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Source: https://www.sermonindex.net/speakers/frank-sona/the-good-samaritan/
The Gospel of Luke chapter 10, Luke's Gospel chapter 10 and we're going to read a very well known account about what is called the Good Samaritan. Now Luke chapter 10, but we're going to notice what introduces this parable, this story.
And in verse 25, And behold, a certain lawyer stood up, now that's a lawyer, now that lawyer is not like the lawyers down in town here, you know, that go to court. This is a lawyer, meaning he was familiar with the law, the Jewish law.
He knew about the Bible, he knew about the Old Testament. In fact, he was likely a Levite himself, they were the lawyers. So this man is likely a Levite. It says, Behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
He said unto him, What is written in the law? How readest thou? Let me ask you, do you read the Bible? That's a good question right there. Do you read the Bible? If you want to find out about knowing God and about your sins and all, it's in the Bible.
Can't just, doesn't just pop into your mind or whatever, it has to be what God says. So, the Lord Jesus takes this now, statement, this question from this lawyer who's tempting him, what shall I do? What can I do?
Tell me what to do, and in other words, to inherit eternal life, to do all this, okay? And the Lord Jesus turns it around on him. And look what he does. We'll go, let's go down to verse 29. But he, willing to justify himself, oh, this man wants to think, I'm going to be right.
He willing to justify himself said unto Jesus, and who is my neighbor? Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among thieves. They stripped him of his raiment, they wounded him, and they departed, leaving him half dead.
And by chance, there came down a certain priest that way. When he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise, a Levite, that's another kind of a religious person, all right, a Levite. When he was at the place, came and looked on him.
He passes by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, now the Samaritans were looked at, the Jews did not have any dealings with the Samaritans. They looked down their noses at the Samaritans. They were not as good as the Jews were.
And so, as they look at this, the Lord tells this story, you can almost feel that they're starting to bristle, the people are listening. A Samaritan, he can't do anything. He can't even, he can't do a thing.
So as the Lord's telling the story now, a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, he came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion on him. And he went to him, and he bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast.
In other words, this Samaritan actually got off of his own mule or horse or whatever, and he put this man, he gave him a really good place, and he walked. And he brought him to an inn, and he took care of him.
And on the morrow, when he departed, he took out two pence, and he gave them to the host and said unto him, take care of him. In other words, take care of him more. And whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.
You could almost feel the air as the Lord Jesus told this story. Now the Lord Jesus was not a Samaritan. He was a Jew. But there was a time when they actually called him a Samaritan. And so as the Lord tells this story, he basically takes the place of the Samaritan.
Very well, this is what you think of me. He says, the problem is this, you don't think rightly of me, and you don't think rightly of yourselves. So he tells this account that puts everybody in their place.
And here is a man that's trying to justify himself, and the Lord turns the whole thing around on him. And he turns it into a story of his ruin, of his rejection, of redemption, of rescue, by the most unlikely of people, by the most unthought of people, a Samaritan.
Do you think that the Lord Jesus can save you? Do you think that the Lord can actually save you? Do you think that you actually need saving? That was the setting for this story. There is a man here, he doesn't think he needs saving.
He in fact thinks he's capable of doing something to save himself. What shall I do that I might inherit eternal life? And he thinks not only can he do something himself, but he can save himself. So I want you to think about that.
Look at this story. I want you to think about the traveler, first of all, the traveler. There's a certain man, we're not given his name, so he becomes a whosoever. He's a nameless, faceless person, but he's a real person, and he's traveling, and he has a certain sense of individuality.
Listen, we are all individually certain travelers. You as a young person, you as an older person, you as a middle-aged person, we are all certain travelers. You say, well, I'm sitting in my seat, I'm not going anywhere.
No, no, no, no, no, you're a traveler. You know where you're traveling to? Eternity. Every one of us are traveling to eternity. It's not just about the masses. Listen, every single person in this meeting is an individual traveler.
We're not all moving at the same speed, and we're not all going to the same place, but we're all traveling. Some of you in this meeting are moving faster than others. You say, well, we're all sitting here.
