Sermon

Luke 10:25-37

The First and Foremost Samaritan

By The Rev. Charles Hoffacker

One of the best known figures in the New Testament is not a historical person, but a character in a story told by Jesus. Jesus does not give this character a name, but refers to him as a member of a particular ethnic group. This character is identified simply as “a Samaritan.”

The people who hear Jesus tell this story are shocked by the identity of its hero. They view a good Samaritan, a compassionate Samaritan, as a contradiction in terms. The Jewish contemporaries of Jesus regard themselves as good guys and Samaritans as bad guys. They detest Samaritans, and Samaritans detest them.

This hatred between Samaritan and Jew is already many generations old when Jesus tells his story. It is in fact a vast family squabble, because Jews and Samaritans are related peoples, quarreling cousins. Nor is the world of today free from such quarrels within the human family.

Jesus shocks his fellow Jews when he tells a story about a Samaritan who is a model of compassion, one who cares for an injured stranger, who cares for — get this — an injured stranger who’s likely to be one of their own, a Jew beaten by robbers on the road from Jerusalem to Jericho.

The impact must be like what would happen if here in St. Clair County a police officer speaking at a Drug Abuse Resistance Education graduation ceremony told a story about a kind-hearted drug dealer. Jesus did not win any points toward becoming “Rabbi of the Year” with that scandalous story about the Samaritan.

Yet we accept this story. Its anonymous, fictional hero has named for him a host of Christian institutions: counseling centers, hospitals, churches. “Good Samaritan” is also applied to any person who goes out of the way to help someone in need. The story does not scandalize us because the hero is a Samaritan. We would not recognize a real, live Samaritan if one walked through the door.

Yet the story does bother us for other reasons. The Samaritan who demonstrates compassion toward the robbery victim we find to be something of a troublemaker. Sure, he’s a handy guy to have around if you have the misfortune to be mugged, but as a practical example, this unknown do-gooder threatens us, and for three reasons.

First, the Samaritan takes risks. He goes out of his way to help an injured stranger. As a result, he must end up late getting wherever it is he wants to go that day. Also, consider the circumstances. He’s walking from one town to another along a road notorious for robberies. He sees a human form lying in the grass, an apparent victim of crime stained with blood. Is the victim for real, or is he bait? If the Samaritan goes over to help, perhaps he will be robbed by the supposed victim and any henchmen concealed in the area. This has been known to happen on the dangerous road from Jerusalem down to Jericho.

The Samaritan threatens us in another way. He spends his resources freely on this wounded stranger. He bandages the stranger, transports him to an inn, and spends hours watching over him. Next morning, the Samaritan leaves, but puts down a considerable sum of money to cover the stranger’s care, and promises to pay for anything additional once he returns. He lavishes time, attention, and money on someone unknown to him.

Yet another feature of this story threatens us. The Samaritan pays and leaves, promising to return, and we hear nothing more. How does it all turn out? Does the victim regain consciousness? Does he recover? Does he ever thank his benefactor? We don’t know. Maybe the Samaritan gets nothing back for his troubles but scorn. At every step along the way, he acts without any assurance that his efforts will be successful or appreciated. He has no guarantees. Absolutely none!

Those times when we have opportunity to show compassion resemble this story of the Samaritan. Compassion requires that we take risks and spend resources and do so without any guarantees. Doing right doesn’t promise to leave us feeling right.

And so this Good Samaritan may not seem such a good guy after all. We may find him to be a troublemaker. His example of compassion may threaten our security, upset our sense of control. We too are on the road from some Jerusalem to some Jericho, and we can’t afford to be delayed. It seems better to be among those who pass by in safety on the other side.

If the Samaritan’s costume does not fit us, then remember that this role is not the only one we can play. We can bypass as well the parts of those who notice the victim, yet keep on walking.

Instead, when we look at the victim’s face — bruised, bloody, unconscious — we are hit with a shock of recognition. That poor face is our face! We are the victim, attacked by robbers, stripped, beaten, and left half dead. You are there and so am I, lying in the grass beside the road, and so is every man, woman, and child. It’s the human race that’s been mugged and abandoned by the road.

There comes someone to help us. Someone of a despised and alien race. Someone we fear. We want to keep our distance. But he does not fear us. He takes risks in approaching, and spends resources on our recovery with no guarantee we will ever thank him. Even to us, who by thought and word and action may appear to despise him, this Samaritan shows compassion. For once we learn his name. His name is Jesus.

So, you see, Jesus does not simply tell this story. He lives out this story. He is the first and foremost Samaritan.

In his incarnation, life, ministry, death, and resurrection, Jesus approaches us, the human race, sad and sorry sight that we are, beaten senseless and half dead by the robber demons of cosmic and human sin. He anoints and bandages our wounds, caring for them at the price of his cross. He places us on his own animal, making us members of his body, that we may share his divine life.

He takes us to an inn, a hospital, a place of safety and health, underwriting our expenses out of his abundant mercy, leaves us in the innkeeper’s care, and promises to settle accounts when he returns again.

Jesus takes the risk of approaching us, though we assault and nail him to the cross. He dares to draw near, though all too often we treat him as an enemy, and through our thoughts, words, and action we behave as though we hate him.

Jesus spends his resources to heal us and does this freely. His cross is medicine for the world, his flesh and blood our food for eternal life. And all too often we remain unconscious of this grace.

Jesus does this for us, but the story is not yet complete. Do we recover from sin’s assault? Do we ever thank our Samaritan? He acts compassionately, but with no assurance from us. Placed in the inn, we await his return.

Friends, it is in that inn we find ourselves on this Sunday morning. He has made provision for us, above all at the welcome table of this inn, this hospital, this place of safety and health.

May we feast and rejoice, thankful for his mercy, eager for his return. He is our Samaritan.

May we show to others assaulted on life’s road what he shows to us: that risky, spendthrift love which asks no return, the love of a compassionate heart.

Copyright 2001 Charles Hoffacker.  Used by permission.