Luke chapter 10

vs 33

Because the story was spoken to Jews, Jesus doesn't need to say it, but for us, it would be helpful to read "A Jew went for a walk". Just as helpful would be "A Samaritan, (who were enemies of the Jews) took pity on him". Thankfully for us, since Jesus had recently travelled through Samaria, we can remember that relations there were rather cool.

So this is a bit of an unexpected turn in Jesus' story.

vs 34-35

This is a picture of complete and total mercy on the guy - the Samaritan is obviously doing everything in his power to make sure this guy is all right.

vs 36

Jesus doesn't really give a choice, does he? I mean, what are you going to say?

vs 37

The answer is obvious, but the application is hard. This parable exemplifies Jesus' teaching about loving your enemies - showing that this is the proper interpretation of the Law.

vs 38

We know these two from another story. So it's interesting to get this perspective as well.

vs 39

Her sister, Mary, sits at Jesus' feet (quite a humble position) and listens to everything he says.

vs 40

Martha, playing the good hostess, is busy getting all those things ready which you must do to receive guests, which is a lot, especially in a culture where hospitality is so expected.

Remember, Jesus could have had 12 disciples with him too, or even more! And women did all the work in the house, too, so with Mary listening to Jesus, Martha was on her own. This frustrated her a bit, and she complained to Jesus.

vs 41-42

It's always this way, isn't it? I mean, we think that doing all this stuff, providing things, is really an excellent way of looking after someone. And it is! But Jesus isn't just a person. He's God. Just the disciples learned that he can feed 5000, Martha needs to know that he's only here for a short while, and that the best thing you could do for him is to listen.