When you hear the word neighbor, you probably think of one of two things - Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood or Jesus' parable of the Good Samaritan. Both sought to answer the question 'who is my neighbor?' and 'how do we love them?' Mr. Rogers exemplified what it means to love your neighbor by demonstrating ways we can seek companionship, overcome adversity, and encourage and learn from one another. Jesus' parable also aims to show love similarly while speaking into the deep cultural divisions Israel had been experiencing. He sought to communicate to His audience that pursuing God's command to love our neighbor transcends kindness, seeking to bridge the most profound cultural and racial divisions.
My husband and I have been struggling to figure out why God has us in San Diego this season versus anywhere else in the country or world. We've had difficulty finding a church and making connections which has left us feeling lonely and questioning our purpose for this time and place. The one thing that has been a huge blessing for Jeremy, myself, and my mother-in-law has been our neighbors. Most of our neighbors are in their 70s and 80s, which means we are the 'young' kids on the block. This has provided us with interesting and rare opportunities to serve those around us intentionally. Jeremy is now the first person our neighbors call if a handyman is needed or if someone falls. Rather than going out of town on holiday weekends, now we ask who is staying put so we can host a barbecue, bonfire, or gathering. We've started asking to borrow tools from next door instead of running out to Home Depot to buy them because it seems that someone always has what we need and is willing to share. One wonderful lady drops by to share extra produce (and Vernors) with us regularly, and we have also started baking goodies to share around the neighborhood. Some houses have even started keeping dog treats at hand for when they see Jeremy and me out with the dogs.
These are kind and generous things that we do for one another. They are not trying or taxing, and we don't feel annoyed or bothered to step into these spaces but feel like we can freely give of ourselves as we are asked. But I have found myself asking what more could or should I be doing, and is this what it truly means to 'love your neighbor'?
Don’t misunderstand me; all of these things are good, kind, and helpful, but when reading the parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke’s gospel, you see that Jesus is trying to articulate so much more about who and how we should love in the kingdom. Let me show you what I mean. Luke writes that,
"On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
“What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”
He answered, “‘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 Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’
“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise” (Luke 10:25-37).
Does it sound like anything the Samaritan did was easy? No. The love he demonstrates is hard, time-consuming, and inconvenient. And if you aren't aware of the cultural divide between Jews and Samaritans during this time, this parable may look like an average guy who was kind enough to help a stranger and generously paid for his medical and housing costs during his recovery. All of that is good and an act of compassion which we could take pointers from as the church. But that barely scratches the surface of what is happening in this parable, understanding it takes place between a Samaritan and Jew.
Hundreds of years before Jesus began his ministry, Jews and Samaritans had been fighting and feuding about their beliefs. By the time Jesus was teaching in Judea, Samaritans were not merely a sect of Judaism; they were believed to be a corrupt, unclean, mixed-race people (half-Jew and half-Gentile). And yet Jesus decided, at this moment, to publicly take a stand against this deep rift, rooted in religious differences as well as racial purity, that had spanned generations in how he answered a single question - "...who is my neighbor?"
The expert in the Law wanted Jesus to tell him that 'neighbor' only meant Jews, God's chosen people. And too often, we want that answer too. We only want to love the people in our lives who we think deserve our time and attention, rather than those who are hard to love, we have a bias against, or have hurt us in the past. We don't want to go out of our way to help these people because we believe they are undeserving or possibly wouldn't do the same for us. Perhaps they would even criticize or belittle us in our efforts.
But that's not love.
I would argue that the love Jesus articulates in his parable and later on the cross is sacrificial love - the most challenging and inconvenient kind of love. And He commands us to love our neighbors with this same sacrificial love. To get off our high horse, get our hands dirty, and care for those who are hard to love. But even more than that, Jesus directly reminds his listeners that loving our neighbor includes those we hate and who are living in direct defiance of what we believe. Sacrificial love doesn't just mean surrendering our time, energy, and resources; it means putting aside our biases for the sake of the other person's wellbeing.
But what does it mean for you to love your neighbor like this today?
The reality in America is that we are still divided on almost every issue under the sun. Race, gender, sexuality, parenting, medicine, politics, housing, education, etc. And rather than treating people as our neighbors, we choose to respond in hate to anything and everything we can't agree on. A picture someone posts or a joke they made. A controversial stance or an outfit they didn't like. This policy or that one being put on the ballot. Even someone's religion or lifestyle. You name it. And these are just minor things people hate one another for - I haven't even begun to speak into the fact that racially motivated crimes are happening every day in our country.
Hate is easier than love because loving anyone (including ourselves) takes time, energy, and effort. It means listening when you would rather speak over the noise. It means shaking hands when you want to throw stones. It means bandaging someone's wounds rather than looking the other way. It means standing up for what is right when it would have been easier to stand and laugh with the crowd.
Love is hard, but Jesus reminds us that it is the command we are to pursue with all our hearts- God first and all of His children second.
While Jeremy and I are still trying to love our neighbors in the ways I mentioned at the beginning of this article, we are also praying about who we may be keeping at arm's length and how we can pursue these relationships in a way that glorifies God.
What about you? Who fits this new definition of neighbor in your life? How is God teaching you to love them in this season? Are you leaning into that relationship or trying to stay at a safe distance? Let me know in the comments below so I can be praying with you because the conversation shouldn't stop here.
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Shalom,
Sarah
References:
Stewart, D. (24 Apr, 2007). Who Were the Samaritans?. Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/ faq/don_stewart/don_stewart_1319.cfm
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