Luke 10:36-37

THE WORKER AND THE WORK

‘Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.’

Luke 10:36

I. Each has his special work.—Every true child of God resembles our Blessed Lord and Master in this respect, that he is ‘sent’ to do some special work. He was ‘sent into the world to save sinners,’ and the same may be said of us in our degree; every real follower of the Lord Jesus is himself ‘a saviour.’ Every one is ‘sent’ into the world to do something, so far as in us lies, to counteract those mysterious agencies of evil; each one is privileged to be associated with our Divine Lord in the great work which brought Him down from His glory to this world of sin and sorrow—the work of saving sinners. The lesson which our Lord primarily intended to inculcate by this parable is the claim which Divine Love has upon us, that ‘as He is, such should we be in this world’; the moral of the parable is expressed in the text, ‘Go, and do thou likewise.’

II. The Gospel and the law.—The narrative, of which this parable forms part, brings to light the prominent sin of the Pharisees; they approached God’s law with the desire to justify themselves, if not by proving their lives to be in accordance with the law, by making the law coincide with their conduct. The spirit of the Gospel is ever seeking for opportunities of exhibiting its own true genius, while the spirit of the law is always seeking for opportunities of escaping from obligations which it reluctantly recognises. This is clearly set forth in the parable; the priest passes by; he argues from the legal standpoint—this is no case for him. The same considerations influenced the Levite; moreover, he was probably averse to wish to appear more liberal-minded than his superior. In the midst of a world stricken with sorrow, suffering, and sin, is it possible that there are any now who have sunk to the same, or perhaps to a lower level than these two men? How many there are who require to be reminded of that solemn warning given in the Book of Proverbs (Luke 24:2).

III. A compassionate heart.—And now turn and consider the conduct of the good Samaritan. He too might naturally have turned aside; he had to overcome national prejudice; his journey also had an object; the place was infested by murderous robbers; but his heart is filled with compassion; his mind rises above all lower considerations; a work of mercy is before him, and has to be done, done at the risk of his own life, and done at the cost of considerable self-sacrifice and self-denial. We hear a Voice sounding in our midst, and saying, ‘Go, and do thou likewise.’

Illustration

‘There are different kinds of Christians; there are those who have their sense exercised, who live as in the light of eternity, and as in the presence of God; there are others who seem to lead a dreamy life, who scarcely ever grapple with realities; they sleep away one opportunity after another, and lead idle, useless lives. When we are really living in the light of eternity, O God! what scenes surround us! Now, it is quite possible to shut off sympathy, to train ourselves to something like moral hardness of heart; on the other hand, we may cultivate our spiritual sensibility, and then it will be with us as with our Blessed Lord. Every scene of misery, every exhibition of sin, the groans, the tears, the cries of suffering humanity, will elicit ready action, and be “calls” to us to go forth and rescue the perishing. Will you turn and look in His face, Who hath said, “All souls are Mine,” and say, “I cannot”?’