THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST

Chapter 28

THE WOUNDED MAN AND THE TEACHING

01-11-09

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 (Luke 10:25-29)  And, behold, a certain lawyer [Gk: an expert in the (Mosaic) law: a scribe] stood up, and tempted him [Gk: to test thoroughly] [with the subversive intent of seeking His failure], saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live. But he, willing to justify himself [i.e., to show himself righteous, and set the jaws of his trap], said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?

1.       justify = Gk: to render (i.e. show or regard as) just or innocent:--free, justify (-ier), be righteous /// innocent, holy: just.

2.       Commentary: “But” is a word that implies qualification and/or strong opposition. Compare this sentence substituting the alternate word  “And” which implies agreement and continuation of the sense flow. Although fairly adept at quoting Scripture, this lawyer’s spiritual divergence from accord with Jesus becomes much more apparent as Luke immediately comments of the lawyer, “willing to justify himself,” which means that the lawyer endeavored to pridefully show himself righteous (saved); whereas, at another level of understanding, the act of a man “willing to justify himself” is to willingly supplant (syn: displace, succeed, replace, step in the shoes of, unseat, supersede) the power of God and invest that power in man, for only God can justify a man, only God can make a man righteous. By this act alone, we may safely conclude that this expert in the Law of Moses was a man of little spiritual understanding, a man not ordained to walk and talk with the redeemed angelic host in Heaven, at least not yet. But did this errant lawyer ever get saved?

3.       Commentary: “And who is my neighbor?” By this question the lawyer has, quite cleverly in his own mind, set wide the jaws of his trap, for if Jesus responds with anyone other than the Pharisees, Sadducees, scribes and Jewish believers, He is setting a believer with an unbeliever, unequally yoked, preaching blasphemy against the Law, and no Jewish believer will thereafter observe His words. What did Jesus do? He taught the man something new.

THE TEACHING

(Luke 10:30-37)  And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee. Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said, He that showed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

THE EXEGETICAL TEACHING

(Luke 10:30-37)  And Jesus answering said, A certain man [presumably Jewish, but maybe not. His nationality may be crucial information on one level of understanding (Law), but incidental on another (Grace)] went down from Jerusalem to Jericho [a road of 17 miles leading from 2600 feet above sea level to 800 feet below sea level, thereby typifying Heaven and Hell], and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment [his covering, exposing the sin in him], and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead [leaving him to die; he was wounded unto death]. And by chance [??] there came down a certain priest [Jewish, representing the Law] that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise [speaking of unification] a Levite [Jewish, representing the Law], when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan [1], as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion [2] on him, And went to him, and bound up his wounds [healed him from death to life, i.e., saved him] [3], pouring in oil and wine [4], and set him on his own beast [Gk: a domestic animal] [5], and brought him to an inn [a place of temporary residence, i.e., this world], and took care of him [i.e., ministered to him]. And on the morrow [Gk: next day] when he departed [“and a cloud received him out of their sight” Acts 1:9], he took out two pence [“the earnest of the Spirit” 2 Cor 1:22, a deposit on the balance of the fullness yet to come], and gave them to the host [pastor], and said unto him, Take care of him [minister to him - sacrificially] [6]; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again [the Second Coming of Jesus Christ], I will repay thee [blessings, rewards in Heaven]. Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said, He that showed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

1.       Commentary: a certain Samaritan = a Samaritan was held more utterly despised by the Jews than their disdain and loathing toward the Gentiles. The Jews would not even travel through the land of Samaria, but passed around it to travel to Galilee. However, the Samaritans were an intermarried Jewish/Gentile mixture and a picture of the present Body of Christ. This Samaritan represented Grace, and is our Lord Jesus Christ.

a.       (Isa 53:3)  He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

2.       compassion = Gk: to have the bowels yearn, i.e. (fig.) feel sympathy, to pity:--have (be moved with) compassion /// fig. pity or sympathy:--bowels, inward affection, + tender mercy.

3.       (Psa 147:3)  He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.

4.       Commentary: oil and wine = water is a symbol of the Holy Spirit in the Bible. Both oil and wine are water-based flowing liquids “pouring” into the wounded man. Please note the order of their application. These are two symbols and two aspects of the Holy Spirit. The first mentioned oil was applied to the wounded man by the Good Samaritan for the anointing and points to our justification; the second mentioned wine (an antiseptic and a euphoric) was applied by the Good Samaritan for the man’s cleansing and points to our sanctification.

5.       (Psa 91:11,12)  For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands [i.e., carry you], lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.

6.       (2 Cor 9:6)  But this I say, He which soweth sparingly [Gk: stingily] shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.

7.       King James Bible Commentary: This Samaritan was a true neighbor. He had a compassionate heart, a helping hand, and unlimited concern. He gave up personal comfort, physical energy, and valuable time. As one preacher expressed it, the robbers beat him up, the priest and Levite passed him up, but the Samaritan picked him up. The thief said, “What’s yours is mine, I’ll take it.” The priest and Levite reasoned, “What’s mine is mine, I’ll keep it.” But the Samaritan said, “What’s mine is yours, we’ll share it.”

8.       The Full Life Study Bible: This parable emphasizes that inherent in true saving faith and obedience to Christ are compassion and care for those in genuine need. The call to love God is a call to love others. (1) The new life and grace that Christ gives to those who accept Him will produce love, mercy, and compassion for those who are distressed and afflicted. It is the believer’s responsibility to act upon the Holy Spirit’s love within him and not to harden his heart. (2) Those who are professed Christians, yet whose hearts are insensitive to the suffering and needs of others, give sure evidence that they do not have eternal life abiding in them.

9.       The Life Application Bible: This parable pictures the love Jesus has for us. Like the traveler, we have been wounded and left to die, and we can do nothing to save ourselves. But Jesus came along and took us to a place of healing. Our salvation is his doing, not our own.

Amen

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