Link to full passage on Bible Gateway
Emor
- Speak
When Jesus told the parable about the good Samaritan, he was perhaps referencing
the law for the priests to keep themselves undefiled from death as described in
Leviticus 21. For, it was an expert in the law who asked Jesus, “What must I do
to inherit eternal life?” Jesus asked the expert how he interpreted the Law. “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” the
expert replied (Luke 10:25-27). “You have answered correctly” Jesus said. “Do
this and you will live” (Luke 10:28). But wanting to justify himself, the
expert asked Jesus, “who is my neighbor?” Why was the expert wanting to justify
himself? Did he think that the law
excused him from showing love to certain people? Jesus addressed this by
telling the man a parable And Jesus made sure that the man understood the point
of the parable – that it is not the one who follows the law perfectly who is a
neighbor… rather it is the one who shows mercy. And Jesus said, “Go and do
likewise”. So, the moral of the story seems to be, that if in keeping God’s
law we do not demonstrate love toward God (and) our neighbor – we are misrepresenting
the intent of the law - which is love. Dear
Father, thank You for the parable of the good Samaritan. May we learn the lesson about what it means to be a good neighbor. May we be an extension of Your love and grace, to people in need, regardless of the inconvenience to us personally. Thank You for the example of our Lord Jesus who gave up everything for us. May we follow in His steps. 
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