Luke 10:25-37
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.”
John 4:9
On Loving Everyone
9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)
Acts 1:6-8
On Loving Everyone
6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
In Jesus times a Samaritan from Samaria might be described as a traitor and thought of as people the Jewish people did not associate with...Yet, Jesus gives us the Parable of the Good Samaritan...The Samaritan is in a sense the best of the ones passing the injured one that was attacked by robbers, in the Parable of the Good Samaritan...The Samaritan is the "good guy"...
How we treat and help our neighbors is connected to God...Jews and Samaritans were not the closest groups, for Jews did not associate with Samaritans, according to St. John...Before Jesus ascends (in the Acts), He tells His disciples that they are to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, in Judea, and even Samaria...The disciples are to teach those their Master's teachings and principles to even the Samaritans in Samaria...
Jesus loves His enemies...He teaches this in the gospels...He loves His neighbors...He loves everyone...He loves the Samaritans...He teaches love and tells us that everyone is our neighbor...Our neighbors are ones who we do not even like, and people we do not associate with...We learn that we are to have mercy on everyone...Albeit very tough, we learn from Jesus, that love and mercy are linked...
In the Great Commission from Jesus, we are to spread the word of His good news...We are to spread the gospel not only to the ones we like, and associate with, we are to share it with those we do not even to associate with...We are to love one another, even the ones we think of as the bad guy...We are to teach everyone about Him, because everyone is our neighbor...