Reading: Luke 10.25-37 NLT

One day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him this question: “Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?”

Jesus replied, “What does the law of Moses say? How do you read it?”

The man answered, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

“Right!” Jesus told him. “Do this and you will live!”

The man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

Jesus replied with a story: “A Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road.

“By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. A Temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side.

“Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him. Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, ‘Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.’

“Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked.

The man replied, “The one who showed him mercy.”

Then Jesus said, “Yes, now go and do the same.”

Prayer: Lord Jesus – Forgive me. I confess that I am more like the disinterested passers-bye than the good neighbor. Soften my hard heart… and open my eyes to the plight of those around me. And give me a willingness to respond with kindness and mercy. Make me more like you… so that I might honor you in all things. Amen.

Hymn: “There’s a Wideness in God’s Mercy” – Frederick W. Faber (1862)

Souls of men, why do you scatter / like a crowd of frightened sheep? / Foolish hearts, why do you wander / from a love so true and deep?

There’s a wideness in God’s mercy / like the wideness of the sea, / and forgiveness in his justice / sealed for us on Calvary.

There is plentiful redemption / in the blood that has been shed: / there is joy for all the members / in the sorrows of the Head.

For the love of God is broader / than the measures of man’s mind; / and the heart of the Eternal / is most wonderfully kind.

But we make his love too narrow / by false limits of our own, / and we magnify his strictness / with a zeal he will not own.

If our love were but more simple / we should take him at his word; / and our lives would be illumined / by the goodness of our Lord.