A New Look at an Old Parable

Luke 10:25-37

And, behold, a certain teacher of the Torah stood up, and tested him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

He said unto him, “What is written in the Torah? How do you read?”

And he answering said, “You shall 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 your neighbor as yourself.”

And he said unto him, “You have answered right: do this, and you shall live.”

But he, willing to show himself righteous, said unto Yeshua, “And who is my neighbor?”

And Yeshua answering said, “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two denarii, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, “Take care of him; and whatsoever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.”

“ Which now of these three, do you think, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?”

And he said, “He that showed mercy on him.”

Then said Yeshua unto him, “You go, and do likewise.”

As I was reading a commentary from http://www.aish.com/ I came across this interesting fact and teaching:

The Hebrew word “Shechina” comes from the word : shachen” which means “neighbor”. It is through divine revelation provided by the Shechina that God becomes our neighbor. The Shechina and the Temple go hand in hand.

As we look at the Torah Teacher’s response in Luke, we see him quote the Shema from Deuteronomy    6:4-9. (This is the central prayer in Judaism.) Yeshua agrees with his answer. Not being satisfied and still trying to test Yeshua he asks him “Who is my neighbor?” Though Yeshua answers with a parable, it is interesting to note he does not directly answer the man’s question. In the end, he does not say, “Whoever needs mercy”. He turns it around with a question, “Which now, of these three, do you think, was neighbor unto him that fell among thieves?” The point is this, when you love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, you become like Him and are merciful to those needing mercy. “…for I the LORD thy God [am] a jealous God,… And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.”
Deuteronomy 5:9-10

What is the common denominator in what Yeshua tells the teacher? DO! Do love God! Do love your neighbor! What do these look like? Show mercy!

Now, what does my quote from Aish.com have to do with Yeshua’s conversation with the Torah Teacher? Let’s look at the bigger picture:

Was the Presence of God (the Shechina) in the second Temple? I don’t know, but Yeshua was. “For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God: for God gives not the Spirit by measure [unto him]. John 3:34

The Shechina in the Messiah was present yet this teacher did not know it. When he came to his House, the Temple, they did not know it. God becomes our neighbor through the Shechina. God was present as a neighbor through the Messiah. The Messiah was present to bring people back to the knowledge of God. He did not reside in the Temple, because he was not welcome there.  “He came unto His own, and His own received him not.” John 1:11 He went out into the country, to the highways and byways and taught the people on the hills and by the seashores.

“Which now..was neighbor?” The Shechina was neighbor. The Shechina was in Messiah “reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them”. (2 Cor. 5:19) This is mercy. "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)

Now, you go, and do likewise!