Transcription

Connor

You’re listening to The Bible Guys, a podcast where a couple of friends talk about the Bible in fun and practical ways. 

Jeff

Okay. Chris. 

Chris

Hey, Jeff. 

Jeff

So here we are, man. We have a significant challenge for you today. 

Chris

Yes. 

Jeff

I mean, I’ve been looking at this for the last. Oh, man. Preparing for this for at least 90s. And and so what we’re going to do is we’re going to check and see how many movie quotes our movie buff Chris can get. Right. Okay. So I have seven of them. So we’re going to move through these. Yeah I know that’s what I’m saying. So but a couple of these are easy okay. 

Chris

Oh I don’t get nervous about these I get nervous about the ones that four degrees of separation. Yeah yeah yeah because I’m worried about wasting people’s time. Right, right, right. So I either know these or I don’t. Yes. Here you go. That’s fine. 

Jeff

Keep the change, you filthy animal. 

Chris

Oh she is. Keep the change, you filthy animal. That’s home alone. That’s great. 

Jeff

Actually, it’s not. 

Chris

What? Well, it’s. 

Jeff

A it’s. 

Chris

A movie made popular by Homer. 

Jeff

Okay. 

Chris

Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Is that not. Is that not the right answer? 

Jeff

That’s the right answer. Is home alone. But when I was looking at that answer, I went, actually, it’s a movie in the movie. 

Chris

Right, right. 

Jeff

Right, right. Do you know what the movie is? 

Chris

The original movie? No, but I think it may be a fabricated movie. Oh, do you think so? I think so, yeah. Because. So? Because. Because I think that they can’t find a movie. Because remember the pizza, you know. Keep the change. I think they wrote it for that. Okay. 

Jeff

For that purpose. Okay. Uh. Carpe diem. Seize the day, boys. Make your life extraordinary. 

Chris

That’s the most popular line in the movie Robin Williams. Oh, wow. Wait a minute. Doo doo doo doo. Oh, captain. My captain. Dead poets society. There you. 

Jeff

Go. There you go. 

Chris

Good gracious. 

Jeff

Yep. A bunch of a bunch of our listeners went. I know that one. 

Chris

Hey, by the way, it should be a race for race against Chris. 

Jeff

I know, I know, so, so so most. 

Chris

People won that one. 

Jeff

Yeah. So it’s a 1 to 1 probably. Okay. Everything you have seen here has been an allusion. 

Chris

I know this. I know this. Yeah? Yeah. Okay. Uh, it’s it’s at Norton. Yeah, it’s Ed Norton and. 

Chris

It’s in the sentence Jessica Biel. 

Chris

Oh. The illusionist. Why did you say that? I was naming the characters. I could have come up with it. 

Jeff

I’m sorry. I’m sorry. Okay. 

Chris

Yes. There you. 

Jeff

Go. A mind is a terrible thing to waste. 

Chris

Oh, that’s. 

Jeff

Oh, I’m. 

Chris

Not going to get that. 

Jeff

One. This one. 

Chris

Is a mind. 

Chris

Is a terrible thing to waste. 

Jeff

That’s right. 

Chris

I do not recognize that at all. 

Jeff

Okay. 

Chris

What is that? 

Jeff

Get out! 

Chris

Oh, wow. Yeah, that was a that was a crazy movie. Yeah. Okay. Crazy movie. How about funny? Funny? I don’t remember that line from the movie. 

Jeff

Okay, so I actually only have six. I’m sorry, I thought I had seven, I have six okay. 

Chris

This is the last one. 

Jeff

No no, no, this is the number five. Okay. The seaweed is always greener in somebody else’s lake. 

Chris

The seaweed is always greener in somebody else’s lake. 

Jeff

Little mermaid, little mermaid. Okay. And I’m having an old friend for dinner. 

Chris

That is silence of the lambs. 

Chris

Yeah. 

Chris

That’s the. That’s the last line of the movie I’m having. Well, it’s not really technically the last line. Yeah, the last line is, she says Dr. Lecter. Dr. Lecter because he hung. Because he hangs up. Right. Yeah. Yeah. 

Jeff

I’m having an old friend for dinner. 

Chris

Oh, that was a that’s a creepy movie. Yeah. It is. 

Jeff

Yeah, he walked to the edges of insanity in that one. I think he did. 

Chris

He did a great job. 

Jeff

Yeah. Okay, well, there you go, Chris. Good job buddy. Thank you buddy. Three minutes and 30s. You just brought down the house. I can just hear the crowd. That’s so funny. Everybody cheering. 

