THE GOOD SAMARITAN

The first thing I notice in the setup to the parable is that the man who asks the initial question isn’t asking because he genuinely wants to know how to “inherit eternal life.” This question is purely to test Jesus.

“One day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him this question: “Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭10‬:‭25‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Legalists who depend more on faith in obedience to the Law than faith in the atonement of Christ will point to Jesus’ response and say, “Aha! See!! Even Jesus said we are supposed to do all of the things in the Law.”

Jesus’ response to this disingenuous question is about helping the man see the state of his own soul. It’s also an answer suited to the people listening to Him who were STILL technically under the Old Covenant. Jesus has not yet died and risen and ascended to make everlasting atonement once and for all. So of course he repeatedly tells people to “do that which is required in the Law of Moses.” He didn’t come to destroy the Law. He came to fulfill it.

When we get to the book of Acts and the Epistles, and the question comes up, “What must I do to be saved?,” the apostles do not say, “Do the Law and you will live.” They will have a very different answer.

Right now, Jesus is announcing that He IS the Life. But the Old Covenant is still in effect. And people FIRST have to become aware that they cannot save themselves by ANY means. They have to realize they NEED a Savior.

This is why Jesus asks Him, “What does the Law tell you?” Jesus is giving the man an opportunity to examine his own life and compare his actions to the Law of God. This is supposed to bring him to the conclusion that Paul came to:

“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭3‬:‭23‬ ‭NLT‬‬

The man accurately sums up the entire Law and the prophets with the two greatest commandments: love God with all your being and love your neighbor the same way you love yourself.

Jesus knows that humans consistently fail to do this. Israel has largely failed to do this for 2000 years. So Jesus lays down the challenge: “Do this and you will live.”

It’s like Jesus is saying, “Ok, you know the Law, now let’s see you keep it,” knowing full well that this man is just as much a sinner as everyone else.

That’s why Jesus has come. Because “there is none righteous, no not one.” Because no one is without sin. Because if any man keeps the whole Law and fails in one point, he has still broken covenant with God and is guilty. Paul unpacks it this way:

“I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if keeping the law could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die.”
‭‭Galatians‬ ‭2‬:‭21‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Keeping the Law – or, I should say, attempting to keep the law will show the honest and humble soul that he or she is sinful at the core. There is MUCH more to being right with God than a list of do’s and don’ts. You can rest on the Sabbath, honor your parents, poke out your covetous eyes, and all the rest and still not be free from the slavery of sin in your heart.

The Pharisees are a prime example. They technically kept every teeny detail of the Law. They tithed even their garden herbs. But their hearts weren’t right.

The people called “righteous” in the OT (like Abraham) recognized their own sin and trusted in God. David is an excellent example. And he knew that there weren’t enough sacrificial bulls in Israel to make him truly fit for God’s presence. He offered the sacrifices, but his faith was in God’s mercy, not the offering on the altar.

The story of the good Samaritan takes two types of people – priests and Levites – who were thought of as “righteous” (because it was part of their job to be ceremonially clean), and contrasts them with a man whose race was openly hated and despised: a Samaritan.

The Samaritan, by his actions, does a better job at keeping the covenant than the priest and Levite. It’s kinda like saying he’s more Catholic than the Pope.

I think the point Jesus is driving at is that God desires, not just outward conformity to right actions with a distant heart, but loving actions that proceed from a loving heart.

And speaking of heart and actions…

MARY & MARTHA

Jesus had come to Jerusalem in October for the Festival of Tabernacles. He stayed a while in the area and continued to teach.

There are two towns called “Bethany.” One was “beyond the Jordan,” meaning, on the other side of the Jordan River. Then there was the Bethany only about 2 miles east of Jerusalem. This is where Martha’s home was. The fact that the text says Martha welcomed Jesus into “her home,” with no mention of a father, husband, or even her brother Lazarus may suggest that Martha was a widow who was financially comfortable but perhaps not wildly wealthy.

Mary and Martha are often presented on Mother’s Day and women’s conferences with reminders to be more like Mary. Or, more recently in some American churches, because we have to justify our frenetic lifestyles, I’ve heard eloquent, but probably misguided messages in defense of Martha.

As someone who enjoys being like Mary but tends to default to Martha, I am so thankful these women are in the Bible.

You probably already know that “sitting at the feet” of a Rabbi was an idiom for being a student. And it was for boys and young men only. To “sit at the feet” was to be received as a disciple. A learner. Girls did not “sit at the feet” of a Rabbi. Until Mary.

“Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught.”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭10‬:‭39‬ ‭NLT‬‬

This is so brazenly counter-cultural that it probably felt downright scandalous to the original readers of Luke’s Gospel; even the Gentile ones!

As I’ve said before, I like the novels of Jane Austen, and while I’m not a huge Bronte fan, (too dark and broody), I also like the novel Jane Eyre. “The Janes” pushed back on the cultural norms about women at the time. The Georgians and Victorians had some terribly stifling views of women and girls. Their poor brains couldn’t be expected to handle more than tea, needlework, and idle gossip.

If I believed in “patron saints” I would say Mary of Bethany is the patron saint of women who would rather study the Bible and theology than bake a pie 🥧 or host a dinner. 🍽️

Alas, I am in that dubious company.

But I also have a strong Martha-mode.

🤔 So… are you saying you identify with both of these very different characters?

Yeah.

😐 Maybe you should see a therapist.

