1. MODERN PARABLES

2. Letters for next week: 6th: 7th: 8th:
SOLDIERS’ ANGELS
Letters for next week:
6th:
7th:
8th:

3. THE GOOD SAMARITAN (Luke 10:25-37)
“But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion… Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?”

4. Introduction Good Samaritan laws
Samaritans have not always been considered the good guys

5. An Expert’s Question “How do I inherit eternal life?”
Warning: This is a test
Jesus tested the lawyer in return
“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.” (Luke 10:27)
Is it possible to obey these commands?

6. The Hurt Man
“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.”
Man in the movie
Robbed, or drunk?
Critical condition

7. The First Passerby: A Priest
“Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side.”
Priests -- Upper Class
Defiled if they touched a dead body
Called to intercede for spiritual needs
Who is the priest in the movie?
Irony: Called to care for Israel’s spiritual needs, but won’t even stoop to meet this very practical, physical need
Dad/Doctor/Deacon -- biblical role is to help the sick and needy. What is your impression of him? How does he judge the old man?

8. The Second Passerby: A Levite
“So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.”
Levites -- temple servants, lower class than priests
Would be influenced by priest’s example
Who is the Levite in the movie?
How is he affected by the “priest’s” example?
Why does he make the decision he does?
Note: First two passersby represent the religious leaders. What is your impression of them? Are they good examples?

9. The Third Passerby: A Samaritan
“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…Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him.”
Jews hated Samaritans!
Crowd would be offended to see Samaritan as hero
Who is the Samaritan in the movie?
What is his nationality? How does that make us feel?
Sacrificial compassion
Samaritans were half-breeds
How can you tell the taxi driver’s nationality?
How does he show himself to be more loving, more godly, than the others?

10. The Inn
“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.’”
No hospitals at this this time in history
The Samaritan’s sacrifice
What does he give up? (Parable, movie)
How does the hospital security guard view him?
Samaritans were half-breeds
How can you tell the taxi driver’s nationality?
How does he show himself to be more loving, more godly, than the others?

11. Conclusion
“Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” [The lawyer] said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”
Was this the kind of answer the lawyer expected to his original question?
According to Jesus, what does it mean to “love your neighbor as yourself”?
The Healer vs. The Hater
“I desire mercy, not sacrifice” (Hosea 6:6 NIV)
Samaritans were half-breeds
How can you tell the taxi driver’s nationality?
How does he show himself to be more loving, more godly, than the others?

12. Q & A
What do you think was going through the boy’s mind at the end of the movie as he watched the Arab drive off with the old man?
What do we learn from this parable about love in the Kingdom of God?
What would it mean for you to “go and do likewise”?