Chris

I don’t remember that line and I’m sort of mad about it. A mind is a terrible thing to waste. Out of get out. And isn’t that also like a famous quote elsewhere? Because like, that doesn’t sound like it originated with. Get out. 

Jeff

Yeah, I don’t know. 

Chris

A mind is a terrible thing to waste. I’m not sure that was a prominent quote, but I’m just angry about it, that’s all. Okay. All right. I’m going to protest. I’m angry about losing. Well, we’ll just. 

Jeff

We’ll just go to Kyle’s office today in protest. We’ll just start marching. We’ll make some signs. 

Chris

Yeah, yeah, yeah. 

Chris

No, I’m sure he picked a great quote. It was probably off a list somewhere. Okay. I just don’t remember it. 

Jeff

Well, you don’t know everything. Chris. 

Chris

Hey, the. That movie was crazy. 

Jeff

I know, I know. 

Chris

It was crazy. 

Jeff

Okay? I’m just saying you don’t. We don’t expect you to know everything. 

Chris

Get out. 

Chris

Yeah, that was crazy. 

Jeff

Okay, now you’re giving people nightmares. Well, hey, today we have maybe one of the most famous stories in the Bible. Yeah, one of the most famous stories Jesus told. 

Chris

Yeah. And people use this as a phrase describing a doo doo. Good deed doer, a do gooder. 

Jeff

Yeah. Is that what you’re. 

Chris

Trying to get to? I liked my phrase better. 

Jeff

A do good deed doer. 

Chris

Yeah, or that. 

Chris

Hey, that reminds me of The Wizard of Oz when he says there are people back home that do good deeds and we call them good deed doers, right? 

Chris

Yep, that’s true. 

Chris

But they have something that you don’t have. That’s right, a testimonial. 

Jeff

So there you go. So in Luke chapter ten, Jesus tells a story of the Good Samaritan. Yes. And this is a parable. And what is a parable, Chris? 

Chris

A parable is a short story, usually something like a metaphor or a simile that is designed to convey a lesson or a moral. 

Jeff

What’s the short? Didn’t you weren’t you taught in Bible college? A parable is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning. 

Chris

Yes, but I wanted to give my own definition. 

Jeff

Okay. I was hoping you’d give that one. So, a parable for our listeners. 

Chris

Yes. 

Jeff

Is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning. 

Chris

Or would I say. 

Jeff

I’m sure you remember what he said. Okay, here we go. Luke chapter ten, verse 25 says, one day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him this question, teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life? And Jesus replied, what does the law of Moses say? How do you read it? The man answered, you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind, and love your neighbor as yourself. Right? Jesus told him, do this and you’ll live. The man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked Jesus, and who is my neighbor? Jesus replied with a story. A Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem down to Jericho and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road. By chance a priest came along, but when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. The temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side. Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him, and going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here. Now, which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by the bandits? Jeff

Jesus asked. The man replied, the one who showed him mercy. Then Jesus said, yes. Now go and do the same. 

Chris

There it is. 

Jeff

There you go. 

Chris

So I think a lot of our listeners, I would say most of them probably understand that the Jews did not like the Samaritans. In fact, they would always go around Samaria because they viewed them as unclean. So whenever they were traveling from the northern region, like where Jerusalem was, and they were heading up toward word, Nazareth or Capernaum, you know, anywhere in Galilee, up there and the middle section, they’re just west of the Jordan River. Excuse me, is Samaria? It’s the region of Samaria. Yeah, a. 

Jeff

Lot of that is the West Bank today. 

Chris

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And so what they would do is they would literally have to walk up. And then tradition says that they would actually cross the Jordan River on the east side and travel on the east side of the Jordan River to avoid that entire region and then cross back over the Jordan River when they got north enough, and then and then continue the journey. And some people would. 

Jeff

Say in the US it would be the equivalent of a couple of counties, 2 or 3 counties. Yeah, that they would literally cross the river and choose not to put their feet on the dirt of those couple of counties, which is crazy. 

Chris

Yeah. And they viewed them as unclean. And the reason why is because that’s the region. Excuse me. Goodness gracious. That’s the region where we’re Jews were marrying. And yeah. 

Jeff

During the Assyrian captivity, they weren’t hauled away. So they stayed and married the local, the local gentiles. 

Chris

Yes. 

Chris

Right. And so that’s why they called them half breeds. Right? Because they weren’t fully Jewish people. They were both Jews and Gentiles mixed together. 

Jeff

And then they invented their own worship, built their own temple, and they kind of blended the. Jewish beliefs in the in the others. 

Chris

Yeah. Were they were they were they, were they forbidden to go to the Jewish temple or did they build their own temple first? 

