1
Summary
This is the fourth week of the semester, and the assigned material is based on the Gospels
of Luke and John. In one of the videos from this module, Dr. Stacey cited that John tells his story
of Jesus from two different perspectives: " One seems to be real, and when we get closer, it is
really real.”1 Both are true.
My understanding of the video “The Name of the Game”2 is that one must know the rules of
biblical interpretation and how it is presented vertically or horizontally to deliver a more
straightforward message to the audience, knowing all people will understand it.
The magnificent idea of transforming such a complicated subject into a simple analogy is
called parables. “Earthly stories with heavenly meanings” 3 And it was the methodology that
Jesus used to proclaim the kingdom of God during that time. This teaching method, used by
Jesus, can transform a complex subject such as the kingdom, cited by Dr. Stacey as “scatological
and counter-cultural,” into familiar content.
There is a purpose for using the parables, and Jesus did that while planting God’s seeds
into people's hearts. He had a purpose. Elwell and Yarbrough cited it: "Jesus was exercising
extraordinary creativity by taking the common language of his day and making it do things it
rarely had if ever done before.” 4
While Jesus used parables to simplify the message from the Father, we should follow his
example to improve our communication with people and plant God’s seeds.
1 Robert Wayne Stacey. The Name of the Game. Canvas.liberty.edu/couses/591572/pages/watch-the-name-of-the-
game?module_item_id=65609943. 0:57.
2 Stacey, The Name of the Game. 0.79
3 Robert Wayne Stacey.The Parable of Jesus. https://canvas.liberty.edu/courses/591572/pages/watch-the-parables-
of-jesus?module_item_id=65609960 0:16.
4Walter A. Elwell and Robert W. Yarbrough, Encountering the New Testament: A Historical and Theological
Survey, Third Edition., Encountering Biblical Studies (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2013), 126.
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Application
The Parable of Good Samaritan stood out in choosing the parable to fulfill the interpretation
requirement for the original and contemporary audiences in Luke 10:25-37.
For the original Audience: The application of this passage comes with a solid historical
background of hostility between Samaritans and Jews. To better understand why Jesus utilized
the Samaritan as an example of goodness and generosity while addressing a Jewish audience,
one must learn who the Samaritans were, their beliefs and religion, their origins, their
relationships with the Jews, and their religious practices. Also, the traditions of the Northern
kingdom, or “kingdom of Israel, composed of ten tribes from the split that occurred in 930
Before the Common Era (BCE).” 5
The Samaritans were originally the inhabitants of Samaria, the city founded by Omru,
king of Israel, to be the capital of the Northern Kingdom, as mentioned in 1 King 16:24.
Samaritans were legitimate Hebrews of the lineage of Abraham. As cited by Samuel J. Schultz,
“Samaritans were descendants of Joseph, son of Israel, from the Manasseh and Ephraim tribes.
Therefore, they were Israelites by blood.”6 So, Jesus used a parable to apply a teaching method
that makes a complex subject into a simple, reflective conversation. What Dr. Stacey said makes
more sense now: "One seems to be real, and when we get closer, it is genuine.”7
Jesus presented the parable to His audience with simplified language like a case study,
allowing them to reflect and confidently reply that it was a learning moment. The richness of the
5Samuel J. Schultz, The Old Testament Speaks. [1st ed.] New York: Harper, 1960,190.
6 Samuel J. Schultz, The Old Testament Speaks. [1st ed.] New York: Harper, 1960,206.
7 Robert Wayne Stacey. The Name of the Game. http://Canvas.liberty.edu/couses/591572/pages/watch-the-name-of-
the-game?module_item_id=65609943.0:57
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passage is so unique, as one can see when Jesus emphasizes repeating twice the fact that “...He
passed by on the other side.” (Luke 10:31-32) Nevertheless, what did want to say while adding
two crucial people from the Jewish tradition?
When analyzing the origins of the Samaritans, it is possible to identify an inevitable
rivalry between them and the Jews. This rivalry has been present since the beginning of the
separation of the kingdom of Israel into two, the kingdoms of North and South, as described in
the Bible. This rivalry intensifies after the fall of the kingdom of the North and Samaria and the
region's repopulation by the Assyria king, making the Samaritans a mixed people and a syncretic
religion. Such rivalry increases over time, as seen in the books of Ezra (4:1-5) and Nehemiah
(4:1-3) in the second temple period.
The application here is that Jesus added the Priest and the Levite because there was a
higher expectation of faithfulness to the law and traditions for the faith segment and an image to
be preserved as a religious leader. Notwithstanding, he said, “He passed to the other side” (Luke
10:31-32) to both of them, generating curiosity into the theme by causing the expert to reply to
Jesus precisely.
From the contemporary audience, all servants of God should be able to live a life with a heart
full of compassion. Only through Jesus can one take that responsibility and transform it into a
way of life. The application is to see the importance of looking after yourself and others.
The separation of Jews and Samaritans was evident; it didn’t start during Jesus’s time.
The rivalry is apparent and took a significant proportion at the beginning of the reign of
Jeroboam I over the ten tribes. Rehoboam wanted to start a war (1 Kings 12:21-24), and later on,
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the situation continued, and it is registered in (2 Kings 14:8-14, with a parallel text to 2
Chronicles 25:17-24 and 2Kings 16:5-9).
Jesus had no prejudice or bias against the Samaritans or anyone. He proved to have a
good relationship with those who needed Him the most. In the Book of Acts, we see a report
saying that “they,” the disciples, not only lived among these people but did good to them and
preached to them, baptizing and accepting them as members of the faith community (Acts 8:1-
14).
Jesus showed through the parable of the “Good Samaritan” reminder that being God's
chosen people, the prophetic eschatological remnant, does not mean exclusivity in salvation but
in the mission. The concept of divine choice can be summarized in the expression, The danger
of definitively rejecting and excluding people from other denominations because they have
different thoughts, practices, and customs, especially those who belong to sectarian groups or
separatists and see themselves equally as the remnant people. Jesus is the “Good Samaritan” who
paid the price and will return. (Luke 10).
Bibliography
Elwell, Walter A., and Robert W. Yarbrough. 2013. Encountering the New Testament: A
Historical and Theological Survey. Third ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Publishing Group.
5
Schultz, Samuel J. 1960. The Old Testament Speaks. 1st ed. New York: Harper & Row.
Jerry Falwell Library.
Stacey, Robert W. n.d. “The Name of the Game.” Canvas Liberty. Accessed 09 08, 2024.
http://Canvas.liberty.edu/couses/591572/pages/watch-the-name-of-the-game?
module_item_id=65609943.
Stacey, Robert W. n.d. “The Parable of Jesus.” Canvas Liberty. Accessed 08 04, 2024.
https://canvas.liberty.edu/courses/591572/pages/watch-the-parables-of-jesus?
module_item_id=65609960.
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