Go and Do Likewise...
Reflections: Today at the end of Deuteronomy (which means 2nd Law), Moses concludes his ministry and it is passed on to Joshua with the words, “Be strong and courageous for you will bring the Israelites into the land I promised them on oath, and I will be with you”. But with this promise, there is also the ominous prophecy that the people will become corrupt. If they people were stubborn with Moses and all that God had done through him, how much more after he went on to be with the Lord. So Joshua has quite a job ahead of him, but fortunately God promises that He will be with him. God commands Moses to write a song that will be sung as a testimony to them that this will happen.
In Luke, some 1,400 years later an expert in the law comes to test/trap Jesus by asking him the question “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” To answer his question Jesus tells the story commonly known today as the “Good Samaritan”. In the story there is a man who is robbed, stripped and beaten and left for dead on the side of the road. Then two religious professionals, the priest and Levite, cross by on the other side of the road to avoid the hassle of taking care of him. They had somehow justified in their minds if they didn’t see the man or pass by him, they had no obligation by their law to help him.
Then, the unlikely hero in the story, is the Samaritan. The Samaritans were generally regarded as an unholy people by the Jews since they were originally Jews who intermarried with other peoples, and thus were not allowed in the temple. The Jews looked down upon the Samaritans as inferior. But in the story Jesus tells it is the Samaritan who takes care of his wounds, bandages him, and brings him to an inn and completely pays for all of his expenses. This was an extravagant act of grace that Jesus would have expected from His people, and yet they had so far gone away from the Spirit of the Law, they behaved accordingly.
Is Jesus saying that it is by good works like the one performed by the Samaritan that merits eternal life? No!! Is he saying that those who follow God and Him will experience God’s grace and mercy in such a way that they will naturally extend the same grace and mercy to those in need? Yes! Jesus is saying that our beliefs are always accompanied by behaviors that match what we believe in. Does that mean we are perfect? No! But it means that if there if there is no evidence in our lives of what we believe in, then we are more like the religious professionals in the story, than the one who showed mercy!
Psalm 88:1-5
1 Lord, you are the God who saves me;
day and night I cry out to you.
2 May my prayer come before you;
turn your ear to my cry.
3 I am overwhelmed with troubles
and my life draws near to death.
4 I am counted among those who go down to the pit;
I am like one without strength.
5 I am set apart with the dead,
like the slain who lie in the grave,
whom you remember no more,
who are cut off from your care.
Deuteronomy 31:9-32:9
19 “Now write down this song and teach it to the Israelites and have them sing it, so that it may be a witness for me against them. 20 When I have brought them into the land flowing with milk and honey, the land I promised on oath to their ancestors, and when they eat their fill and thrive, they will turn to other gods and worship them, rejecting me and breaking my covenant. 21 And when many disasters and calamities come on them, this song will testify against them, because it will not be forgotten by their descendants. I know what they are disposed to do, even before I bring them into the land I promised them on oath.” 22 So Moses wrote down this song that day and taught it to the Israelites. 23 The Lord gave this command to Joshua son of Nun: “Be strong and courageous, for you will bring the Israelites into the land I promised them on oath, and I myself will be with you.” 24 After Moses finished writing in a book the words of this law from beginning to end, 25 he gave this command to the Levites who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord: 26 “Take this Book of the Law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God. There it will remain as a witness against you. 27 For I know how rebellious and stiff-necked you are. If you have been rebellious against the Lord while I am still alive and with you, how much more will you rebel after I die! 28 Assemble before me all the elders of your tribes and all your officials, so that I can speak these words in their hearing and call the heavens and the earth to testify against them. 29 For I know that after my death you are sure to become utterly corrupt and to turn from the way I have commanded you. In days to come, disaster will fall on you because you will do evil in the sight of the Lord and arouse his anger by what your hands have made.”
The Song of Moses
30 And Moses recited the words of this song from beginning to end in the hearing of the whole assembly of Israel: 32 Listen, you heavens, and I will speak;
hear, you earth, the words of my mouth.
2 Let my teaching fall like rain
and my words descend like dew,
like showers on new grass,
like abundant rain on tender plants.
3 I will proclaim the name of the Lord.
Oh, praise the greatness of our God!
4 He is the Rock, his works are perfect,
and all his ways are just.
A faithful God who does no wrong,
upright and just is he.
5 They are corrupt and not his children;
to their shame they are a warped and crooked generation.
6 Is this the way you repay the Lord,
you foolish and unwise people?
Is he not your Father, your Creator,
who made you and formed you?
7 Remember the days of old;
consider the generations long past.
Ask your father and he will tell you,
your elders, and they will explain to you.
8 When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance,
when he divided all mankind,
he set up boundaries for the peoples
according to the number of the sons of Israel.
9 For the Lord’s portion is his people,
Jacob his allotted inheritance.
