest felt. Maybe they felt superior. Maybe they felt the man on the side of the road got what he deserved. Maybe they felt pity, but unable to help. Maybe they felt guilty. Maybe they felt scared, because helping this man could’ve endangered them.

The Samaritan felt compassion.

He gave what was in himself before he gave anything external to himself

At the Lausanne missions gathering in 2010, John Piper said “we should care about all suffering, especially eternal suffering.” (Deyoung, Crazy Busy, )

Care not necessarily do

Christians should care about all suffering. The heart that doesn’t care about suffering is a heart that’s hardened.

Do you feel compassion when you see suffering? If not, move closer.

It’s significant that the priest and the Levite move away from the hurting.

It’s hard to hate up close.

D) What do you have?

The Good Samaritan doesn’t start an activist campaign to bring justice to the robbers on the roadside (although that wouldn’t be a bad thing)

He uses what he has to help how he can

Oil, wine, bandages, donkey, time, money (but even that was limited because he only gives two denarii)

What do you have that could help the vulnerable around you?

Time—CareNet, abortion clinic sidewalk counseling with Don Karns, ESL, Good News Jail & Prison Ministry, Menchville House, Peninsular Rescue Mission, your own ministry, etc.

Money—Any of these ministries or others!

Gifts—

Passion—

Influence—

E) What will you do?

“You go, and do likewise.”

You are not called to respond to every injustice.

The closer the need, the greater the obligation to help.

Do something!

A just Christian loves his neighbor as himself. In Christ you must love like this.

My dad filling up the van with diesel fuel

If you love like the Good Samaritan loved, you better have the right fuel or you’ll quickly burn out.

Grace, not guilt or grit

LORD’S SUPPER

1 Cor. 11:26—For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

Proclaiming His death = GRACE!!!

Didn’t receive a communion cup when you came in and you want to take communion with us, hold your hand up.

But before you prepare to take, let’s remind ourselves what the Lord’s Supper is and who it’s for.

Bread—represents the body of Jesus

Cup—represents the blood of Jesus

Because the Lord’s Supper is pointing to Jesus and the Gospel, it’s for those who have trusted Him!

Not a Christian? Don’t take (even if we gave you cup). Receive Christ!

Christian? Take with joy! Yes, confess sin but don’t forget the point of the meal is that you’re not good enough. But you’re trusting in the One who is.

Peel back the layer of plastic covering the bread. Thank Jesus for giving His body for you.

For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”

Peel back the layer of plastic covering the cup. Thank Jesus for shedding His blood for you.

In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”

Let’s sing together

Great Are You Lord

Benediction (Mike Lindell)