What the Good Samaritan Parable Really Teaches Us

The parable of the good Samaritan is a story familiar to religious and secular audiences alike. Jesus used it in Luke 10:25-37 to illustrate what it means to love our neighbor as ourselves.

It’s fascinating to see how a story about an injured man, a priest, a Levite, and a Samaritan can leave a legacy that can be seen in different organizations and even some laws.

But it’s a story that applies to every person—not just healthcare professionals or nonprofit organizations!

So let’s comb through the details of this parable, because there’s more packed into it than we might realize.

• Story walkthrough and background
• Why Jesus told this story
• Why this parable matters
• What it truly means to be a “good Samaritan”

Let’s start with a quick overview.

“The Good Samaritan” story walkthrough and background

Photo by Tom Jur on Unsplash

Jesus begins the actual story in Luke 10:30, introducing a Jewish man who was traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho. This route was a 3,000-foot downhill descent and an 18-mile trek through a rocky desert.¹

It was also an ideal location for criminals to hide and ambush travelers, because of the caves and rocks along that route.²

And that’s exactly what happened. Bandits attacked the traveler, mercilessly beat him, took his clothes, and left him to die.

A priest soon appeared on the scene. When he saw the injured man, we’re told that he passed by the beaten traveler on the other side of the road.

Maybe the priest was concerned about potential uncleanness if he touched a body that could be dead? Or maybe he was late for something that he felt was urgent? We aren’t told what he was thinking or why he chose to move to the other side of the road, so it’s safe to say this isn’t the part of the story that matters. It’s what the priest did or did not do we’re supposed to pay attention to.

A Levite appeared next. He saw the victim and even stopped to look at him, but he also passed on the side of the road.

Just like with the priest, we don’t know what thoughts ran through his head when he saw the victim. The focus is on his actions.

Whatever their reasons, they ultimately failed to realize that helping other humans fulfills the most essential matters of God’s Law: justice, mercy, faith, and the love of God (Matthew 23:23; Luke 11:42).

At this point in the story, Jesus introduces an unexpected character: a Samaritan.

To a modern-day reader, this may not feel unusual or elicit any kind of noteworthy response. But it would have unnerved Jesus’s Jewish audience at the time because of the hostility between Jews and Samaritans.

Jews despised Samaritans in Jesus’s day because their Jewish and Gentile ancestry was seen as making them “impure,” and because they had some forms of idolatry mixed into their religion.³

Much of this religious and political animosity began around the time of Judah’s captivity in Babylon. Samaria used to be part of the northern kingdom of Israel before the Assyrian Empire conquered it. Over time, many of the remaining Israelites intermarried with people the Assyrians brought in, and Israelite religion gradually blended with pagan beliefs and practices (1 Kings 17:24-41).

Later on, when Jews from the southern kingdom of Judah returned from their exile in Babylon, the Samaritans offered to help rebuild the temple. But the Jews refused their offer, rejecting their claim to worship the same God (Ezra 4:1-5). And their ongoing conflict likely deepened from this point on.

But despite the bitterness between the two groups, the Samaritan quickly becomes the hero of Jesus’ story.

The Samaritan doesn’t hesitate to see if the injured man is one of his own. All he sees is someone who needs help.

He treats the man’s wounds and gets him to safety at an inn. The next day, he pays the innkeeper two Roman denarii—two days’ wages⁴—and promises to pay back any expenses for the wounded man on his return trip.

And that’s the end.

So what did this accomplish? What was Jesus’ real purpose here?

Let’s back up a bit.

Why did Jesus tell the story?

Photo by Maor Attias

The parable of the good Samaritan was prompted by a lawyer who asked Jesus, “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?” (Luke 10:25, NKJV)

This lawyer wasn’t the kind you’d see in courts today. He was an expert on Old Testament laws, including the law of God, and he studied the Hebrew Scriptures for a living. The Bible says he wanted “to test” Jesus, though we aren’t told why.

Jesus likely knew this, so He turned it back on him and asked what the Law said. The lawyer quoted from Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18:

“So he answered and said, ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself’” (Luke 10:27, NKJV).

Jesus acknowledged that the lawyer had answered his own question. He already knew what to do. He just needed to do it.

