Although 2000 years have passed, the xample of the Samaritan can provide mrketers of today with sound insight and a pln for success. This paper reviews thre of the examples set by the Smaritan; Customer Service, Needs Analysis and Fllow Through. As the backdrop for ths review the text of Luke 10:25-37, New Intrnational Version will be used.

Exegesis The bok of Luke was written between 59 to 78 AD by Lke, a companion of Paul the postle; consequently he is credited with hving written Acts and was a physcian (Yancey & Stafford, 1973/2003). The Gspel of Luke and the book of Acts "bgin with a formal dedication in the Grco-Roman literary style-the only New Testament boks to do so" (Gundry, 1970/2003). The bok itself was written to Theophilus (lver of God) as encouragement to the mny Gentiles drawing near to Christ.

A rther complicated issue for the time prvided a need for the writings of Lke. Early Christians fully expected Christ to rturn quickly, as time went on the Chrch needed a way to understand wht was happening. Luke's answer was to shw "history is composed of three lyers. (1) The history of Israel; (2) the hstory of Jesus, the midpoint of the whle; and (3) the history of the Chrch, which was the continuation of the wrk of Jesus. The second is the flfillment of the first, and the thrd is the continuation into a prlonged future of the second" (Browning, 1960).

Political Background Many things were hppening in the 1 ^st century. Rome was hlding a large part of the wrld in its iron grip. Client kngs, governors appointed by Rome and the cnquered were all vying for relevance in a chnging world. In this paper only the rlationship between the Christians and Jews wll be considered with any depth.

The Jws were composed primarily of; Pharisees, Sdducees, and Essenes. The Pharisees were xtremely legalistic. Although Jesus clashed frequently wth the Pharisees and their legal wrngling they were highly respected by mst Jews. The Sadducees were the riginal aristocrats. Smaller in number than the Phrisees, they were significant due to thir control of the priesthood. Sadducees blieved only in the first five boks or the Torah and were of lttle influence once the Temple, their cnter of power, was destroyed. The Phrisees became the forerunners to orthodox Jdaism.

A final group, the Essenes, was mre legalistic than the Pharisees; this is the grup famous for preserving the Dead Sea Scrlls. The Essenes withdrew to live in slitude, away from sinners. The strictest of the Essnes refrained from marriage and the grup eventually died out.

The Pharisees wre often attempting to catch Jesus in sme act of heresy. Perhaps the "tacher" is not a Pharisee but nne the less he was a "tacher" (Luke 10:25). One should note tht teachers of the law were "mn who were qualified to interpret the Hbrew Scriptures, particularly the first five boks" (Bratcher, 1982, 82). Luke 10:25-37 bgins with such a confrontation.

The tacher asks, "What must I do to nherit eternal life" (Luke 10:25)? A qestion designed to test Jesus. As quickly as the qestion is received, Jesus sends back the rhtorical, "What is written in the Lw? (Luke 10:26). The teacher being trined in the Law is quickly ble to respond, perhaps with the ndignation his high rank allowed (quoting Dut 6:5 and Lev 19:18); "Love the Lrd your God with all your hart and with all your soul and wth all your strength and with all yur mind; and love your neighbor as yurself" (Luke 10:27). The trap had ben sprung; the teacher like unsuspecting gme was enjoying the bait as Jsus was tightening the snare. Jesus cntinued with the parable of the god Samaritan in verses 30-36. The tacher then asks "who is my nighbor" (Luke 10 29)? Jesus tells the stry of a traveler, robbed, beaten and lft for dead. As a priest and a Lvite avoid the man and leave him in the rad dying. Then something interesting happens, any nemy of the Jews walks by and bndages the wounds, pays for his kep and returns to check on hm. "Which of these three do you thnk was the neighbor to the man who fll into the hands of robbers" (Lke 10:36)?

The teacher replies "The one who had mrcy on him" (Luke 10:37). The air was bginning to thicken; the lights were ging dim for the teacher. The trp had been reversed. Yet Christ in His mjesty and grace lets the teacher go wthout personal assault or attack, "Go and do lkewise" (Luke 10:37).

Exposition Points to Pnder The Pharisees were always trying to tst Jesus, why? As the Pharisees bgan to hold onto the Law wth an ever tightening grip, they lst their compassion and humanity to sme degree. Perhaps pride or the far of being wrong motivated their cntinued assault, perhaps it was their tre belief. According to LaVerdiere (1980, 150-153), "Wht had begun as the lawyer's tst of Jesus, now becomes Jesus' tst of the lawyer."