No, no, I'm not talking about that. There are some here, and you are far closer to eternity than you know. There are some tonight in this very city, in this very town, and because of how they live, because of what they do, they're moving faster to eternity.
Some live reckless lives. Some live careless lives. The people that constantly speed down the road, the people that, quote, unquote, tempt fate, the people that push the boundaries, push the limits, they're moving at a faster rate of speed.
But then there are others that are moving at a faster rate of speed, and you don't know it. You're just, for all you know, you could arrive tonight in eternity. Different speeds. Do you know when you're going to die?
Nobody knows. You need to be prepared for it, but since you don't know when it's going to happen, doesn't it make sense to prepare now? Because you don't know when it's going to happen, and when it does happen, it happens boom, and it's gone, and you don't know.
And just like that, you're gone. I had a friend, and he worked where I worked, and I'd tell him about the gospel, and his name was Dave, and I remember as I talked to him, one night we even went to a gospel meeting just like this, and he listened, and we went home, and a couple months later, he got in an accident, a car accident, and wondered what happened, came back to work, I started talking to him about the gospel again, and I said, Dave, I said, did you think what happened to you?
I said, you need to be ready. He says, I'm ready. I said, you are? He says, yes, I am. He says, I'm ready. I said, well, why are you ready? He says, because I'm saved. So I said, when did you get saved?
He says, just after that car accident. I said, well, what happened? And so he started telling me. As he came up to that intersection, and he didn't see the other vehicle coming, and all of a sudden, the two slammed into each other, he said, just before, he said, a millisecond before that accident happened, and he said, and we hit, we collided, he said, never expected it, never thought it was going to happen, I'm driving home from work, and slam.
He said, but just before we hit, he said, I yelled out a curse, and he said, the next thing I knew, everything was black. He says, and I woke up in the hospital. I was pretty, pretty banged up. A few broken bones.
He said, but the one thing that struck me was this. I was going to go out and meet God with a curse on my lips. And he thought, that's how I'm going to go? That's how I would have gone? And he says, I'm so thankful I didn't go.
And he says, and I started thinking about what you had said. And he says, and I started reading a Bible. I asked for a Bible. And he told me how he had looked and searched and found Christ in the Bible.
He was saved. I think I mentioned him one night earlier in these meetings when he brought his wife to the tent meetings, and he wanted her to be saved. Traveler. You're traveling. Dave was going to hell.
He's now going to heaven based on what the Word of God says. You're a traveler. Where are you going? When are you going? You don't know. You need to be ready. The trip. I want you to think now not just about the traveler, but about the trip.
The Lord Jesus uses, this is a really interesting trip he uses, when he speaks about a certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho. And he literally went down. Because it's about 18 miles from Jerusalem to Jericho.
But it is really down. It's a very steep grade. It's a downward trip of over 3 ,000 feet grade. So when the Lord said they were going down, they were going down. But you know what else he's really telling you?
That you're going down. And unless you change direction, you're going to go down. And what's interesting about this is, as he tells this story, he talks about a man who's going to Jericho. What would Jericho mean?
Well, Jericho was the place of the curse. It was cursed. You're under the curse. The curse of sin. What sin has done to you. What it will do to you. Going down. And so he speaks about this trip. This man that's going here.
Something else that's interesting. Not only does he talk about the trip, I want you to think about the tragedy here. Because as this man goes now, he has no idea of what's going to happen to him. The parable starts with a tragedy.
Did you know that? Even before the story, it starts with a tragedy. You know what the tragedy is? The lawyer trying to justify himself. That's the first tragedy. Any time a sinner tries to justify themselves, if you were to think that you could somehow save yourself.
Or that you're not going to this place. And really your sins aren't that bad. And really God does understand. And everything will be alright. And somehow you'll arrive at your destination at the proper speed.
The proper place. You think everything's... You know, that is the greatest tragedy. That's the greatest tragedy. And there are people, tragically, that think that all the time. They think they're okay.
