Much More Than All

"Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbour to the man who fell among the robbers?" He said, "The one who showed him mercy." And Jesus said to him,"You go, and do likewise." (Luke 10:25–37)

There's a line, right? For whom, exactly? Just how much do I have to do? We all want to know just what we're getting into, how far we can take it before going too far, and how much it will take to justify ourselves without getting inconvenient. We want to do just what's required and get defensive about whether we're doing enough.

In the good Samaritan parable, we see Jesus responding to a question, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus prompted the man to sum up the law with the greatest commandment: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and love your neighbour as yourself."

Despite all the Old Testament provisions of sacrifice to atone for sins, Hosea 6:6 tells us that God doesn't desire sacrifices, but steadfast love, also translated as mercy. This is echoed in Mark 12:33, where Jesus' answer to the question —to love God with this steadfast love and to love, with mercy, our neighbour as ourselves—is described as "much more than all" the sacrifices we could try to do for ourselves.

However, the lawyer answered his own question yet wanted to justify and decide who qualifies as a "neighbour". At this, Jesus tells the parable of an unexpected neighbour, a disdained Samaritan, who gives a stranger left for dead on the side of the road much more than what was conventional or convenient. Jesus shifted the line.

Just like this Samaritan, Jesus came to us with a "much more than all" kind of mercy, saving us from our sin when we were left for dead on the side of a road. Jesus didn't so much shift the line as remove the line. In response, we are called to move beyond our self-centred, self-justification, and do likewise, showing mercy to unexpected neighbours all around us.

LET US PRAY - God, we love You because You first loved us and sent Jesus to show us mercy and bring us back into a relationship with You. We confess that we are often focused on ourselves and ask that Your Spirit help us focus on loving even our unexpected neighbours. In Jesus' name. Amen.