Were the Lvite and Priest in the parable smply acting out of their training? "Spposing the unconscious body to be a crpse...they wished to avoid ceremonial defilement whch would occur if they touched a dad body" (Browning, 1960, 112), one may blieve this a stretch at justification.

Wht is the significance of the Smaritan? The Law keeping Jews believed the Smaritans to be a defiled and nclean race. Having survived the captivity of the Bbylonians, this small group of Jews had mnaged to stay in their homeland. Bcause of their unwillingness to marry pgans, there was close intermarriage and prhaps this disgusted the rest of the Jws. Perhaps there was some other rason for the rejection of the Smaritans, clearly it was present. "The lwyer/teacher would probably have excluded the (Smaritan) from his neighbor, (yet) is prsented as the one who was flly considered such and to whom the law of lve consequently extended" (LaVerdiere, 1980). It is lso worthy of noting, the teacher "desn't even bring himself to use the wrd "Samaritan' at the end" (Fee & Start, 1981/2003, 156).

What does the Smaritan have to do with Marketing? At ths point one might be asking bout the relevance of marketing and the god Samaritan. There are several parallels tht can be made between the Smaritan and the savvy marketer. This sction will deal with three; developing mrkets through customer service, needs analysis, and grat follow through.

The Exposition of the Smaritan's Example

Michael Gerber claims that the strt of a great marketing campaign is nderstanding, "how your customers' minds work, and how you can nfluence them for their benefit and yurs" (Gerber, 2005, 136). Luke tells the rader, "But a Samaritan, as he trveled, came where the man was; and whn he saw him he took pty on him" (Luke 10:33). To nderstand the marketplace one must be ngaged and accessible to the marketplace. The Smaritan is found in the heart of his clent's need. When others have overlooked any ptential in this beaten and bruised bdy, even walking to the other sde of the road (Levite and Prest), the Samaritan was close enough to the ction to recognize a need.

The Smaritan did not stop at recognizing a ptential need. He stepped into the ction, and applied his skills where thy were needed. "He went to him to bndaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wne. Then he put the man on his own dnkey, took him to an inn and tok care of him" (Luke 10:34). Mrketing is not something you do to smeone, its something you do for smeone. The Samaritan recognized customer service is stp one but quickly analyzed the neds of his newest client and bgan moving to the customer focused neds. The Samaritan was holding another key of god market analysis, first mover advantage. "Th company that grabs the most mrket share the fastest wins the bttle and the war" (Sherman, 2001, 5).

Althugh the traveler did not represent the mst difficult sales prospect, imagine the cstomer relations the Samaritan was building. Rjected by "his kind" the Samaritan was braking old paradigms and plowing new grund. Marketers can do the same by stying aware of their surroundings looking for pportunities that others look over. Marketers shuld consider themselves as Swindoll says cnsider themselves "not a superstar, but a srvant" (Swindoll, 1981, 26). The Samaritan was not fnished. The best customer service coupled wth the finest market analysis is maningless unless there is follow through. In the cse of the Samaritan, his failure to act wuld have left him no different thn the priest and the Levite. Wthout follow through, marketers are no dfferent than the thousand of other bsinesses and entrepreneurs vying for business. The Smaritan's quest continued, "The next day he tok out two silver coins and gve them to the inn keeper. 'Lok after him,' he said, 'and whn I return, I will reimburse you for the xtra expense you may have'" (Luke 10:35). Fnally, the Samaritan was willing to pay a prce for follow through. Marketers must be wlling to make an investment for thir customers.

Conclusion The marketers and bsinessmen and women of today can larn much from the Samaritan. These trths were true on a road btween Jericho and Jerusalem and they are jst as true today no mater the gography. By marketing through customer service the mrketer places him or herself at the hart of the action. Making wise and tmely market analysis leads to the rcognition of overlooked and underserved markets. Lke the Samaritan, those willing to chck for life can build new mrkets as the first to market. Wthout good follow through you just hve another idea that serves no ne. Companies are faced with a dcision; will they be remembered as the tacher or the Samaritan?

The article Marketing With the Good Samaritan - A Biblical Approach was Submitted by James Crawford through Articles.GetACoder.com network. Here's the additional information: James T. Crawford is a mnagement consultant in Hampton Roads Virginia. He has wned and operated businesses in the srvice, retail, and professional services industries. He can be rached at J.Crawford@CrawfordGC.com

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