October 1, 2026
Not only did Jesus ask a lot of questions during His season of public ministry, He received many as well. One of the more memorable inquiries came from a lawyer, who asked, “Who is my neighbor?”
Jesus answered by way of a favorite teaching method, the parable, which is a simple story that conveys a moral or spiritual lesson. In what has come to be known as the parable of “The Good Samaritan,” found in Luke 10:30-37, Jesus tells of a man robbed and beaten while traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho.
The man, presumably a Jew, lay there while a couple of religious workers passed by, yet failed to help. Then, a Samaritan came upon the scene and offered assistance. Digging deeper into the story, note that:
He cared — "He felt compassion” for the victim, demonstrating that first by dressing his wounds. Oil was applied to ease the pain and wine to cleanse the wound.
And he didn’t stop there. Since the man needed a safe place to recover, the Samaritan put him “on his beast” and found a place of refuge.
Mother Teresa, the epitome of a servant, encountered a man in the late stages of terminal cancer. When the situation became too intense for one servant, she kindly stepped in and offered assistance. Asked by the dying patient, “How can you stand the smell?” Mother Teresa replied, “It’s nothing compared to the pain you must feel.”
People don’t care what you know till they know that you care. Faith often calls us to “get involved” and ease the discomfort of others.
He dared — First, he was willing to set aside his prejudices. Presumably, the victim was a Jew. And bad blood existed between the Jews and the Samaritans. God’s kind of neighbor is willing to set aside biases, be they racial, political, economic, geographic, demographic, etc.
Next, he overcame his fears. What if this was one big setup? What if he became the real victim? Obviously, discernment and wisdom are required in such situations. Yet, ministry often demands that we move out of our comfort zones into the battle zone. As the Bible says, “The wicked flee when no one is pursuing, But the righteous are as bold as a lion” (Proverbs 28:1, NASB).
He shared — 1) Time- Obviously, there was somewhere else the Samaritan needed to be. Nevertheless, he hit the pause button and addressed the need at hand. Now, more than ever, time is a valuable commodity.
2) Treasures- It started with payment, when the Samaritan paid in advance for the wounded man to stay at an inn. Then came the promise: “Whatever more you spend, when I return (more time) I will repay you” (Luke 10:35, NASB). Like Jesus also said, “Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure-pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return” (Luke 6:38 NASB).
I read a story about a converted miser who received an urgent request for help from someone going through hard times. Now a new Christian, the man headed to his smokehouse to pick out a ham for his needy neighbor. It was then that the devil whispered into the miser’s ear, “Give him the smallest one you have.” Fighting the temptation, the man picked out the biggest ham he had. “You are a fool,” said the devil -to which the man replied, “If you don’t keep still, I’ll give him every ham in the smokehouse.”
Are you feeling the urge to get off the sidelines and onto the field? Is it time to say, “Put me in, coach”? Dare, care, and share as you strive to be God’s kind of neighbor.
___
Todd Gaddis is a semi-retired minister living in Athens. He continues to serve as an interim pastor and can be reached at jtoddgaddis@gmail.com.
Share with others