They don't care. They think about their friends. And what they're going to do tomorrow. And what they're going to do next week. And the fun that they're going to have. And the life they're going to live.
And they don't even want to think about these things. I hope you do think about them. And I hope you do more than think about them. Because that too is a tragedy. If you don't even think about them. And I'm looking in the faces of young people here.
And it's great to be young. I wish I was young again. But young people die. Everybody dies. And it's a tragedy. And the greatest tragedy is when a person dies without Christ. And so this tragedy. As he goes.
Now the Lord tells a story. And as he builds now. This man is going to Jericho. And it says he fell among thieves. That's very interesting. Fell among thieves. The word there. You'll have to take my word for it.
The Bible wasn't written in English. We read it in English. But it wasn't written in English. And the word here. When it says he fell among thieves. You know what it literally means? He was surrounded by thieves.
He's going down this road. And it was a bad road in fact. It was known for its crime. People were known for its muggings. I grew up just a little bit outside of New York City. And I don't think there's many places like this around here.
I haven't seen any. But in New York City there's a place called Central Park. You do not go in Central Park after dark. You stay away from Central Park. You will get mugged. You will get robbed. You will get killed.
It's a bad area in New York City. That was like this. This road from Jerusalem down to Jericho was actually called the Bloody Way. Because of so much crime that was on it. Rome had actually built a fortress.
A military outpost on this road. And so as Rome had a presence there. But they couldn't still protect people. And so this man is going down. We don't know what for. Maybe to do business. Maybe to do something.
Whatever. Maybe to visit relatives. I don't know. And he's going down. And all of a sudden they come out of the sides. Lying in wait. Hiding. And the thieves are surrounding him. And when you think about that.
Surrounded by him. That would mean this. They were behind him. They were in front of him. And they were to the sides of him. When you get surrounded. Everyone's around you. And so when I think about someone behind you.
To rob you. You know what I think about? A person's past. What's behind you? What about the sins of yesterday? The sins of last week? The sins of last year? The sins you've forgotten about? The lies you've told?
The things you've done? The actions you've taken? Maybe things you've stolen? Words you've said? Things you've cheated on? And nobody knows. You think, well that's behind me. You know what the Bible says?
God requires that which is past. So he's got his past. The things behind him. They're coming up on him. What about then the things on his sides? These thieves on his sides. You know what I like to think that with?
Relationships with other people. Maybe problems he's had with other people. Maybe angering other people. Maybe things he's done to other people. Maybe disobedience to parents. Maybe anger with other people.
Words that have been said. Whatever. And there are things on the side. What about that which is ahead? You know what I think of that? Judgment. Judgment that's ahead. And he's got his past behind him.
He's got these broken aspects to the side of him. And he's got judgment looming ahead. He is surrounded. Listen. That is a picture of the sinner. Surrounded. Inescapable. And look what it says they did to him.
They stripped him. They wounded him. And it says they left him half dead. That is such an interesting word. Half dead. That's another picture of the sinner. Because the Bible says while you are alive physically, you are dead spiritually.
Separated from God. Half dead. Be glad you're not all dead. Because if you were all dead, there's absolutely nothing that could be done. No one could save you. No one could rescue you. You are beyond.
That's why this story is told this way. Here's a man. His condition is dire. His place is precarious. He's been surrounded. He's been beaten. He's been robbed. He's been left half dead. Now get the point.
The lawyer asked the question. What can I do? And so the Lord Jesus brings before a picture of just what he is. A person who can do nothing. Half dead. Stripped. Wounded. Beaten. Left. What a picture of the sinner.
Absolutely incapable of saving yourself. Listen. If you think you could do one thing to take away one sin. And sin is your problem. Sins are what are separating us from God. Sin is the reason why we can't go to heaven.
If you could do one thing. But this passage makes it clear among many others. You can do nothing. And we look at this man. Now I want you to think about the traffic very quickly. Interesting. The Lord brings two men.
A priest and a Levite. But they're going from Jerusalem to Jericho. Hey, they're going the wrong way. They should be going to Jerusalem. That's where they should be. So the Lord is already saying, here are these people.
