Living Love: The Call of the Good Samaritan

This morning, we gathered to reflect on the familiar parable of the Good Samaritan, a story that challenges us to move beyond simply knowing about love and mercy, and instead to live them out in our daily lives. The parable is often so well-known that its radical message can be dulled by familiarity. Yet, Jesus tells this story in response to a lawyer’s attempt to justify himself, asking, “Who is my neighbor?” The answer Jesus gives is not a list of qualifications, but a call to action—a call to cross boundaries, to set aside excuses, and to embody mercy even when it is uncomfortable or countercultural.

The priest and the scribe in the story, respected religious leaders, pass by the wounded man, failing to fulfill the very law they are entrusted to teach. Their reasons, whether ritual purity or busyness, are not enough to excuse their inaction. The Samaritan, an outsider and even an enemy in the eyes of Jesus’ audience, is the one who stops, tends to the man’s wounds, and ensures his care. This act of mercy is not just a good deed; it is a living out of God’s command to love our neighbor as ourselves, regardless of social, ethnic, or religious boundaries.

We are reminded that love, if only spoken about or taught but not practiced, becomes a dead language—something lifeless and irrelevant. Just as a language dies when it is no longer spoken, love dies when it is no longer lived. In a world that encourages division, suspicion, and drawing lines between “us” and “them,” the call of Christ is to erase those lines, to cross the street, and to care for those who are hurting, even when it is difficult or costly.

This is not a love of convenience or comfort, but a love that is active, sacrificial, and persistent. We are called to be people of love, not just in word, but in deed—people who refuse to let love die, who refuse to let mercy become a relic of the past. Through the power of the Holy Spirit and the example of Christ, we are sent out to live love boldly, to be neighbors to all, and to ensure that love remains the living language of God’s people.

Key Takeaways

• 1. Love Must Be Lived, Not Just Taught It is not enough to know about love or to discuss it in theory. If love is only something we talk about in church or teach as a concept, it becomes a dead language—lifeless and powerless. True love must be embodied in our actions, spoken in the way we treat others, and lived out in our daily encounters, especially with those who are different from us. [28:11]
• 2. Excuses Cannot Replace Compassion The priest and the scribe had every religious reason to avoid the wounded man, but Jesus makes it clear that no excuse—however justified it may seem—can override the command to show mercy. Our obligations to love and help those in need are not negated by our own comfort, convenience, or even our religious traditions. Compassion must always take precedence over self-justification. [20:21]
• 3. Radical Love Crosses Boundaries The Samaritan’s act of mercy was radical because it crossed deep-seated social, ethnic, and religious boundaries. In a world that encourages us to divide and distance ourselves from those who are different, Christ calls us to cross the street, to reach out, and to love those whom society tells us to avoid. This kind of love is not safe or easy, but it is the love that reflects the heart of God. [29:26]
• 4. Self-Justification Hinders True Obedience Like the lawyer, we often seek to justify ourselves, to find loopholes or limits to our responsibility to love. But Jesus’ story exposes the futility of self-justification and calls us to honest self-examination. Instead of asking, “Who is my neighbor?” we are challenged to ask, “How can I be a neighbor?”—removing the boundaries we set for our compassion. [30:55]
• 5. The Church’s Witness Depends on Living Love If the church ceases to actively love, to cross the street for the hurting, love itself risks becoming extinct among us. Our witness to the world is not in our words alone, but in our willingness to embody mercy, to advocate for the suffering, and to refuse to let love die. The resurrection life we are called to is one where love is always spoken, always lived, and always central.
  
  ** [33:50]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [02:47] - Announcements and Worship Registration
• [05:01] - Opening Prayer and Hymn
• [07:53] - Children’s Time
• [10:00] - Introduction to the Good Samaritan
• [15:00] - The Lawyer’s Question and Self-Justification
• [20:21] - The Parable Retold: Priest, Scribe, and Samaritan
• [26:45] - The Samaritan’s Radical Mercy
• [28:11] - Love as a Living Language
• [29:26] - The Challenge to Live Love
• [30:55] - Erasing Boundaries and Living Resurrection
• [32:18] - Called to Be People of Love
• [33:50] - The Danger of Love Becoming a Dead Language
• [34:45] - Benediction and Apostles’ Creed
• [38:19] - Prayers for the Community
• [45:46] - Announcements and Opportunities to Serve
• [51:16] - Mission Focus and Closing Remarks

Bible Reading

Luke 10:25-37 (ESV) – The Parable of the Good Samaritan —
> And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” And 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 answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”
> But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
> Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, 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, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’
> Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?”
> He said, “The one who showed him mercy.”
> And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”

Observation Questions

1. What question does the lawyer ask Jesus that leads to the telling of the parable? ([07:53])
2. In the parable, what reasons might the priest and the Levite (scribe) have had for passing by the wounded man? ([20:21])
3. How does the Samaritan’s response to the wounded man differ from the responses of the priest and the Levite? ([26:45])
4. According to the sermon, what does it mean for love to become a “dead language”? ([28:11])

Interpretation Questions

1. Why do you think Jesus chose a Samaritan—someone considered an outsider and even an enemy—to be the hero of the story? What message was he sending to his audience? ([26:45])
2. The lawyer tries to “justify himself” by asking, “Who is my neighbor?” What does this reveal about his heart and about human nature in general? ([07:53])
3. The sermon says that “excuses cannot replace compassion.” What are some modern-day excuses people use to avoid helping others, and why do these fall short in light of Jesus’ teaching? ([20:21])
4. The pastor compared love to a language that dies if it is not spoken or lived. What are some signs that love is becoming a “dead language” in a church or community? ([28:11])

Application Questions

1. The priest and the Levite may have had good religious or practical reasons for not stopping, but Jesus still calls their actions a failure. Can you think of a time when you let a “good reason” stop you from helping someone? What would it look like to choose compassion next time? ([20:21])
2. The Samaritan crossed social, ethnic, and religious boundaries to help. Who in your life or community might be “across the street” from you—someone you would not normally help or associate with? What is one step you could take to reach out to them this week? ([29:26])
3. The sermon warns that if love is only talked about and not lived, it becomes a dead language. Are there ways in your life or in our church where love is more of a theory than a practice? What is one practical way you can “speak” the language of love this week? ([28:11])
4. The lawyer wanted to know the limits of his responsibility (“Who is my neighbor?”), but Jesus flips the question to “How can I be a neighbor?” How does this shift in thinking challenge you personally? ([30:55])
5. The pastor said, “If the church stops crossing the street to help, then love becomes a dead language.” What are some specific needs in our community that we as a group or church could respond to? ([33:50])
6. The sermon calls us to “erase the lines” that divide us and to love even when it is uncomfortable or costly. What is one boundary—social, political, or personal—that you feel called to cross in order to show mercy? ([29:26])
7. The Good Samaritan didn’t just offer a quick fix; he made sure the wounded man was cared for until he was well. What does persistent, sacrificial love look like in your daily life? Is there someone you need to follow up with or continue caring for, rather than moving on? ([26:45])