The Good Samaritan  (Luke chp 10)

A lawyer questioned Jesus over what he must do in order to inherit eternal life.  Jesus asked him what was written in the law, and he replied that one must love the Lord with all one's heart, soul, strength and mind; and love one's neighbour as oneself.  Jesus told him that he was correct, but the lawyer asked for clarification as to who his neighbour was.  So Jesus told a parable of a man travelling from Jerusalem to Jericho, who was robbed and abandoned by the roadside.  A priest travelled along the road, but passed by on the other side.  So did a Levite.  But a Samaritan went to his aid, binding his wounds, and transporting him to an inn, where he paid two denarii and asked them to care for the man, promising to pay the remainder if they spent anything extra.  Jesus then asked the lawyer who represented the man's neighbour, and he answered correctly that it was the Samaritan.  Jesus commissioned him, "Go and do likewise".

Themes

• Eternal life - initially, Jesus pointed the lawyer towards what the Jewish law dictated.
• Who is my neighbour? - the lawyer wanted clarification as to who was being referred to as his "neighbour" in the law.
• Parable - Jesus then gave his own - new - interpretation of the law, and told a parable illustrating that someone's neighbour could be anyone.  Both the priest and the Levite were Jewish ministers, but they did not help the man.  Eventually, the Samaritan (from a different country - and someone who the Jews would have considered as being unclean, and avoided contact with) came to his aid, illustrating that one's neighbour is not dictated by religion, nationality, family, or anything else for that matter, but simply by the fact that they are there.  In Jesus' church, everyone is a neighbour to everyone else.
  A parable is an ordinary story which has a deeper meaning.  Jesus used parables in order to teach the people.  He could tell them a story, but the tale would have an important moral which, if observed, would help them to live their daily lives more appropriately, in the sight of God.
  
  
  

Contemporary Issues

• Charitable work.
• Prejudice.
• Ways that one could be a "good Samaritan" in the twenty first century.
  

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The Lost (Prodigal) Son  (Luke chp 15)

Jesus told a parable about a man who had two sons.  The younger asked for his share of the inheritance, gathered up his belongings, and went to live in a far away country.  However, he was foolish with his money, and squandered it all.  A famine then overcame the country in which he was living, and he took a job feeding swine.  He would happily have eaten the pigs' food, but nobody gave him anything.  He thought that even his father's servants were treated better than him, so resolved to return to his family and offer himself as a slave, as he was ashamed of what he had done and felt that he was not worthy to be called his father's son.  But his father saw him approaching when he was still a way off, and ran and embraced him.  The son apologised to his father, but the father clothed him in the best robe, put a ring on his finger, shoes on his feet, and ordered his servants to kill the fatted calf so that they could all celebrate his son's homecoming.  The other son (who was coming home from the field) heard of this, and refused to go into the house, complaining to his father that despite his many years of faithful service, he had never been given a party - but that the rebellious son, who had wasted the family money, was being given a great feast.  The father said to his elder son that he was always with him and that they shared their possessions, but that the younger son had been dead but was now alive again, had been lost but was now found - and that this called for a celebration.

• Parable - Jesus is teaching by means of a parable.
• Foolishness and Jealousy - the younger son was foolish and squandered his inheritance.  The elder son was jealous when his brother was welcomed back home with a great feast.
• Forgiveness - the father forgave his son, throwing a party in order to welcome him home.  He was still his son, and he loved him as such, no matter what he had done.
  
• God's Love - like the father's love, God's love is all embracing, as is a parent's love for their children.
  
  

Contemporary Issues

• Forgiveness - always the right thing to do?  When is it hard to do?
  
• Jealousy.
• Conflict within the family.

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The Sower  (Luke chp 8)

Jesus told a parable about a sower who sowed seed.  Some fell on the path and was eaten by birds.  Some fell on stony ground and could not take root.  Some fell among thorns and was choked by them.  And some fell on good ground, so was able to grow.  He explained that the seed was like the word of God.  The seed which fell on the path was like those who heard the word, but did not understand it, and were still susceptible to evil.  The seed which fell on stony ground stood for those who received the word with joy, but this joy was short lived, and they soon forgot the news, and turned back to their old ways.  The seed which fell among thorns was like those who heard the word, but were then distracted by the cares and riches of the world.  And the seed which fell on good ground was like those who heard the word, took it to heart, and acted on it.


Themes

• Parable - again, Jesus is teaching by using a Parable.
• Seed - all the seed is the same, but its fate depends on where it is sown.  In the same way, God's word is available to everyone, but people receive it (or not) in different ways.
• Persevere - everyone can hear the word, but not all persevere, take it to heart and act on it.
  
  

Contemporary Issues

• In what ways are we distracted by our worldly cares, so forget to do what is right, in our preoccupation with less important issues?
  

Revision