READING • LUKE 10
Love that can be seen
Jesus does not describe Christian love merely as a feeling. In the parable of the Good Samaritan, love notices need, crosses barriers and does something practical to help.
Who is my neighbour?
A lawyer asked Jesus what he should do to inherit eternal life. The answer joined love for God with love for one’s neighbour. When the lawyer asked, “And who is my neighbour?”, Jesus answered with the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25–37).
The injured traveller was passed by a priest and a Levite, men associated with the worship and law of Israel. The person who stopped was a Samaritan. Jews and Samaritans were divided by long-standing religious and social hostility, so Jesus deliberately made the unexpected outsider the example of mercy.
“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 ... and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.”
Luke 10:33–34 • King James Version
What did compassion do?
The Samaritan…
Love became action
Saw the wounded man
He did not look away or pretend that the need was somebody else’s problem.
Had compassion
His concern moved beyond emotion into practical help.
Bound up his wounds
He used what he had to meet the immediate need.
Brought him to an inn
He gave time, effort and personal inconvenience.
Paid for further care
His responsibility did not end after the first act of kindness.
Jesus ended the parable by asking which of the three men had been neighbour to the wounded traveller. The lawyer answered, “He that shewed mercy on him.” Jesus replied, “Go, and do thou likewise” (Luke 10:37). The question is therefore not simply, “Who qualifies as my neighbour?” but, “To whom can I become a neighbour?”
The compassion of Jesus
The source lesson connects the Samaritan’s compassion with the compassion repeatedly shown by Jesus. At Nain he met a widow whose only son had died. Luke records not merely that Jesus saw her sorrow, but that he responded to it.
“And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not.”
Luke 7:13 • King James Version
Love beyond ordinary kindness
Jesus did not limit love to people who are friendly, grateful or similar to us. In Luke 6 he deliberately extends the command to enemies, people who hate us, people who curse us, and people who treat us badly. This is one of the hardest parts of discipleship because our natural reaction is often to answer hurt with hurt.
“But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you, bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.”
Luke 6:27–28 • King James Version
Jesus says…
What this can mean in practice
Love your enemies
Refuse to nourish hatred or to desire another person’s ruin.
Do good to them which hate you
Look for a right and useful action rather than revenge.
Bless them that curse you
Do not answer contempt with contempt.
Pray for them which despitefully use you
Bring even the person who has hurt you before God.
Be ye therefore merciful
Let God’s mercy shape the way you treat other people.
Love is not weakness
Christian love does not mean pretending that evil is good or refusing necessary protection from harm. It means that hatred, cruelty and revenge are not allowed to become the governing principles of a disciple’s heart.
“As I have loved you”
On the night before his death, Jesus made love a defining mark of his disciples. The standard was not merely the kindness people normally show to friends. They were to love one another as he had loved them.
“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”
John 13:34–35 • King James Version
Jesus then explained the measure of that love. It is willing to give, serve and sacrifice rather than asking continually, “What will I get from this relationship?”
“This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
John 15:12–13 • King James Version
Love is tested under pressure
Peter sincerely believed that he would remain loyal to Jesus, yet under pressure he denied knowing him three times (John 13:36–38; 18:15–27). The failure was painful, but it became part of Peter’s spiritual education. Love for Christ had to become more than confident words: it had to produce faithful service.
Peter: love becomes responsibility
After the resurrection, Jesus met the disciples beside the Sea of Galilee and prepared food for them. After they had eaten, he questioned Peter three times about his love. Each answer was followed by a responsibility toward other disciples.
“Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? ... He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.”
John 21:16 • King James Version
The three questions recall Peter’s three denials, but the emphasis is not on humiliation. Jesus gives Peter work to do. If Peter loves the Lord, he must care for the Lord’s flock. Christian love therefore includes patient care for new disciples, established believers, the weak, the discouraged and those who need guidance.
Caring for the flock
The source lesson connects this with Paul’s words to the elders from Ephesus. They were not appointed merely to organise meetings; they were to watch over people for whom Christ had given his life. In the same way, every ecclesia needs practical care as well as teaching.
“Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.”
Acts 20:28 • King James Version
Love in the family
Jesus also showed loving responsibility toward his mother. Even while suffering, he made provision for her care by entrusting her to the disciple whom he loved. The passage is brief, but it shows that spiritual devotion never excuses neglect of ordinary human responsibilities.
“Woman, behold thy son! Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.”
John 19:26–27 • King James Version
Where love becomes visible
Situation
A loving response
A new or inexperienced believer
Encourage, teach patiently and make room for questions.
