Fifth Sunday after Pentecost 2025

Luke 10:25-37

Rev. Neli Miranda

As Jesus makes his way toward Jerusalem, an expert in the Law approaches to test him, asking “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” In an ingenious move, Jesus turns the question back to the expert, redirecting him to his own field of knowledge. Jesus poses two key questions, not just about the content of the Law but, crucially, about the expert’s personal interpretation of the Law: “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” The expert answers brilliantly, synthesizing two core commandments: “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.” To this, Jesus responds directly and affirms, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.”

Given that the expert’s initial question was a test, his follow-up is an attempt to justify himself, and seeking to define the limits of his obligation, the expert asks, “And who is my neighbor?” In response, Jesus tells him and the audience one of the most powerful and well-known Christian parable: “The Good Samaritan”.

This parable is about a man, presumably a Jew, traveling the dangerous road from Jerusalem down to Jericho. On the road, he fell into the hands of robbers who stripped him of his clothing, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. By chance, a Jewish priest was going down that same road, but upon seeing the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, who came upon the same place and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. Both the priest and the Levite were official representatives of Jewish religious observance. As religious officials, they were obligated to avoid ritual impurity, which could be contracted by touching a corpse, and so they did not aid the dying man.

Some Bible scholars suggest that the priest and the Levite may have assumed the man was dead and thus avoided him to maintain their ritual purity. On the other hand, other scholars argue that since they were traveling downhill—away from Jerusalem and toward Jericho—their service at the temple was likely completed, freeing them from such restrictions. Still furthermore, the Mishnah (the codified oral tradition) made an exception for neglected corpses, meaning these religious men could have found justification to help that man on the road. Ultimately, nothing seems to justify their failure to even check if the man was alive or death. Although they knew the Law, apparently for them, the reading and interpretation of the Law was a ritual formalism which took precedence over mercy so they chose ritual over compassion.

In stark contrast to the religious officials, a “despised” Samaritan becomes the example of mercy. When he sees the wounded man, he is moved with visceral compassion (splanchnizomai in Greek—the same word used for the compassion of God). Luke tells us that “… he was moved with pity. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them [his own valuable provisions]”. Then he sat the man on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day, when the Samaritan departed, he paid the innkeeper and promised to cover any further expenses upon his return. His mercy was radical, sacrificial, and complete!

The expert in the Law is now able to answer his own question, “Who, then, is my neighbor?” Jesus does not define “neighbor”, but instead asks him, “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?” This final question brilliantly brings back Jesus’ earlier question, “How do you read it?”. Forced to answer, the expert in the Law replies, “The one who showed mercy on him.” Notably, he avoids the word “Samaritan”, revealing the depth of the prejudice Jesus is confronting. Jesus’s final command is simple and inescapable: “You go, and do likewise.”

Sisters and brothers, some weeks ago we read in Luke that the Samaritans denied Jesus and his disciples’ entry into their villages. So why do you think Jesus chose a Samaritan as the protagonist in the parable? There was every reason to disconnect a Samaritan from benevolence. Yet, Jesus does just the opposite!Through this story, Jesus confronts not only the expert in the Law but the prevailing religious interpretation of his day, revealing that its understanding of “neighbor” was narrow. Traditionally, a neighbor was defined as “one of their own people,” a definition that explicitly excluded Samaritans and Gentiles. Jesus dismantles this boundary, teaching that “our neighbor” is not defined by shared ethnicity or religion, but by another’s profound need and our active response to it.

As disciples of Jesus, we are challenged to stop asking, “Who is my neighbor?” This question presupposes a boundary—a line we draw between those who qualify for our love and those who do not. Instead, Jesus compels us to ask, “To whom will I be a neighbor today?” Our call is not to identify people “worthy of our love” but to become neighbors to anyone we encounter who has been wounded on the journey of life.

“What is written in the Scriptures about loving our neighbor? And more importantly, how do we read it?”  How might we respond to both of Jesus’ question today?

In a world so often filled with religiosity that turns away from those in need, let us be the one who cross the road. Let us be the Good Samaritan! Amen.

https://www.memeversion.com/bible/luke/10/