But the lawyer wasn’t satisfied. So, “wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbor?’” (Luke 10:29, CSB).

The immediate context of Leviticus 19:18 shows that “neighbor,” in that instance, referred to fellow Israelites.

“You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD” (NKJV, emphasis added).

But the same chapter later includes non-Israelite people as neighbors.

“You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God” (Leviticus 19:34, ESV, bold added).

In other words, we’re to treat those outside of our community like our friends and love them.

Jesus wanted to break down the barriers among the people who claimed to follow God and His Law (Ephesians 2:14-18). He used the Good Samaritan parable to emphasize that the principles of love and mercy apply to all of humanity.

In someone is in meed, background, status, or beliefs are irrelevant. “Neighbors” include more than just our own people.

Let’s look at how the story of the Good Samaritan demonstrates this.

Why this story matters

This parable teaches us that our neighbors go beyond proximity. Everyone we encounter is a neighbor—someone God calls us to love and receive love from.

This story also reveals God’s heart, showing us that God loves us unconditionally and never passes us by when we come to Him.

It shows who our “neighbor” is

Everyone is our neighbor—close friends and family members, strangers we pass by, and people we’d rather avoid. We’re called to love every person we encounter, just as we want to be loved. And being a neighbor involves giving and receiving compassion.

The word “neighbor” in English usually refers to someone who lives near us, like in a neighborhood or apartment complex. But the Greek and Hebrew meanings have a wider application.

In Hebrew, the word for neighbor is rēaʿ (Strong’s H7453). It can refer to friends, companions, fellow citizens, or close associates. It can even mean brother, lover, or spouse! But it can also simply refer to another person someone encounters.

In Greek, the word is plēsion (Strong’s G4139) and is used for friends. It literally means “a near one.” But like the Hebrew word, this can be used for any other human.

In Jesus’s day, Jews applied this word/concept to anyone who belonged to the Hebrew nation. But Jesus pushed beyond the cultural barriers and used His parable to show that our neighbor is anyone we come in contact with. Their background doesn’t matter because they are human beings made in God’s image (Genesis 9:6).

So, being a neighbor means treating others with the same value and care we give ourselves, or that we’d expect to be given.

Think about how friends treat each other. They look out for one another and express compassion and empathy. They prioritize one another. They respect one another. They give grace and focus on potential instead of faults. They’re transparent and honest, and they encourage one another to do what’s right.

But Christ’s parable goes beyond the cultural norms by including not just anyone, but “enemies” into this circle of respect and value.

In a time of political and religious turmoil, the idea of treating enemies like neighbors would have sounded strange. But what’s especially interesting is that Jesus wasn’t adding new information to what Jewish leaders and scholars already knew. He was clarifying a truth that had been buried under confusion, fear, pride, strife, etc.

In His famous Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told His listeners,

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:43-45, NKJV).

Not all of us have to deal with someone actively hating us. But we’ve all met people we’d rather avoid: bullies, spam callers, people who argue about everything, relatives who give us a hard time, overly-competitive coworkers, etc. We all struggle with other people from time to time. And that makes sense because we live in a sin-soaked world that feels supercharged with hostility and selfishness.

But God wants to set us free from the “us vs. them” mentality. That’s why Jesus tells us to include our enemies—real or imagined—in the neighbor list.

But no one’s ignoring the fact that loving those who are against us, or those we don’t like, doesn’t come easily or naturally.

(And as a reminder, loving someone isn’t synonymous with finding them likable, agreeing with them, approving of them, or even wanting to spend time with them. The love Jesus talks about is far beyond preference or emotion.)

Loving others stems from God’s love for us. He loves us when we have no interest in Him. He loves those who actively fight against Him, and He loves the very people who hung Him on the Cross. So even at our lowest, doing our worst, God saw us and willingly sacrificed His life for us (Romans 5:6-8).

When we were His enemies, God made us His neighbors. And we can pay this forward.

It reveals God’s character

The parables of Jesus give us glimpses of His profound and loving character. For example, the story of the prodigal son illustrates God’s patience, unconditional love, and willingness to receive any of us when we turn back to Him, no matter what we’ve done. The story of the unforgiving servant shows how God is willing to forgive debts that are impossible to pay.