A brother or sister who is ill or grieving
Visit, listen, pray, provide practical help and continue to remember them.
Someone who has disappointed you
Seek truth and reconciliation without feeding bitterness.
A family member who needs care
Treat ordinary responsibilities as part of discipleship, not as interruptions to it.
A stranger in genuine need
Do not let race, tribe, nationality, social class or personal inconvenience decide whether mercy is shown.
A useful test
Love asks: What would genuinely help this person before God? Sometimes that means comfort, practical assistance, patient correction, or simply listening.
“Love is of God”
Many years later, the apostle John wrote very plainly about the source and necessity of Christian love. He does not present love as an optional personality trait for naturally warm people. It belongs to the life of everyone who claims to know God.
“Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.”
1 John 4:7–8 • King James Version
John measures love first by what God has done, not by what we have done. God’s love was shown in sending His Son so that we might live through him. Because God has loved us in this way, disciples are under an obligation to love one another.
“In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him ... Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.”
1 John 4:9, 11 • King James Version
Seven lessons from 1 John 4
John’s teaching
What it teaches us
“Love is of God” — v.7
True Christian love takes its character from God, not merely from human preference or emotion.
God sent His Son — vv.9–10
The supreme measure of love is God’s gracious action for people who needed salvation.
“We ought also to love” — v.11
Receiving God’s love creates a responsibility toward others.
God dwelleth in us — v.12
Love gives visible expression to the life God is developing in His people.
Boldness in judgement — v.17
A life shaped by God’s love gives confidence rather than hypocrisy as the day of judgement approaches.
Perfect love casteth out fear — v.18
John speaks of the tormenting fear of punishment; mature trust in God’s love changes how the believer faces judgement.
Love God and love your brother — vv.20–21
Hatred of a brother or sister is incompatible with a sincere claim to love God.
“If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar ... And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.”
1 John 4:20–21 • King James Version
Love across human divisions
The original lesson rightly applies these words where tribe, race, family, village, nationality or other loyalties have produced hatred and violence. Baptism into Christ does not make such hostility acceptable under a religious label. Within the brotherhood, hatred and vendetta contradict the very God we claim to worship.
Who is my neighbour today?
The Samaritan in Jesus’ parable was not chosen because he already belonged to the injured man’s circle of friends. He became a neighbour by showing mercy. Our neighbour can therefore be the person whose need comes before us: a brother or sister, a stranger, someone from another community, or even a person whom we would naturally avoid.
When you meet…
Remember the command to love
Someone from another race, tribe or nation
See a person made by God, not a stereotype inherited from your community.
Someone poor, sick, elderly or disabled
Ask what practical help preserves dignity rather than merely feeling sorry.
Someone who has hurt or insulted you
Do not let revenge choose your words or actions; pray and seek a righteous response.
A brother or sister with whom you disagree
Speak truthfully and directly, but refuse contempt, gossip and hatred.
Someone outside the faith
Show the same mercy and honesty that you would hope to receive yourself.
Someone needing spiritual help
Give time, Scripture, encouragement and a patient example rather than only criticism.
Love must be practical
The Good Samaritan did not merely feel compassion; he used his time, possessions and money. Peter was not merely asked to declare his love; he was told to feed Christ’s sheep. John did not merely write that God is love; he insisted that love for God must be visible in love for a brother. The consistent Bible principle is that love becomes action.
A daily question
Before the end of each day, ask: Whose burden did I make lighter? Whom did I encourage? Where did I refuse bitterness? Did my actions make the love of God easier or harder for another person to see?
Summary
1
A neighbour is the person to whom we show practical mercy. The Samaritan noticed need, crossed barriers, gave time and accepted inconvenience.
2
Jesus commands love even toward enemies. Disciples reject revenge and seek to do good, bless and pray.
3
Love for Christ creates responsibility. Peter’s “I love thee” was answered by “Feed my sheep.”
4
Love inside the ecclesia is essential. A claim to love God cannot be reconciled with hatred of a brother or sister.
5
God’s love is the pattern. He loved first and gave His Son; Christian love responds to that grace.
6
Love must shape everyday relationships. Family, strangers and difficult people all provide opportunities to obey Jesus.
Chapters to read
Luke 10:25–37 • Luke 6:27–36 • John 13:34–35 • John 21:15–17 • 1 John 4:7–21
Verse to learn • Luke 10:27
“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.”
CHRISTADELPHIAN BIBLE MISSION • 5
CHRISTADELPHIAN BIBLE MISSION • 1