Who Is My Neighbor? | Luke 10:25-37
Welcome to Real Life. Love your neighbor as yourself? It’s a tall order.
“What’s she doing out in the cold?” Jill[1] was driving home on a blustery January afternoon and noticed her neighbor hobbling down the street. People walk the neighborhood all the time, even on cold winter days. But, Jill knew something was amiss for 90-year-old Shirley to be out. She pulled in her driveway, parked, and walked over to meet Shirley, “Are you okay? Where are you going? Let’s get you home.” She walked her neighbor safely back to the house.
Shirley’s husband has been dealing with extended medical issues. People were re-arranging her home to accommodate his needs. Strangers were coming and going. The upheaval was just too much. So, Shirley took off down the street to clear her head. “You’re my best friend,” she gratefully told Jill as they walked home.
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An expert in the law asked Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”
“What’s the law say?” Jesus responded.
“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
“You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”
But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked, “And who is my neighbor?”
Jesus defines neighbor by telling a story:
A man traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho was robbed, beaten, and left for dead. A priest came by. When he saw the man, he passed by on the other side of the road. Then, a Levite came. He, too, saw the mangled man and kept going.
Finally, a Samaritan came by. He pitied the man who had been robbed. He stopped, bandaged his wounds, and transported him on his own donkey to the nearest inn. The Samaritan stayed the night, nursing the man. Before leaving the next morning, he paid the innkeeper. And, then, promised to pay for any additional charges the injured man might incur.
In conclusion, Jesus asked, “Which of the three was a neighbor to the man who was robbed?”[2]
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I’d call the injured man a stranger. Jesus called him a neighbor.
It’s plausible to love family, friends, even those living nearby. But, to love a stranger, isn’t that asking a bit much? To come to the aid of someone I don’t know can be downright dangerous in today’s world. Scams to dupe compassionate hearts abound.
Yet, if I truly love God, I will love people created in his image. No one is a stranger. Jesus clearly stated that love should be the mark[3]—outstanding characteristic—of a Christ follower. So, why do we, the religious community (represented in the story by a priest and Levite), so often fail to love? Christians are stereotyped as many things. Merciful, compassionate, and loving don’t usually top the list. Why?
It can be tricky to separate myself from sin and stand for righteousness while reaching out in love to those who’ve suffered the damaging effects of sin. Yet, this is Jesus. Every life he touched, priest to prostitute, was a traveler lying half-dead on the roadside, robbed of Real Life and broken by sin.
Apart from Christ’s Spirit in me, I can’t love like this. It’s impossible. Selfishness comes too easily. It’s my natural response.
It would have been easier for Jill to walk into her warm house, say a prayer, and not enter into Shirley’s hardship. But, Jill chose love.
Who is my neighbor?
Lord, forgive my selfishness. I don’t love others well. Teach me, move me, love through me.
Do you have a neighbor story? I’d love to hear it.
Taking it further …
- A Loving Life: In a World of Broken Relationships by Paul E. Miller.
- Rescue those trapped in human trafficking: www.freethemtoday.org.
- Help the downtrodden: www.thecitymission.org, www.havenofrest.org, www.salvationarmyusa.org
[1] Jill and Shirley are fictitious names, but the account is real.
[2] It’s interesting that the least likely candidate, the Samaritan, stopped. Samaritans were disregarded as half-breeds, not pure Jews. Those who’ve been injured can often more easily empathize with those who are in pain.
[3] “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35 NIV).
Image “Elderly Woman” courtesy of africa / FreeDigitalPhotos.net.
