How does Luke 10:28 relate to the concept of salvation by faith versus works? Text and Context Luke 10:28 records Jesus’ response to the lawyer: “You have answered correctly; do this and you will live.” The scene is framed by the lawyer’s question in v. 25, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus points him back to the Law (vv. 26–27), the man recites Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18, and Jesus affirms the summary before launching the Good Samaritan parable (vv. 29-37). The entire exchange is designed to expose the sufficiency of divine love on paper and the impossibility of perfect obedience in practice. The Lawyer’s Question and Mosaic Framework The lawyer’s verb “inherit” signals a grace-category reality—inheritance is received, not earned—yet he asks, “What must I do?” Jesus therefore answers him on the ground he has chosen: the covenant stipulation of Leviticus 18:5 (cf. Romans 10:5; Galatians 3:12). The Torah does promise life to the one who perfectly fulfills it—for Adam before the fall, hypothetically for Israel, and definitively in the Second Adam, Christ (Romans 5:19). Jesus quotes that very principle: perfect, continuous, wholehearted love of God and neighbor is the requirement. “Do This, and You Will Live”: Leviticus 18:5 Echo Leviticus 18:5 : “Keep My statutes and ordinances; a person must do them in order to live by them.” Jewish teachers commonly condensed the 613 commands into love for God and neighbor, but Jesus drives the point further. The present-imperative ποιεῖ (poieí), “keep on doing,” demands perpetual flawless action, not occasional good deeds. In other words, the path of law-righteousness is theoretically open but practically barred by human sin (Romans 3:10–20). Jesus’ Use of the Law to Reveal Need for Grace By affirming the lawyer’s answer, Jesus is not commending salvation by works; He is pressing the man toward self-diagnosis. When the lawyer tries “to justify himself” (v. 29), he unveils his own awareness that the standard is beyond reach. The Good Samaritan story then demonstrates the breathtaking breadth of “neighbor,” further tightening the noose. The effect parallels Paul’s later explanation: “through the Law we become conscious of sin” (Romans 3:20). The Master is using the Law pedagogically to lead the questioner to grace (Galatians 3:24). Harmony with Pauline Doctrine of Justification by Faith Paul teaches, “For it is by grace you have been saved through faith…not by works” (Ephesians 2:8-9) and “The righteous will live by faith” (Galatians 3:11). Yet he also quotes Leviticus 18:5 (Galatians 3:12) to show that the Law, if chosen as a way of life, demands absolute obedience—a demand no sinner can meet. Thus Luke 10:28 and Paul are not contradictory but complementary: 1. The Law’s perfect standard = life, if perfectly kept. 2. No one keeps it (Romans 3:23). 3. Therefore justification must come by faith in the One who did keep it (2 Corinthians 5:21). The lawyer needed to shift from self-righteous law-keeping to Christ-centered faith. Luke elsewhere records Jesus proclaiming, “The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10), underlining the grace motif. James 2 and the Evidence of Saving Faith James 2:17 insists, “faith by itself, if it does not result in action, is dead.” James and Jesus agree: authentic saving faith necessarily produces love for God and neighbor. Works are the fruit, never the root, of justification. Just as the Good Samaritan’s compassion evidences a transformed heart, so every believer’s life should attest to the faith that alone saves (Ephesians 2:10). Theological Synthesis: Law, Gospel, and the Greater Covenant 1. Law reveals God’s holy standard. 2. Gospel reveals God’s gracious provision in Christ. 3. Faith unites the sinner to Christ; His obedience is imputed, our guilt is canceled (Romans 4:1-8). 4. Regeneration then empowers practical obedience, fulfilling the law of love (Romans 8:4; Galatians 5:14). Thus Luke 10:28 stands as a hinge: it shows where the Law points but also where the Gospel must step in. Historical Exegesis and Patristic Witness Augustine observed, “The Law was given that grace might be sought; grace was given that the Law might be fulfilled.” Chrysostom commented on Luke 10:28, “He drives him to the impossibility of the command, that he may learn how great is grace.” Such early voices recognized Jesus’ rhetorical move: affirm the Law’s demand to unveil the heart’s deficiency and so direct the hearer to divine mercy. Implications for Evangelism and Discipleship When sharing the gospel, one may imitate Jesus’ method: present God’s holy standard, allow the conscience to feel its failure, and then unveil Christ as the only sufficient Savior. Discipleship likewise returns to Luke 10:28—not as a performance treadmill, but as a Spirit-empowered call to love that flows from a justified heart (Romans 5:5). Pastoral and Behavioral Application Behavioral science recognizes that lasting moral transformation arises from identity and internal motivation, not mere rule-keeping. The new birth provides that identity: children of God indwelt by the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5-6). Real love for God and neighbor thus becomes psychologically credible and spiritually attainable—not to earn life, but because life has been given (Philippians 2:12-13). Conclusion Luke 10:28 encapsulates the Law’s promise and the sinner’s predicament, thereby functioning as a divine signpost directing every hearer to the grace of Jesus Christ. Salvation is by faith alone, yet the faith that saves is never alone; it blossoms into the very love the Law demanded. “Do this and you will live” therefore magnifies both the impossibility of self-salvation and the necessity—and sufficiency—of the crucified and risen Redeemer. |
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