Who is Your Neighbor?

Who is Your Neighbor?

Defining Our Neighbor and God's Priorities

This teaching from Founded In Truth Fellowship explores the fundamental question of who our neighbor is and what it truly means to love them in a practical way, aligning our actions with God's priorities. The speaker, drawing from biblical texts and relatable experiences, challenges us to move beyond a superficial understanding of this commandment and delve into its profound implications for our daily lives.

The discourse begins with two critical questions: What does God consider the most important thing in the world? and How do we truly know what is most important to us? While answers like "life" and "love" are valid, the speaker suggests that the most reliable way to discern what holds actual importance, whether for an individual, a group, or even a divine being, is to examine how resources are allocated. Specifically, this involves scrutinizing the expenditure of money, time, and energy. These tangible investments serve as a litmus test, revealing our genuine priorities far more accurately than our stated intentions.

To further explore the concept of "neighbor," the teaching delves into the well-known parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke chapter 10. This story, recounted by Jesus in response to a legal expert's query about inheriting eternal life, presents a powerful illustration of neighborly love. The expert correctly summarizes the law as loving God with all one's being and loving one's neighbor as oneself. However, seeking to justify himself, he presses Jesus with the question, "Who is my neighbor?"

Jesus's response is the parable of a man traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho who is attacked, robbed, and left for dead. A priest and a Levite, both figures of religious authority within the Jewish society, pass by the injured man without offering assistance. The speaker explains the social hierarchy of the time, placing priests and Levites at a higher status than common Jews, with slaves, foreigners, Samaritans, and Gentiles further down the social ladder. There might have been a perceived lawful reason for the priest and Levite to avoid the man, possibly related to ritual defilement from contact with a dead body, as mentioned in Leviticus 21. However, the speaker argues that Jesus's critique implies this justification was insufficient.

In stark contrast, a Samaritan, a member of a group despised and ostracized by the Jews to the extent that they would go miles out of their way to avoid Samaria, stops to help the injured man. The speaker emphasizes the deep historical animosity between Jews and Samaritans, tracing its roots to the Assyrian captivity and subsequent religious and cultural differences. To illustrate the intensity of this hatred, the speaker draws a modern-day parallel, suggesting that a Jew's negative reaction to a Samaritan helping someone would be akin to a contemporary person's reaction to an enemy, like an ISIS soldier, performing a good deed while religious leaders fail to act.

The Samaritan in the parable demonstrates practical love by tending to the man's wounds, providing transportation on his own animal, and ensuring his continued care at an inn, even promising to cover any additional expenses. The speaker highlights that the Samaritan's actions involved a significant disruption to his own plans and an expenditure of his resources – time, money, and energy – for someone considered an enemy. The Greek word used for the Samaritan's compassion, spladnigzomai, is noted for its unique connotation of compassion that leads to action.

Based on this parable, the speaker defines a neighbor as anyone on the planet in need of whose need I become aware. This definition extends beyond geographical proximity or social affiliation, encompassing anyone whose suffering comes to our attention, whether near or far. This awareness then necessitates a response measured by our willingness to invest our time, energy, and money.

Practical Application for Everyday Life

• Assess your priorities: Examine how you spend your money, time, and energy. Do these allocations reflect a commitment to loving your neighbor in practical ways?
• Be aware of needs around you: Cultivate an awareness of the needs of those in your immediate vicinity and beyond, whether physical, emotional, or spiritual.
• Act with compassion: Move beyond simply feeling sympathy for others' suffering to taking tangible actions to help alleviate it, however inconvenient.
• Seize opportunities: Be open to unexpected opportunities to show love and kindness, even in the midst of your busy routine.
• Love unconditionally: Extend love without expecting anything in return or based on the other person's beliefs or actions.
• Embrace disruption: Recognize that loving your neighbor may sometimes lead to changes in your plans and require sacrifices of your time, energy, or resources.
• Utilize your resources: Consider the resources you have access to – your time, skills, finances, network – and how they can be used to help those in need.
• Prioritize mercy: Focus on acts of mercy and practical help as expressions of your faith, understanding that God values these actions.
• Engage with your community: Look for ways to get involved in your local community to address the needs of those who are vulnerable or marginalized.
• Remember the judgment: Reflect on the teachings of Matthew 25 and the importance of serving "the least of these" as serving Christ himself.

References

Bible Verses

• 1 Samuel 23
• Leviticus 21
• Luke 10:25-37
• Matthew 9:10-13
• Hosea 6:6
• Matthew 25:31-46

Books and Resources

• The Bible by various authors
• Josephus, Flavius. Antiquities of the Jews. (This is a historical text referenced in the teaching).

This message, delivered by Matthew Vander Els, encourages a deeper understanding and practical application of loving our neighbors as ourselves, reflecting the heart and priorities of God.

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