The Good Samaritan Law

Several states have what are called Good Samaritan laws. These laws are set up to protect “Good Samaritans” who stop to help someone in distress. The law states that if, while ‘helping’ the person in distress, the Good Samaritan accidentally injures or worsens the condition of the person, they are immune from legal action against them.

Apparently, some countries are beginning to take the Good Samaritan Law one step further. Countries such as France, Israel, Germany, Japan, Belgium, Italy and Spain have made it illegal for a person to stand idly by without helping a person in distress—they must at least call the local authorities. This is set up because people often do not take responsibility to call authorities or to help, especially when others are aware of the situation. “Someone else will take care of it,” we rationalize. Those who do not stand idly by we like to call 'heroes.' Jesus calls them neighbors.

The law of the Good Samaritan is based on a parable of Jesus by the same name which is found in Luke 10:30-37. The parable describes a man who is beaten by robbers and bloody and left for dead. Both a religious priest and a Levite walk up to the man, and seeing that he is bloodied and in distress they cross to the other side of the street—apparently in an effort to be ceremonially clean, or to keep their schedule. Then, one who is not particularly religious, and not a part of the chosen covenant people—a Samaritan—stops to help the man, and even goes out of his way to pay for lodging for him and comes back to pay his tab. Jesus then asks His listeners, “Who proved to be the neighbor to this man?” Of course it was the despised Samaritan.

This passage and parable can teach us many things and can be seen from many important angles. What I find interesting is that several countries think that it should be legally binding for a person to help another in distress. It is indeed imperative that we help others who are in distress. We have a moral, and in some places a legal, obligation to help others in distress. It is our moral imperative.

But the thought struck me today. All of humanity is in distress. Humanity, the Bible tells us, is perishing. God Himself looked down upon this world which had forsaken Him, and had called Him an enemy, just like the Samaritan was an enemy to the Jews. Still He sent His Son, Jesus Christ to help those who were in distress. You could call it the Divine imperative—He in His loyal love had to do it. For Paul tells us in 1 Timothy 2:4 that God desires that all people would be saved from their perishing condition. God looked down from heaven and saw that we were in distress, and needed One who would bandage our wounds, pour oil and wine over us, bear us up and take us to a safe haven and pay our debt, for our debt of sin is great. Jesus is the Good Samaritan. He is the hero who would not stand idly by.

All this is so wonderfully laid out in these words: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.”

Perhaps this is tied to the ideas which would lead Charles Wesley to pen these magnificent words: “Love Divine, all loves excelling, Joy of heaven to earth come down…"