CAMINANDO WITH JESUS: Who is Being Tested?

Pentecost 5, Proper 10 | July 14, 2019

By the Rev. Joyce Cunningham

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Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” 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.” And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.” But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.’ Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

- Luke 10:25-37

 
“Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus,” asking “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 

Jesus throws this question back at the lawyer, knowing this expert in the Scriptures would be able to quote Torah Law. For the 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” are integral to the prayer and daily life of all observant Jews. 

But who is really being tested in this very familiar parable of the Good Samaritan?

For as the story unfolds, it appears the question Jesus is really asking is “What do these words mean to you as you encounter God’s people who are detrimentally affected by the myriad of life’s challenges?” How many are stripped naked, beaten down, deprived of all honor and dignity by society’s systems, laws and practices that contradict the commandments of love of God and neighbor? Do we identify them as being created in the “image of God” and as our sisters and brothers in Christ – a part of the Creation that God declared was good. 

Who was being tested as Jesus tells this story of four people? One, victimized by powerful forces beyond his control and in desperate need of the love of a neighbor, and three others, each given the opportunity to respond to this beloved person of God, in a way in which God would have rejoiced. When Jesus asks the lawyer, “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor?” and the lawyer replies, “the one who showed him mercy,” I invite you to consider it was the lawyer who was being tested. For Jesus then tells him not just to quote the words of the law, but to “go and do likewise.”

Who is being tested as we hear this parable of the Good Samaritan today? Might it be us?

Recent images from our Southern border, the disproportionate number of black and brown people incarcerated in our prisons and jails, the disparities in health care between the haves and the have-nots, and the increasing wealth gap are just examples of the challenges experienced today by many of God’s beloved.  

“Who is my neighbor” and “To whom am I being a neighbor?” are questions we must ask ourselves and discern how the Spirit of the living God is empowering us to go forth and live the Gospel.

Walking with Jesus calls us to not be passersby, as the priest and the Levite were. Walking with Jesus calls us to be engaged in recognizing and responding to the needs of those marginalized and hurt and desperate for God’s love to shine forth.   

“Let us go forth and do likewise.”

The Rev. Joyce Cunningham is the interim associate rector at Chapel of the Cross, Chapel Hill.