The Man Who Stopped to Help
Month 6: Stories Jesus Told · Bible Story
Today's Scripture
Read together: Luke 10:25-37
25 One day an expert in the law stood up to test Him. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 “What is written in the Law?” Jesus replied. “How do you read it?” 27 He answered, “‘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 neighbor as yourself.’” 28 “You have answered correctly,” Jesus said. “Do this and you will live.” 29 But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30 Jesus took up this question and said, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a priest was going down the same road, but when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, when a Levite came to that spot and saw him, he passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan on a journey came upon him, and when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Take care of him,’ he said, ‘and on my return I will repay you for any additional expense.’ 36 Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” 37 “The one who showed him mercy,” replied the expert in the law. Then Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
Memory Verse
“He answered, “‘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 neighbor as yourself.’””— Luke 10:27 (BSB)memorize this week
📖 Bible-in-a-Year (optional)
Today's reading: Psalms 35-37
Reading the whole Bible in a year — do this when you have extra time. (Around Day 158 of 365 — David learns to trust God instead of fretting over those who do wrong.)The Heart of It
A lawyer stood up to test Jesus with the biggest question of all. "What shall I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus turned it back on him, and the man answered well. Love God with everything you've got, and love your neighbor as yourself. But then he tried to wriggle off the hook with a smaller question. "And who is my neighbor?" In other words, "How short is my list? Whom do I get to leave off?" So Jesus told a story. A traveler was going down the dangerous road to Jericho. He was robbed, beaten, and left half-dead in the ditch. A priest came by and crossed to the other side. A Levite came by and did the same. Both were religious men who knew God's law by heart. Yet they walked right past a bleeding human being.
Then came a Samaritan. The lawyer would have despised this man, because Jews and Samaritans wanted nothing to do with each other. And this is the one who stopped. He felt compassion. He bandaged the wounds. He lifted the stranger onto his own animal. He paid for his care, and he promised to come back. Then Jesus asked, "Which of these three was neighbor to him?" The lawyer couldn't even say the word Samaritan. He just answered, "He who showed mercy." Jesus had flipped the whole question. The lawyer wanted to know who counts as my neighbor. Jesus showed him how to be a neighbor to anyone God puts in his path. Love, it turns out, doesn't ask "Do I have to?" It asks "Who needs me?"
Around the Table
A man was hurt by the road. Lots of people walked right past him. But one kind man stopped and helped! Jesus says we should be like the helper.
Let's do it: Lie on the floor like the hurt man. Then jump up and wrap each other's arm with a pretend bandage. Say, "I'll help you!"
The hero of the story was a Samaritan. People thought of him as an enemy. Jesus made him the good guy on purpose.
Let's talk: Why do you think Jesus chose the "enemy" to be the kind one instead of the religious men?
The lawyer asked, "Who is my neighbor?" He hoped to make his list of people to love shorter. Jesus answered a bigger question. How do I become a neighbor to whoever is in front of me?
Let's go deeper: Is there anyone you secretly leave off your "have to love" list? What would Jesus say about that?
💬 Conversation Starter
Have you ever seen someone who needed help and weren't sure whether to stop? What happened?
🛡️ Defending the Faith
Some say all religions teach the same basic kindness. But Jesus made the hero a hated outsider. Then He said "Go and do likewise." He was calling us to love even our enemies. That radical, cross-the-line love isn't generic niceness. It's the heart of God Himself, who loved us while we were still far off ().
For Dad · Go Deeper
Notice the genius of Jesus' counter-question. The lawyer's "Who is my neighbor?" was a request for boundaries. It was a way to define a manageable circle of obligation and feel righteous about the people outside it. Jesus refuses the question and reframes it. Stop asking whom you must love, and start being the kind of person who loves. This is the difference between law as a fence and love as a fountain. The priest and Levite likely had reasons. Ritual purity, schedule, the road's danger. We always do. But Jesus tells us the Samaritan's compassion "moved" him. That word means a gut-deep ache, the same word used of Jesus' own heart. Real compassion doesn't wait for the reasons to clear. As a father, your kids will learn this less from your lectures than from watching you. They will watch whether you cross the street toward need or away from it. They are reading you more than your list.
Draws on: Kenneth Bailey, Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes.
Let's Pray Together
"Father, thank You that Jesus stopped for us when we were helpless in the ditch. Give us eyes to see people who need us, and hearts brave enough to stop. Make us good neighbors today. In Jesus' name, amen."
Don't ask who counts as my neighbor. Ask whom I can be a neighbor to today.