In his book The Jesus Creed, Scot McKnight offers a perspective on the parable of the Good Samaritan. In this passage, a lawyer has approached Jesus and is asking how one might obtain eternal life. Jesus responds by focusing the lawyer’s gaze to the subject that he knew best, the law. The lawyer must have been observing Jesus, because his response was spot on. The lawyer noted that one must love the Lord God and love his neighbor. Jesus responded by affirming the lawyer’s response. However, the lawyer did not stop at this point; rather, he continued by asking, “Who is my neighbor.” Jesus promptly responded with the story of the Good Samaritan.
This parable opened the door for a moral dilemma. Would the lawyer choose to obey the Torah, and remain clean by staying away from the needs of the victim, or would he choose to embrace the spirit of the Torah by extending a hand to the person in need? In that day, a Jew was not permitted to approach a dead body (it must have been assumed that the injured man was either dead or dying). To even allow one’s shadow to touch the person would make one ritually unclean. Thus, these men were following Torah by not helping, just as they had been instructed.
Jesus’ story brings to a head these two seemingly contrasting principles. What does it mean to follow the Torah? Can one truly be following Torah and ignore his neighbor? Jesus’ parable reveals the difference between the letter of the law and the intent of the law. There are many needs in our present world; Jesus’ story teaches us that if we mean to be pleasing to him, we must be concerned for these needs. To be sure, we may find good justification for why we cannot offer help. However, this kind of response does not free us from loving one’s neighbor. In a world such as ours, the hurt and broken are our concern. The Good Samaritan teaches us that, in the Kingdom of God, everyone needs His life saving embrace.
McKnight, S. (2004). The Jesus creed: Loving God, loving others. Brewster, MA: Paraclete Press.
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