Does Luke 10:25-37 indicate that a person inherits eternal life because he loves the Lord his God with all his heart, with all his soul, with all his strength, with all his mind, and by loving his neighbor as himself? If so, is not inheriting eternal life dependent upon works?
The Bible tells us that eternal life depends upon our believing and not upon our works. The entire New Testament uses the word believe more than five hundred times. When we believe, we have eternal life; when we believe, we are saved; and when we believe, we are justified, etc. In Luke 10 a certain lawyer asked, “What should I do to inherit eternal life?” The Lord said to him, “What is written in the law? How do you read it?” The lawyer replied, “You shall love the Lord your God from your whole heart and with your whole soul and with your whole strength and with your whole mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” Then the Lord said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you shall have life.” The law teaches two things: to love God and to love man. Since these are altogether works, is not inheriting eternal life dependent upon works? If this story ended at verse 28, it would be very difficult for us to explain how to inherit eternal life. But thank and praise the Lord that this story continues through verse 37.
The lawyer said, “And who is my neighbor?” By saying this, he meant that he knew God but did not know who his neighbor was. Then the Lord spoke about a certain man who went down to Jericho and fell among robbers. A certain priest came down that way and did not save him. A Levite passed by that way and did not save him either. But a certain good Samaritan saved him to the uttermost. In verse 36, the Lord asked the lawyer, “Which of these three, does it seem to you, has become a neighbor to him who fell into the hands of the robbers?” We must note the lawyer’s question in verse 29: “And who is my neighbor?” and the Lord’s question in verse 36: “Which of these three, does it seem to you, has become a neighbor to him who fell into the hands of the robbers?” By His question, the Lord meant, “You are the one who fell among the robbers, so now which one of these is your neighbor?” He said, “The one who showed mercy to him.” Then the Lord said, “Go, and you do likewise.” This shows us that the Lord did not ask the lawyer to be a good Samaritan; rather, He wanted the lawyer to know that his neighbor was a good Samaritan. In other words, it was the Samaritan who saved him. More explicitly, the good Samaritan was the Savior of the lawyer.
The one who fell among the robbers was a sinner. Neither the priest nor the Levite could be his savior. Only the good Samaritan was his savior. The sinner’s neighbor is the sinner’s Savior. Loving the neighbor is loving the Savior. Having eternal life depends upon a Savior; it does not depend upon ourselves trying to be a savior. Many mistakenly consider this parable to be a lesson in treating people well. The Lord never said that we have to be a savior to the one who fell among the robbers. Rather, He said that we are the ones who have fallen among the robbers. The good Samaritan who saved us is our neighbor, and we should love Him. We are those who fell among the robbers. The One whom we did not know came to save us. The lawyer asked who his neighbor was. The Lord answered him by saying that the lawyer had fallen among the robbers and that his neighbor was the One who saved him.
We love the Lord because we have eternal life; we do not love the Lord in order to obtain eternal life. First there is the relationship of a neighbor, then the loving affection. This portion of the Word shows us the following items: (1) man is fallen; (2) man cannot save himself; (3) the Savior has come; and (4) if we receive His salvation, we will surely be saved and love Him. The mistake of many is that they themselves want to be the savior and are ignorant of the gospel of grace. We need to know that the Lord wants us to love the good Samaritan who is the Lord Himself.
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