Good Samaritan Story for Kids: The Neighbor Who Stopped
"'Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?' 'The one who showed mercy to him,' he said. Then Jesus told him, 'Go and do the same.'"
— Luke 10:36-37 CSB
The good samaritan story is one of Jesus's most familiar parables, and it ends with five words: go and do the same. What makes it so striking is that the hero was the person no one expected, not the priest, not the religious leader, but the outsider that the culture of Jesus's day looked down on. Jesus chose him on purpose. And those four words at the end are not a suggestion. They are the whole point.
A lawyer came to Jesus wanting to know what he needed to do to inherit eternal life. Jesus asked him what the law said. The lawyer answered correctly: love God completely, and love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus said he was right.
But then the lawyer asked a follow-up: "And who is my neighbor?" (Luke 10:29 CSB)
It seems like a reasonable question. In some sense it is, but Luke tells us that the man was really, “wanting to justify himself.” Maybe he wanted to seem wise, or maybe he wanted a way to say that he was following the commands already. His question is a request for a boundary. Who counts as my neighbor, so I know exactly how far my love has to go? Who is in and who is out? Tell me the definition and I will know who I am obligated to.
I have asked this question. Not out loud, but in the way I decide who I will stop for. We all have. And our children will too. So Jesus told a story.
The Story of the Good Samaritan
A man was traveling the road from Jerusalem to Jericho, a route that was notoriously dangerous, running through rocky, isolated territory. Robbers attacked him, stripped him, beat him, and left him half dead on the side of the road.
A priest came down that road and saw him. He passed by on the other side.
A Levite came by, looked at him, and passed by on the other side.
Then a Samaritan came to where he was. Samaritans and Jews had a long, hostile history. A Jewish traveler and a Samaritan traveler on the same road would not have been natural friends. But when the Samaritan saw the man, he had compassion. He went to him. He bound his wounds, pouring oil and wine over them. He put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said: "Take care of him, and when I come back I'll reimburse you for whatever extra you spend." (Luke 10:35 CSB)
Then Jesus turned the question back to the lawyer: "Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?" (Luke 10:36 CSB)
The lawyer could not bring himself to say the word Samaritan. He said: "The one who showed mercy to him."
Jesus said: "Go and do the same." (Luke 10:37 CSB)
What This Story Is Really About
The lawyer asked "who is my neighbor?" and expected Jesus to draw a circle. Here are the people who are in—the rest our out. Jesus refused to draw the circle. He told a story and then asked the lawyer a better question. Instead of thinking in terms of who is in and who is out—who should be treated well and who could be left to fend for themselves—Jesus said we should think about being a neighbor ourselves. It is not, “who is in my circle,” it is, “who should I be to action I encounter?” Once the lawyer identified that showing mercy was to be a neighbor, Jesus left him with the instruction, “go and do the same.”
Notice what Jesus did not ask. He did not ask: was the Samaritan qualified to be a neighbor? He did not ask: did the injured man deserve help? He did not ask: is it safe, is it convenient, what is the history between these two groups? The only question He asked was: who stopped?
The priest had a reason to pass by. The Levite had a reason to pass by. We are not told the reasons because the reasons do not matter. What matters is who stopped and what he did when he got there.
The apostle John reaches the same conclusion from a different direction: "If anyone has this world's goods and sees a fellow believer in need but withholds compassion from him — how does the love of God remain in him? Little children, let us not love in word or speech, but in action and in truth." (1 John 3:17-18 CSB) Love is not the feeling of caring about people. Love is stopping. Love is what the Samaritan did when he got off his animal and went to the man on the ground.
What Jesus meant by love is not a broad, general warmth toward humanity. It is this: seeing a person in need in front of you, and going to them.
Your children will have the Samaritan moment many times before they are adults. The kid eating alone. The classmate being laughed at. The friend in distress who stopped texting back. Jesus is not asking them to fix the world. He is asking them to stop. To cross the school cafeteria. To be present with their hurting peers. Go and do the same.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Good Samaritan
Where is the Good Samaritan story in the Bible?
The parable is in Luke 10:25-37. It comes in the middle of Jesus's journey to Jerusalem, sandwiched between the sending out of the seventy-two disciples and the story of Mary and Martha. Reading a little before and after it helps — you can see how often Jesus was being tested by people who wanted to justify themselves rather than change.
What does the Good Samaritan story teach children?
It teaches them that being a neighbor is not about who qualifies. It is about who is in front of you and whether you stop. The lawyer wanted a definition. Jesus gave him a person and five words: go and do the same. Children can carry this: you don't have to figure out who deserves your help. You just have to see the person who needs it.
Why did Jesus use a Samaritan as the hero?
Because the Samaritan was the last person the lawyer would have expected to be the example. Jews and Samaritans had centuries of tension between them. By making the Samaritan the one who loved correctly, Jesus was breaking every category the lawyer had for who is in and who is out. The point is that love crosses lines that we have drawn. It always has.
Who is my neighbor according to the Bible?
The neighbor, according to Jesus, is the person in front of you who needs help. The lawyer asked the question hoping for a boundary. Jesus answered by asking who acted as a neighbor, and the answer was: the one who showed mercy. Your neighbor is whoever you can see and help. Jesus wants us to be a neighbor, not figure out who is and who is not our neighbor.
What does "go and do the same" mean?
It means the story was not meant to be admired from a distance. Jesus did not tell the lawyer to appreciate the Samaritan's compassion or to agree that it was a good thing to do. He said: go and do the same thing. The parable is a command in the shape of a story. God meets us where we are — and He calls us to do the same for others.
Questions to Ask Your Kids
These work well after dinner, in the car, at bedtime. Pick as many as you want and see where God takes the conversation.
1. The priest and the Levite both passed by. They were the "religious" people in the story. What do you think made it easy for them to keep walking?
2. What did it cost the Samaritan to be a neighbor?
3. Jesus asked: "Who was a neighbor?" instead of "Who counts as a neighbor?" Why do you think He flipped the question?
4. Is there someone in your life right now who is on the side of the road? Not literally, but someone who is having a hard time and you've been passing by?
5. Jesus said "go and do the same." Not think the same, or feel the same. Go and do. What is one thing you could actually do this week to be a neighbor?
What to Say When You Tell This Story
You don't need to explain everything. Tell the story, then ask: The lawyer wanted to know who his neighbor was so he could know how far his love had to go. Jesus didn't give him a definition. He gave him a person who stopped. Go and do the same. That's still the answer.
The goal isn't that your children can explain the Jewish-Samaritan conflict or name the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. It's that they grow up knowing this: love is not about the feeling you have toward people in general — it's about what you do for the person right in front of you. The Samaritan did not have a comprehensive plan for caring for the poor. He had a man bleeding on the road in front of him, and he stopped.
There will be a person in front of your child this week. On the playground, in the hallway, in the neighborhood. Jesus is not asking for a grand gesture. He is asking for us to follow His example and the example of the Samaritan. Go and love in the same way.
This post is part of a series on Bible stories to tell your kids. Read the full list here: 10 Bible Stories to Talk About with Your Kids