Jeff

Well, the temple had been destroyed. So they, they were doing they were doing their own worship. But then when the Jews built their own temple, they didn’t allow the temple. 

Chris

The Samaritans built. 

Jeff

Their own temple. 

Chris

Yeah, yeah. So, so either way, though, they, they would add like two days to their journey or something like that. Yeah. That’s what I remember. Yeah. And so, so yeah. So Jesus actually goes out of his way to say there’s a priest who didn’t stop. And then there’s a Levite. Another scripture says this says a temple assistant, same thing, a Levite. And then he says, the one who stopped was, and I love this, a despised Samaritan. Samaritan. 

Jeff

You can hear it in his voice. 

Chris

Yes, in a Samaritan. 

Chris

Well, it’s they’re disgusted so much that they couldn’t even repeat back the words Samaritan. Yeah, yeah, yeah. 

Jeff

Which of these three would you say was a good neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits? The one who showed him mercy, right. 

Chris

The. 

Chris

This is the one. 

Chris

Who showed him mercy. 

Jeff

Do you remember? Here’s a real old callback. Remember, Fonzie could never say I’m sorry. 

Chris

Yes, yes, that’s. By the way, I swear to you, that’s what I thought. I swear to you, my mind went there. Yeah, yeah, because as kids, it was burned into our brain, right? 

Chris

Yeah. He he never. Sorry. 

Chris

And he goes I’m. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So funny. So, so. Yeah. So they couldn’t even repeat the word Samaritan. They had to say the one who showed him mercy when clearly, by the way, Jesus had said, priest, Levite, Samaritan. Now which one was the one who was a neighbor? And they and they they couldn’t even say the word Samaritan, right? Right. As the correct answer. Yeah. As someone who’s the hero of the story. Yeah, yeah. 

Jeff

Couldn’t even say the hero’s name. 

Chris

Yeah, yeah. 

Chris

And so there’s a reason why Jesus chose the Samaritan. There’s a reason why Jesus didn’t suppose that it was somebody else he couldn’t make. Jesus could have made the priest a hero. Right. So. But why didn’t he? Why do you think he didn’t? 

Jeff

Again to take. Jesus was always trying to put faith in the things of having a relationship with God down to the common man and not to the elites. So Levites would be elite. The priests would even be more elite, so you would expect them. Of course, those guys would do good deeds, right? Of course they would. But you wouldn’t expect just a businessman, especially a nasty Samaritan businessman, right? To be the hero of a story where he’s the one. Because remember, the question was, how do I get to heaven? 

Chris

Right? 

Jeff

Right. That was the question. So at the beginning the guy goes, teacher, what should I do in order to inherit eternal life? Now, depending on who this religious expert in religious law was, he may not even believed in an eternal life. Sadducees didn’t. Right. So if this was a sadducee, he wouldn’t have believed it. Or if he was influenced by the Sadducees, he wouldn’t. I think the fact that Jesus chose a priest and a Levite may have hinted at the fact that this guy was a sadducee, and the reason being, most of the priests and the Levites were Sadducees. They were kind of a they were a smaller sect. And at that time in Jesus day, they would actually buy their positions, right? And so they were elite, and they were they were a small group, way more Pharisees and the Sadducees, but they tended to be the high priests and the big leaders. The very visible religious leaders were tended to be Sadducees. And so he may have been talking to a sage. I can’t prove that, but that may have been why he didn’t make the priest in the. So if he wasn’t a sadducee, he may have been highly influenced by them. And so he takes two elites that are the creme de la creme of the Jewish world. And he goes, yeah, they didn’t, they didn’t, they couldn’t. Now, in all fairness, the priest, if he if that guy was dead and the priest touched him, he couldn’t do his work in the temple. He’d be unclean for, you know, until he could be go through the ceremonial cleansing. It could have been maybe up to a week before he could have gone back to his work. So the priest would go, oh, somebody should do something. Jeff

I can’t do it. Maybe he sent his assistant over. Hey, go check that body. And he goes, oh, I don’t want to do it. Because now I’m not going be able to work with my boss, right? So neither one of them would do it. And then this other guy, he wasn’t, you know, encumbered by the what ifs. He just saw the humanity of this broken man. Yeah. Stopped and took care of him. 

Chris

Yeah. 

Chris

And. Yeah, I think it’s I think it’s an amazing thing to think about the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. Yeah. 

Chris

This is a crazy road. 

Chris

Yeah, this is a crazy road. So if you’re there today, if you’re there today, you can totally see why this was an amazing story. Well, they’ve they’ve. 

