There came a time while Jesus was teaching that a Professor of "Mosaic Law and Rabbinic Tradition" stood up in the midst of the listeners. His attitude was not humble, he wanted to prove to the people that Jesus was not reliable as a teacher.
"Teacher," he shouted out, "Let's get to the bottom line here with all your 'teaching.' I need eternal life and you claim to have all the answers. What must I do to inherit eternal life?"
Jesus looked up from where He was seated among the people and calmly asked the Professor a question. "What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do YOU read it?"
The Professor quickly quoted from the Law of Moses and answered Jesus, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; also, Love your neighbor as yourself." (Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18)
"You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live."
Jesus turned back to the people to whom he had been speaking. However, the Professor wanted to make Jesus understand that he was a good man and had always done right according to the law. Interrupting again, he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"
In reply Jesus said: "A man was headed down the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. At a certain bend in the road, he was attacked by the robbers traveling along with him that he thought were his friends. They stripped off all of his clothes and beat him severely, knocking him out. The robbers went on their way, leaving him to die. When a priest came along and saw the man, he moved to the other side of the road. A Levite who was on his way to serve at the temple came to the place and saw the naked man. He also avoided the man by walking on the other side of the road. But a Samaritan (and the people gasped when he said the word), who traveled that road often on business, came to the bend in the road where the man was and saw him. The Samaritan took pity on him. The Samaritan pulled him out of the ditch on the side of the road and bandaged his wounds after cleaning them with oil and wine. Then what did the Samaritan do next? The Samaritan draped the man over his own donkey, took him to an inn and found him a room there. Having cared for the man all night, he went to the innkeeper the next morning to pay him. The Samaritan took out two silver coins and gave them to his friend, the innkeeper. "You know that I am good for any expense that this may not cover so take care of him like a family member. When I come back through on business, I will reimburse you for anything he owes you."
"Professor," said Jesus. "Which of these three do you consider to be a neighbor to the man who was ruined at the hands of the robbers?"
The professor replied, "The one who gave him mercy that was worth talking about."
Jesus said to him, "Go. And as you are going, be merciful in the same way." Luke 10:25-37
Statistics are often tricky and can be made to say things that are not accurate. However, 66.6% of the people who encountered the naked, beaten wretch in this story turned away from helping him and satisfied themselves with their theological justification...or political justification...or racial justification...or superiority justification... Whatever it was that filled their hearts with pride and disdain for the man's condition only found room there because of the merciological emptiness that had been at work for years. That they were not 100% empty hearted is evident in that they had enough "self respect" to move to the other side of the road...they still recognized that something was wrong. No human is totally depraved until Hell is his/her home. After the judgment."Teacher," he shouted out, "Let's get to the bottom line here with all your 'teaching.' I need eternal life and you claim to have all the answers. What must I do to inherit eternal life?"
Jesus looked up from where He was seated among the people and calmly asked the Professor a question. "What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do YOU read it?"
The Professor quickly quoted from the Law of Moses and answered Jesus, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; also, Love your neighbor as yourself." (Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18)
"You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live."
Jesus turned back to the people to whom he had been speaking. However, the Professor wanted to make Jesus understand that he was a good man and had always done right according to the law. Interrupting again, he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"
In reply Jesus said: "A man was headed down the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. At a certain bend in the road, he was attacked by the robbers traveling along with him that he thought were his friends. They stripped off all of his clothes and beat him severely, knocking him out. The robbers went on their way, leaving him to die. When a priest came along and saw the man, he moved to the other side of the road. A Levite who was on his way to serve at the temple came to the place and saw the naked man. He also avoided the man by walking on the other side of the road. But a Samaritan (and the people gasped when he said the word), who traveled that road often on business, came to the bend in the road where the man was and saw him. The Samaritan took pity on him. The Samaritan pulled him out of the ditch on the side of the road and bandaged his wounds after cleaning them with oil and wine. Then what did the Samaritan do next? The Samaritan draped the man over his own donkey, took him to an inn and found him a room there. Having cared for the man all night, he went to the innkeeper the next morning to pay him. The Samaritan took out two silver coins and gave them to his friend, the innkeeper. "You know that I am good for any expense that this may not cover so take care of him like a family member. When I come back through on business, I will reimburse you for anything he owes you."
"Professor," said Jesus. "Which of these three do you consider to be a neighbor to the man who was ruined at the hands of the robbers?"
The professor replied, "The one who gave him mercy that was worth talking about."
Jesus said to him, "Go. And as you are going, be merciful in the same way." Luke 10:25-37
One of the cardinal problems with the calvinist perspective is that it is intrinsically prejudiced. The foolish imagination of Calvin made him teach that God chose some people in advance for damnation and then created them so that they would live out their worthlessness. These "reprobates" must have been the unbiblical exception to being created "good" like the rest of creation in Genesis 1. Meanwhile, since the ideas that calvinists have about God are that He is prejudiced, then they have the right to follow suit.
In this story, the priest and the Levite are members of the "elect" order of an "elect" society. The Samaritan would have been considered to be a "reprobate" by the Jewish people - someone who had no prospects for salvation. Yet here is Jesus (Jesus is God) telling the Professor that he has no prospects for eternal life unless he behaves like a reprobate with a heart of mercy instead of spit-shined preachers of "election" who are prejudiced against people that need help.
Jesus saw the condition of mankind; naked, beaten and cast aside. Jesus responded in love. Jesus joined mankind in their condition. Jesus broke down the walls of "election" and made salvation available to anyone who would trust in Him. Jesus invited all to meet Him at the cross.
Sinner.
Come to Jesus.
Come to the Cross.
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