Nah. I’m good. I have the same therapist Martha had. Jesus.

Martha tries to get Jesus to side with her. But no one asked Martha to create an elaborate meal. Jesus is not the kind of person that you impress with fancy meals. He’s not the kind of person who feels entitled to a fancy dinner and slighted if He doesn’t get one. Did Martha not know this?

I wonder why she was so stressed?

If she was like me when I’m in “Martha-mode,” once she was committed to the plan, then THAT became the focus. Excellent performance. Doing it RIGHT. No sloppy, half-done project.

Sometimes I wonder if a lot of Christian effort is expended unnecessarily. Are we – as my mom likes to say – “fizzing around” and getting all whipped up into a tizzy of distraction over non-essentials?

At what point do we say, “ok, I’m trying to do too much for Jesus?”

I’ve heard the perspective that you can never do too much for Jesus and “It’s better to burn out for God than rust out for the Devil.” Is there no middle ground? No balance between burn out and rust out?

I think the text may give us a clue.

“But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things,”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭10‬:‭41‬ ‭ESV‬‬

The Greek word translated “troubled” is turbadzo.

🤓 Does it mean turbo?

Not quite. It’s where the English word “turbid” comes from. If you go to Google Images and search “turbid water,” you’ll get

I grew up around rivers. Very clear, clean, spring-fed rivers. But every river-kid knows that if you’re looking for crawdads or pretty rocks in the shallow water and you disturb the water too much you won’t be able to see anything for a second until the algae and whatnot settles and washes downstream. After a big rain, even a clear creek will be a roaring brown mess.

This is the only time in the Bible that turbadzo is used. Martha’s heart was not settled and calm and clear. It was all stirred up and murky.

Now that we’re warmed up, it’s time for…

FUN WITH GREEK ETYMOLOGY 🎉

🤓 We’re gonna study Greek bugs? 🪲

No. That’s EN-to-mology. This is ET-y-mology; the study of the origin of words.

🤓 Oh. I think Greek bugs sound more fun.

Be that as it may….

There are two words in Jesus statement to Martha that share the same root.

Jesus also tells Martha that she is “anxious” or some translations have “careful” or “worried.” I think the NASB’s choice of “distracted” is an excellent one. The word is:

This word is used a lot in the Sermon on the Mount when Jesus says “don’t be anxious” about this or that. Now we’re going to trace this word to its root. I have color-coded the Strong’s Concordance numbers to make it easier. Merimnao comes from:

This word is loaded with the idea of distraction and care. And it comes from…

We’re getting down to the core idea of having several things to keep track of. One’s attention has to be parted-out; divided.

We have a word for this. Some people are quite proud of their ability to do it. And might well they be. It is rewarded enough in the workplace. We call it Multitasking.

And we have finally made it to the root:

One part. One piece.

😐 No wonder it’s an obsolete word. Does anyone do just one thing anymore?

Mary did. Jesus said that Mary had chosen the “good part.” It was the feminine form of the obsolete word meros.

Mary chose one thing. One good thing. And she quietly sat at Jesus’ feet with her heart and mind calm and clear.

Martha chose many things. None of them exactly crucial, And she was running to and fro, keeping all her dinner plates spinning. With her attention divided up into a hundred little tumultuous pieces. Worked up into a froth. Unclear. Unsettled.

And I can hear all the busy people saying (or maybe yelling) to the screen, “But I CAN’T just sit around and read the Bible all day! I’ve got small children. Or teens. Two jobs. An ailing parent…”

Ok. But how are we approaching those things? Are we doing things for others that they could do themselves? Have we asked for help? Do we have to have 2 jobs and a side hustle? What is dividing up our attention? What in our lives is not absolutely essential? Why are we running ourselves ragged for non-essential things? Can we afford the non-essentials we’re working so hard for? Are we living beyond our means? What if we had less stuff? Would we have more time if we didn’t have so many things to pay for? Would life on a smaller income be worth it for a less hectic schedule? What about the distractions of devices and tv, sports and extra-curricular activities? What could we let go of? Are we eating complicated, time-consuming meals, when simpler ones will do?

I don’t have answers for you. I’m just trying to help myself (and others) really get at what Jesus said to Martha because I think if ever there was a Martha Church, it’s now. We are all so terribly busy. Even the retired people. Many of them tell me, “I’m busier now than when I was working.” We live in a culture that applauds the people who sleep for 4 hours and multitask the other 20 and we pack as much activity into our waking hours as possible. In short, we live in world that applauds Martha and believes that being Mary is an impossible lifestyle only available if you win the 30 million dollar Power Ball.

I don’t think Jesus was clueless. He knew then and still knows about laundry and meals and work deadlines and projects and kids.

I do know that Jesus said He would not take Mary’s chosen portion away from her.

Maybe the call to be like Mary and choose one good thing over many anxious things is a call to be radically different from the Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook world. Perhaps Mary would be as counter-cultural today as then but for different reasons. Busy people tend to attack those who have time boundaries and have said “No” to the normal. “Must be nice to have so much free time on your hands.” Little do the busy folks know how much that person may be sacrificing or has had to sacrifice to have that much time.

When you say “yes” to something,

you’re saying “no” to something else.

When you say “no” to something,

you’re saying “yes” to something else.

May we have the wisdom and courage to say “no” to the things that are dividing up our attention and keeping us in a distracted whirl. And may we say “yes” to sitting at the feet of Jesus, no matter what people say.