Jeff

They’ve built a highway, not a highway. Yeah. It’d be like a highway down from Jerusalem. It just drops, right? I forget I forget what the elevation drop is down to Jericho. But it is. It’s a steep. You’re driving out of the high hills down into kind of the the Dead Sea valley area. Right. Um, and there’s a highway that runs along the edges and the ridges, and they’ve kind of built it up so that it runs fairly smooth all the way down. But you’ve been there. It’s mostly washed out valleys and very steep. So the road that they would have been using would have been one just by itself, fairly treacherous. And then the fact that it’s so easy. 

Chris

To head up. 

Chris

High cliffs. Yeah, yeah. On either side, I mean, it’s the perfect ambush. Oh yeah. For, for and so, so in other words, most likely it was according to tradition, it also supports this that that was actually famous for getting ambushed. 

Chris

Yeah. Yeah. 

Jeff

Extremely dangerous. You don’t go by yourself for sure, right? 

Chris

Right. And so if there’s a man on business, he has a purse filled with money, most likely. Right. He gets robbed. And so this is a common scenario. So Jesus is using the common scenario. And by the way let me can I back up a little bit and actually address this fact. So originally he asks because this because the Good Samaritan wasn’t wasn’t in direct response to how to get to heaven. The the a second question came, which is who is my neighbor? Right. Yes. So but the first question, how do you get to heaven? Jesus had not established the new covenant yet, right? So it’s not like Jesus was going to say, um, build. You know, he wasn’t going to say, that’s the same thing. It’s 1002. 

Chris

Yeah. 

Chris

Pray for the harvest. 

Jeff

Pray for the harvest. 

Chris

That’s right. 

Chris

Now I know what it is. 

Chris

Yeah, yeah, yeah. 

Chris

Okay. So but but Jesus. 

Chris

May have to turn that off. I’m sorry. 

Chris

That’s okay. Shame, shame. So what was I saying? 

Chris

He hadn’t established. Yeah. Yeah. 

Chris

So it’s not. It’s not as if Jesus is saying, well, let me quote for you the book of Romans, right? Right. Like, you know, you have to confess. You believe that God has raised Jesus from the dead. Yeah, that’s how you get to heaven, because that’s the answer we have today. Right? But Jesus had not yet established a new covenant. So, you know, back then the tradition was love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. This these two, these two commands, they summarize all the law, all the prophets. Right? You know, the rituals of sacrifice and sacrificing for your sin. Like all of those things were still in play. So Jesus gave the right answer. Yeah. And then and then and then he says, love your neighbor as yourself. And then he says, who is my neighbor? And so there’s a part of me that. 

Jeff

Let’s let’s pause there for just a second. Luke Matthew 22 Jesus actually quotes those same two verses. 

Chris

Yes. Right. 

Jeff

So just in a little while, he’s going to quote them and say, those are the two greatest commandments. If you want a summary of all of the law and the prophets, it’s love God. Completely. Yes. And. Love people like you love yourself. And so Jesus affirms that in his own teaching, not just this guy saying it, but later in just just a few more days or weeks, maybe he he quotes those same two verses. 

Chris

So yes. Sorry. Yes. 

Chris

No. That’s okay. It’s important because a lot of people may not know that. And so and then and then of course this guy asks, you know who is my neighbor. So I always try to do this. I always try to wonder what is the motivation for this guy? Was he sincere? Was he not? Right. So you just mentioned a moment ago, you know, maybe he was a sadducee, you know, like what was his motivation? So there’s a part of me that wonders, like, maybe he really, truly was. 

Chris

Sincere? I think so, yeah, I really do. 

Chris

Because. Because he’s saying like, okay, so you’re telling me this is what I need to do. So I have a I have a follow up question, which is I want to make sure to get this right. Who’s my neighbor. Right. And so and so now. 

Jeff

What would have been brutal is if Jesus had said, and then a Samaritan was beat up and left on the side of the road, and you came walking along, and you need to serve the Samaritan. Right? Right. That would have been very difficult for that guy to accept that. But since he was the hero of the story, he’d be like, oh yeah, I’d probably help that Samaritan, right? But instead Jesus flips it and takes it one other level and goes, actually, the Samaritans, the hero of the story, right? 

Chris

Right. 

Jeff

And he and the Samaritan humbly served a Jewish man. Jesus took very strong care. To say it was a Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem, so he established Jewish guy. Okay, Jew, I got that right. 

Chris

Right, right. 

