Who's the Good Samaritan?

I’ve always read the parable of the Good Samaritan (in Luke 10:25-37) as an example of how we ought to live. That is, I’ve always read it as God telling us to look after the well-being of the down-and-out – regardless of the burden it puts on us, regardless of the future cost, and regardless of whether it jeopardizes our reputation or social standing.

I don’t think that way of reading the parable is wrong. After all, Jesus concludes it with, “Go and do likewise.” Nonetheless, I think there’s a hidden depth to the parable that’s too easily overlooked. It might seem like a stretch, but here goes nothing…

Jesus is the Good Samaritan, and we’re the man who made the mistake of leaving Jerusalem – the Jerusalem above, that is. (Galatians 4:26) Because of that mistake, we “fell into the hands of robbers” and we were left “half dead”. And yet Jesus is the Good Samaritan who draws near to the wounded man (us!) and is “moved with pity.” He bandages the wounds and brings the man to an inn (the Church!) where the care and restoration of the man's soul continues. The Good Samaritan named Jesus leaves, but puts the continued healing of the man into the hands of an innkeeper (a pastor!).

Then Jesus promises the innkeeper that he’ll come back and repay whatever costs are incurred. Something tells me that both the innkeeper and the now-healing man will be overjoyed on the Day of Jesus’ return. In the meantime, they live in the hope of Jesus’ promise. Of course, the man who has received the care of the original Good Samaritan (Jesus) and whose rehab continues at the inn (the Church) is not just a patient waiting for his Physician’s return. Even as his soul continues to be healed at the inn, Jesus gives him a task: “Go and do likewise.” (Luke 10:37)

Jesus’ commandment can’t be ignored, lest the man lose his place at the inn and become like those who passed him by as he lay dying. “Go and do likewise.” That is, love your neighbor – regardless of the burden or cost. Love your neighbor – not just when you find him loveable but when you find him period. After all, God loves the wounded man not because the man is loveable, but because God is love.

A stretch? I don’t believe so. Ultimately, the parable of the Good Samaritan is the Christian life in a nutshell. It is wholly dependent on the Good Samaritan named Jesus, and on the inn called the Church. The restoration of the wounded man continues, even as he now cares for his neighbor in the same manner that the Physician and the innkeeper continue to care for him.