Luke 10:25-42
The Parable of the Good Samaritan
25 On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”26 “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”27 He answered, “‘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, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” 28 “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”29 But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” 37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
At the Home of Martha and Mary
38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his covenant forever. Psalm 111:9
Since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 5:1
Lord Jesus, your redemption and justification bring peace to our needs and world. Keep our faith in you as you are always ready to help. By your grace we are able to face our needs. Amen.
In Luke, some 1,400 years later an expert in the law comes to test/trap Jesus by asking him the question “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” To answer his question Jesus tells the story commonly known today as the “Good Samaritan”. In the story there is a man who is robbed, stripped and beaten and left for dead on the side of the road. Then two religious professionals, the priest and Levite, cross by on the other side of the road to avoid the hassle of taking care of him. They had somehow justified in their minds if they didn’t see the man or pass by him, they had no obligation by their law to help him.
Then, the unlikely hero in the story, is the Samaritan. The Samaritans were generally regarded as an unholy people by the Jews since they were originally Jews who intermarried with other peoples, and thus were not allowed in the temple. The Jews looked down upon the Samaritans as inferior. But in the story Jesus tells it is the Samaritan who takes care of his wounds, bandages him, and brings him to an inn and completely pays for all of his expenses. This was an extravagant act of grace that Jesus would have expected from His people, and yet they had so far gone away from the Spirit of the Law, they behaved accordingly.
Is Jesus saying that it is by good works like the one performed by the Samaritan that merits eternal life? No!! Is he saying that those who follow God and Him will experience God’s grace and mercy in such a way that they will naturally extend the same grace and mercy to those in need? Yes! Jesus is saying that our beliefs are always accompanied by behaviors that match what we believe in. Does that mean we are perfect? No! But it means that if there if there is no evidence in our lives of what we believe in, then we are more like the religious professionals in the story, than the one who showed mercy!
Psalm 88:1-5
1 Lord, you are the God who saves me;
day and night I cry out to you.
2 May my prayer come before you;
turn your ear to my cry.
3 I am overwhelmed with troubles
and my life draws near to death.
4 I am counted among those who go down to the pit;
I am like one without strength.
5 I am set apart with the dead,
like the slain who lie in the grave,
whom you remember no more,
who are cut off from your care.
Deuteronomy 31:9-32:9
19 “Now write down this song and teach it to the Israelites and have them sing it, so that it may be a witness for me against them. 20 When I have brought them into the land flowing with milk and honey, the land I promised on oath to their ancestors, and when they eat their fill and thrive, they will turn to other gods and worship them, rejecting me and breaking my covenant. 21 And when many disasters and calamities come on them, this song will testify against them, because it will not be forgotten by their descendants. I know what they are disposed to do, even before I bring them into the land I promised them on oath.” 22 So Moses wrote down this song that day and taught it to the Israelites. 23 The Lord gave this command to Joshua son of Nun: “Be strong and courageous, for you will bring the Israelites into the land I promised them on oath, and I myself will be with you.” 24 After Moses finished writing in a book the words of this law from beginning to end, 25 he gave this command to the Levites who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord: 26 “Take this Book of the Law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God. There it will remain as a witness against you. 27 For I know how rebellious and stiff-necked you are. If you have been rebellious against the Lord while I am still alive and with you, how much more will you rebel after I die! 28 Assemble before me all the elders of your tribes and all your officials, so that I can speak these words in their hearing and call the heavens and the earth to testify against them. 29 For I know that after my death you are sure to become utterly corrupt and to turn from the way I have commanded you. In days to come, disaster will fall on you because you will do evil in the sight of the Lord and arouse his anger by what your hands have made.”
The Song of Moses
30 And Moses recited the words of this song from beginning to end in the hearing of the whole assembly of Israel: 32 Listen, you heavens, and I will speak;
hear, you earth, the words of my mouth.
2 Let my teaching fall like rain
and my words descend like dew,
like showers on new grass,
like abundant rain on tender plants.
3 I will proclaim the name of the Lord.
Oh, praise the greatness of our God!
4 He is the Rock, his works are perfect,
and all his ways are just.
A faithful God who does no wrong,
upright and just is he.
5 They are corrupt and not his children;
to their shame they are a warped and crooked generation.
6 Is this the way you repay the Lord,
you foolish and unwise people?
Is he not your Father, your Creator,
who made you and formed you?
7 Remember the days of old;
consider the generations long past.
Ask your father and he will tell you,
your elders, and they will explain to you.
8 When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance,
when he divided all mankind,
he set up boundaries for the peoples
according to the number of the sons of Israel.
9 For the Lord’s portion is his people,
Jacob his allotted inheritance.
Luke 10:25-42
The Parable of the Good Samaritan
25 On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”26 “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”27 He answered, “‘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, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” 28 “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”29 But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” 37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
At the Home of Martha and Mary
38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his covenant forever. Psalm 111:9
Since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 5:1
Lord Jesus, your redemption and justification bring peace to our needs and world. Keep our faith in you as you are always ready to help. By your grace we are able to face our needs. Amen.
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