The parable of the good Samaritan reveals that God doesn’t play favorites because He loves each and every one of us all the same. His love is perfect and toward all humans. We’re all His children, so having preference or turning His back on someone wouldn’t even occur to Him. And that unconditional love is what this story reveals about His character that’s so different from how our human nature wants to operate.

The apostle Peter began to recognize this God directed him to meet a Roman centurion who was eager to receive the truth of the Gospel.

“Then Peter opened his mouth and said: ‘In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him’” (Acts 10:34-35, NKJV).

Human distinctions have no effect on our value in His eyes.

The bottom line of the parable is that we should always help anyone in need that we encounter, no matter who they are.

Even if they’re an “enemy.”

Even if we don’t think they’ll appreciate it.

Even if they don’t like us.

Even if people might look down on us for it.

As followers of Christ and reflectors of His character, we should treat every human life as equally valuable. Because that’s what He did for each of us.

Sometimes we relate to the traveler who was ambushed by thieves. Sometimes it feels like life is robbing us and beating us down, while those around us just pass on by.

But Jesus sees and knows. He doesn’t think twice about coming to us. When we were at our lowest and most broken, Christ demonstrated His love by identifying with us and dying for us—even when we saw Him as our enemy (Romans 5:6-8). It didn’t matter to Him who or what we were. And it still doesn’t matter.

That’s why the parable prompts us to show compassion indiscriminately—because that’s what God does.

So how do we live out this truth? Especially when life and relationships get complicated?

What it means to be a Good Samaritan

Photo by Timur Weber

Being a “good Samaritan” means showing God’s compassionate love to others and being willing to help them in whatever way we’re able to.

The parable of the Good Samaritan has impacted society in many ways. Hospitals, healthcare services, and counseling services use the term in their names. And Good Samaritan Laws grant legal protection to healthcare professionals who volunteer to help in a medical emergency without getting paid.⁵

But even if we don’t encounter emergencies, the everyday person can still serve as a “good Samaritan.” Getting beaten up by robbers isn’t the only situation that merits compassion.

While we won’t always have to risk our lives to help people, we’ll have opportunities to put others before ourselves. Someone having a bad day could use neighborly kindness to get through the day. They may just need a word of encouragement or a kind gesture that lets them know they’ll be okay.

To be a good Samaritan is to show compassion to anyone who needs it—even when it might not seem like they deserve it. We can always seek out ways to proactively help others, whether that’s volunteering with local programs or donating to relief organizations. It can also be as simple as responding kindly to an annoying spam caller, greeting a moody receptionist, or offering someone sitting alone to join us.

It’s more about a lifestyle than random acts of kindness or the “good deed of the day.” God isn’t asking us to do “Good Samaritan-y acts” to prove we’re good Christians or earn His favor. He wants to love this broken world through us. He wants to partner with us to share the Gospel with every person who’s been cheated and robbed by the devil. Because we’ve all been there.

Key takeaways

Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan to show a lawyer who his neighbor was and how to be a neighbor himself. Neighbors give and receive compassion, and these occasions could be as simple as warmly greeting someone or as intense as responding to emergencies. The point is loving others as you would want to be loved.

The Good Samaritan in the story didn’t base his willingness to care for others based on their background. He didn’t let prejudice or religious concerns prevent him from responding to a human in distress.

But because loving our neighbors includes people we don’t like, or who don’t like us, we need God’s grace for this. Unconditional love ultimately comes from God, not from within ourselves.

Thankfully, God can work on our hearts so we can desire to do His will and act on it (Philippians 2:12-13).

So what are some ways we can practice being a Good Samaritan in our community?

Want to learn more about the parables and how they teach us to live?

1. Andrews Study Bible, Andrews University Press, 2010, comment on Luke 10:30, p. 1348 [↵]
2. Nichol, F.D., “Luke”, The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol. 6 (Revised edition.), p.125-126, https://archive.org/details/SdaBibleCommentary1980/SdaBc-5%20%2842%29%20Luke/page/n126/mode/1up [↵]
3. Andrews Study Bible, comment on Luke 10:35, p. 1349. [↵]
4. Ibid [↵]
5. West, Brian; Varacallo, A. Matthew, Good Samaritan Laws. StatPearls [Internet], updated September 12, 2022, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK542176/ [↵]

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