Luke 10:29–37: “But the expert, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbor?’ Jesus replied, ‘A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him up, and went off, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, but when he saw the injured man, he passed by on the other side. So too a Levite, when he came up to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan who was traveling came to where the injured man was, and when he saw him, he felt compassion for him. He went up to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring olive oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, “Take care of him, and whatever else you spend, I will repay you when I come back this way.” Which of these three do you think became a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?’ The expert in religious law said, ‘The one who showed mercy to him.’ So Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do the same.’”

I am saying this is talking about a good neighbor. I started yesterday, and I am saying up front that Jesus Christ is the good neighbor. We see that help for this man did not come from the priest, who had his own agenda, and that agenda did not include helping this man. “So he passed by on the other side.”

Do not blame them. Do not blame people: “This person did not help me; that person did not help me.” People have their own things. They are not God. They are not Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the One who can help you. He is the good neighbor. Understand that. Let us not say, “Oh, the priest—oh my goodness, religious folks.” No. Let us not do that. The parable is not meant for you to justify yourself. In the immediate context, it is meant to challenge you about who the good neighbor is. I am saying: who is the ultimate good neighbor? The ultimate good neighbor is Jesus Christ.

“So too a Levite, when he came up to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.” You start feeling something against these people: “Oh, they did not help the man.” Let us not have this finger‑pointing attitude. Do not point your finger at the priest and say, “Oh, priest, you, you…” or point the finger at the Levite and say, “Oh, Levite, oh my goodness.” What about you? Will you do it? Do you like to see blood? Were they prepared to deal with that issue? The Samaritan man had resources to deploy to help the wounded man. So it is Jesus who has the resources to deploy for the healing of the nations. That is the truth.

I have already said the man who fell into the hands of robbers is “a man”—a generic man. A man that can stand for any one of us and every one of us, who is all of us, who is all humanity. We did not have his tribe. It could be a Yoruba man, it could be an Igbo man, it could be a Black man, a white man. It could be any man, any of us. This passage is telling me the solution is not in any man; it is in Christ.

So while this priest and this Levite may fall short in our estimation, who does not fall short? That is the question. The expert wanted to justify himself. Let us not use this one passage to try to say, “This person is not helping me; that person is not helping me; you are supposed to be a good neighbor to me.” No. It is a challenge to you, not a challenge to somebody else. But ultimately, Jesus Christ is the good neighbor.

Remember, I am using this as an illustration. I am using it as an allegory to talk about Jesus. Remember how carefully I am doing it. I am not being excessive with it. I am not trying to find meaning in all the tiny details. I am not trying to find meaning in “Jerusalem.” I am not trying to find meaning in “Jericho.”

Sometimes biblical information is just information. It could be geographical or historical information to help you know that what is being said is authentic. So I am using this as an illustration, just as Paul used Hagar and Sarah as an illustration—free woman and bondwoman—because it is such a powerful image to impress on the people the difference between the old and the new covenant (Galatians 4:21–31).

So I am thinking, this is such a powerful image to impress on us that Jesus Christ is the good neighbor. “He went up to him.”

The point is: nobody is owed salvation. It is the grace of God. It is the gift of God. It is God choosing you, not you choosing Him. How can a half‑dead man help himself? Probably, we do not even fully know his state. He cannot even talk and cry out and say, “Help me.” He cannot even cry out and say, “God, come and help me.” He is not even aware of his pain. Maybe after waking up a little bit, he will start feeling the pain.

Jesus Christ is the good neighbor. He said, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you” (John 15:16). We did not reach out to Him; He reached out to us. “While we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly” (Romans 5:6).

“So he brought him to an inn.” Remember, an inn is not a hospital. An inn is a place where travelers lodge. Jesus Christ is bearing the cost for this man to be restored. He is bearing all the cost. Everything was poured on Him. In Him we become one with God. In Him we are restored to a relationship with God. And He is coming back. That is the truth.

Based on this illustration, the problem comes when we want to derive truth from illustrations. Everything I am saying is already established in other passages of Scripture. They are already established. Jesus Christ is coming back. I am not looking at this passage and concluding that Jesus Christ is coming back based solely on this passage. But it is such a powerful picture that I want to present to you: Jesus Christ is the good neighbor, and He took it on Himself to take care of us, to pay this cost, to pay the sacrifice to the max.

The Samaritan, Jesus said, is coming back. I am so sure it has to be Jesus, right? Why put it in the story that he is coming back? It has to be Him.

Jesus Christ is the good neighbor.

God bless you.