Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” He answered, “You shall 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 your neighbor as yourself.” And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.” But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.’ Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.” (Luke 10:25-37, NRSV)
This story is so familiar to us we think we know it…
But did you know that Jesus was asking the lawyer, the one who should know the law and the scriptures what his interpretation of the scripture was, because in Hebrew there would have been no vowel points and the word for neighbor and the word for enemy are the same root… So the only difference is the vowel points which would not have been present in the text the lawyer was reading. So was Jesus asking the lawyer what he read meaning, “do you see the double meaning?” Is it love your neighbor or love your enemy as yourself?
And then there is Jesus’ question at the end of the text, “Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” The lawyer asked who his neighbor was and Jesus told a story and asked who was neighborly to the character in the story… so maybe what it means to be a neighbor is you are willing to accept help and be open to the stranger giving assistance. It is not all about going and doing, but also going and receiving…
So go and love God and your enemy as yourself and make yourself open to receive what God wants to give you!
aSacredRebel 