And they can't do anything for them. This lawyer was trusting in the law. This lawyer was trusting in religion. He says, can't save you. He says, they're going the wrong way. They can't do anything for you.
Maybe you think, and I don't know a lot of you either tonight. But maybe you think, yep, I need to go to church more. Yeah, that's my problem. I don't go to church. If I went to church, but I don't want to go to church.
Because that's not me. I don't do church. So, okay. Let me just make it clear. Church will never save you. Church will, and do you know what we mean by being saved? Rescued. From your sin. Saved. So that you can go to heaven.
Because you're half dead. You're stripped, wounded, bruised, beaten, half dead. You need to be saved. That's what sin has done to you. And God looks at you on this Jericho road of life. And now, I want you to think of what happens here.
A Samaritan comes. He's so unlikely. He's not even in his own area. That wasn't their area. Samaritans were from Samaria. This is an area that's totally outside his area. I want you to think of what he pictures.
Someone who came totally outside his area. The Lord Jesus. He lived in heaven. The Son of God. And he leaves his area. And he comes down to where we are. To where you are. Stripped, wounded, bruised, half dead.
He comes right on the road. And everybody else that can't do a thing for you. They've left. Oh, you know what they've done? They see you over there. No, we can't help. Can't do a thing. And he comes near.
And as they're listening to this story. A Samaritan? A Samaritan? What could he do? And then he comes right to the spot. And then he's standing there. And they're listening. Can you picture? They're listening.
And they're thinking. Yeah, typical Samaritan. He's going to keep going. And the Lord Jesus says. He has compassion. He has compassion? Let me tell you. The Lord Jesus had compassion. He loves sinners.
He loves lost people. He loves you. In your sin. Doesn't love your sin. But he loves you. Do you understand that? You are loved by God. You are known of God. Loved of God. He has come near. In the person of Christ.
Right here. He really was here. He left his footprints here. He came here. When I think about it. They should have picked him up. They should have lifted him up. They should have given him a throne. They should have hailed him.
They killed him. They crucified him. They spit on him. They despised him. And you know what? The world still does. That world is not friendly to Christ. You would think about that. In your sins. Not saved.
You are part of a world. That crucified Christ. That hates Christ. No time for him. They still think of him as the despised Samaritan. But he has compassion. And he picks up this man. Puts him on his own beast.
And saves him. Brother Brody said we are going to get out of here on time. We are going to be. Glad he did that at my end of the meeting. So I will just end with this. Here is a man that is stripped. Wounded.
Left dead. Sound familiar? Wait, wait, wait. I am not done. I just said I am going to finish on time. I am not done. Everybody is just. Sound familiar? You know what they did to the Lord Jesus? They stripped him.
You know what they did to the Lord Jesus? They wounded him. He was wounded. For our sins. Left him for dead. He wasn't half dead though. He really died. And they left him. The cross. They walked. It says they went home.
They smoked their breasts. What that simply means. It was basically a fake sorrow. And all the while they were saying crucify. Crucify him. Crucify him. The son of God that loves you. What are you saying tonight?
As this meeting ends. Come on. You over here. You over here. And you over here. What are you saying as he listens right now? He has compassion on you. He came to where you are here. He knows you. He wants to save you.
He has died. Are you going to leave him? And turn? And walk away? And not receive him? He said you're a whosoever. He said it's for you. He said it's done. And he's even willing to take care of you. Beyond today.
That's the point of bringing him to the inn. He said whatever it costs. Listen, I was willing to pay this much. I was willing to pay my life. I'll pay whatever else it takes. To make sure that he arrives home safely.
What a great savior. You are missing. If you are not saved. If you don't have a time in your life. When you have been reached and saved. Trusting Christ. The son of God. You are missing out on life's greatest joy.
Greatest wonder. Of being picked up. As a whosoever. In your half dead condition. Of your sins. And given life. By the Lord Jesus. The son of God himself. Trust him. And he will save you. That's the great truth of the traffic.
And the traveler. And the tragedy here. That you could be saved. Let's pray.