Jeff

Okay, okay. All right. I’m tracking with you. Jesus. And then a priest comes along. He doesn’t do anything. Well, I get that. Then Levite comes along and he doesn’t do anything. That’s interesting. And a Samaritan comes along, and he doesn’t only bind his wounds and treat it with oil and cleanse it with wine. Right. He’s doing all the medical care, but then he leaves two days salary, right? Right. To provide care for him. The Samaritan. 

Chris

Guy with a promise to pay the. 

Jeff

Jewish man with. 

Chris

A promise to pay. 

Chris

More. Right? Right. 

Chris

If it cost them more. 

Chris

Right? Right. 

Chris

Yeah. Whatever it takes. Yeah. 

Jeff

And and so now all of a sudden, Jesus says that this it’s possible for a Samaritan to have a higher value of loving our neighbor as himself than most Jews would at that point, than this guy who’s listening. It was such a powerful story. It just had to have been a shocking thing. 

Chris

So, you know, this is a lesson for all of us. So, you know, think about the person who is hated at your workplace. Maybe they’re ostracized in your neighborhood. Maybe. Maybe there’s a maybe there’s a stereotype, whatever it is. And you think about somebody who’s difficult to love because because society doesn’t love them for whatever reason, right? I’m not saying they’re personally difficult to love. I’m saying that there’s a bias against them. And so, you know, to to show love toward that person and to help that person and show human compassion and kindness and and the love of Jesus to, to one who may be even considered an enemy is a lesson here that we can take away. Yeah. So, you know, to demonstrate, I mean, elsewhere, doesn’t Jesus say, if you love those who are easy to love, what credit is that given to you? Right, right. He says, but if you love your enemy, he says, even. What does he say? Even Gentiles? 

Chris

Yes, love. 

Chris

Even even the godless love. Those who love. 

Chris

Pagans. 

Chris

Yeah, even the pagans. 

Chris

The pagans, as we said. 

Chris

Yeah, yeah. Love those who are easy to love. Yeah, those who are like you. But to love your enemy is is the thing that God would do. 

Jeff

And then you and I both know because you’ve been there too, on that road from Jerusalem to Jericho. There’s nothing in between. No. A few Bedouin camps. Right? There is nothing. It’s so you feel like you’re on the moon, right? There’s just nothing there. 

Chris

Nothing. There’s no trees, dude. On the moon, right? Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yeah, yeah, there’s. 

Jeff

Just nothing. 

Chris

There. Just rock. 

Jeff

Which means it’s not like he’s walking through the subdivision, right? And all these people live next door to him. So Jesus is taking the neighbor thing away completely. None of these people were actually this guy’s name. 

Chris

You know, I never actually thought about that. Right. So he’s not so so the definition of neighbor being somebody in my proximity, he chose a place where there’s no proximity. 

Jeff

He’s saying anybody in need is your neighbor. That’s what he’s saying, right? 

Chris

I never thought about that. Yeah. Yeah. Dude. 

Jeff

So so here’s a really great note, by the way, Luke, man, you guys need to get a life application study Bible. It says the legal expert viewed the viewed the wounded man as a topic for discussion to the bandits. He was an object to exploit to the priest, a problem to avoid and to the temple assistant an object of curiosity. Only the Samaritan treated him as a person to love. 

Chris

It’s a great. 

Jeff

Isn’t that beautiful? 

Chris

Great. 

Jeff

And then he goes on and says. From the illustration we learned three principles about loving our neighbor. 

Chris

Here comes the sermon one. 

Jeff

Lack of love is often easy to justify, even though it’s never right to our neighbor. Is anyone of any race, creed, or social background who is in need? And three love means acting to meet the person’s need, right? Love is a verb, right? You got to do love wherever you live. Needy people are close by and there’s no good reason for refusing to help. 

Chris

Yeah, there it is. 

Jeff

So I think that that’s that’s where we go. Right? So regardless of, you know, hey, you might have strong stands on immigration and legal things and sure, okay, that’s fine. But when a hungry person walks in front of you, Jesus is saying, we don’t ask, hey, where’s your green card? You feed them if you see a. Person that’s broken. You don’t come and say, are you legal or illegal? You serve that person right? So you can have strong social views and still humanize the person right in front of you. Right. And that, I think, is at the core of this because they had very strong social views. And he expected that. 

Chris

Somebody would stop and help. 

Chris

Because those two issues are. 

Chris

Separate things. 

Jeff

They’re separate things. Yeah. 

Chris

That’s really are. 

Jeff

Yeah. And Jesus separates that right here with them. 

Chris

Yeah. That’s great. That’s fantastic. 

Chris

Well that’s a great place to end. That’s our time. So we will see you next time on the Bible guys.