[𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝟷 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘵𝘸𝘰-𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘵𝘰𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘴.𝘤𝘰𝘮: “𝘉𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘎𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘚𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘏𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘗𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦”]

“I really want to do the right thing, but I’m struggling to understand what You are trying to tell me.  Can You boil it all down for me?  What is the most important thing for me to hear and put into action?  Of all Your lessons, all Your directives, which one matters most to You?”

If you could have a conversation with the LORD JESUS in the flesh, face to face, wouldn’t you love to ask this question?  To hear His calm and steadying voice break through the spin in your head and set your thoughts clearly and squarely on the next right step?

The gospels record a very similar exchange between a young lawyer and the Savior:

“’Of all the commandments, which is the most important?’

JESUS replied, ‘The most important commandment is this: The LORD our GOD is the one and only LORD.  And you must love the LORD your GOD with all you heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.  The second is equally important: Love your neighbor as yourself.  No other commandment is greater than these.’” (Mark 12:28-31, NLT)

“’Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?’ 

JESUS replied, ‘What does the law of Moses say?  How do you read it?’

The man answered, ‘You must love the LORD your GOD with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

‘Right!’ JESUS told him. ‘Do this and you will live!’

The man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked JESUS, ‘And who is my neighbor?’” (Luke 10:25-29, NLT)

We don’t know if this man wanted to clarify the “letter of the law” he was desperately trying to keep by his own efforts or if he genuinely desired to understand and reflect GOD’s heart in honoring His most important commands.

But the LORD JESUS took this opportunity to demonstrate His definition of a “neighbor,” telling the well-known story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37).  

In His account, a Jewish man fell victim to robbers who brutally attacked him and left him almost dead on the side of the road.  Those that should have stepped in to help him (a priest and then a Levite) made the selfish choice to carry on with their business, leaving the dying victim to suffer alone.  

Instead, it was an unlikely Samaritan (from a group of people despised by the Jews) who felt compassion for this man and went to great lengths at personal expense to care for him.

The young lawyer readily agreed that the true neighbor in JESUS’ story was the Samaritan who extended mercy to a fellow man in need.

.   .   .

It is interesting that JESUS placed these two commands on equal standing – to love the LORD our GOD with all of our being is equal to loving our neighbor!  Nothing else is more important to Him.  

How do we view our neighbors?  Who are our neighbors?  How does loving those individuals, extending mercy and compassion to them, demonstrate our wholehearted love for the LORD our GOD?

A few thoughts come to mind:

• When we see another human being as an equally valued and cared for creation of GOD, we see them the way JESUS does.

• When we recognize that any blessing or protection we enjoy is not of our own doing but a gift from GOD, we don’t selfishly hoard those resources or claim misplaced ownership of our time, our agenda, or our belongings.  Instead, we are compelled to share what we’ve been given to help someone else.

• When we genuinely love and care for fellow man, we love like JESUS does.

• If we love the LORD our GOD with all of our being, we love what (whom) He loves.  We desire to respond as He would respond.  We endeavor to reflect His heart in all we do and say as a means of honoring what we hold dear – the One who loved us first, the One who gave everything, who spared nothing, at great personal cost to rescue us first!

.   .   .

Who is my neighbor?  In truth, any other fellow human being who crosses my path is my neighbor, a treasured soul for whom CHRIST died!

May our hearts break when His heart breaks.  May what matters most to Him matter most to us.  May we value GOD’s heart enough to see what He sees, hear what He hears, and treasure what He treasures.  

May we notice others in need.  May we well up in compassion and ask Him how to meet needs with what He has placed in our hands to give – next door, down the street, across town, or across the globe.  

May we recognize where He has purposely placed us in our communities but also in our families.  May we take special care to notice those we may take for granted because we see them every day and count on their love and commitment to us.

May we look in faces, see hurt or need and go out of our way to be considerate, helpful, kind, and compassionate.  May our words and actions demonstrate to our neighbors that JESUS loves them!

.   .   .

This little study has deeply touched my heart.  I have now added a few prayers from the Bible App to my daily list:

“I want to be more intentional about reaching my community.  LORD, fill me with the power of the Holy Spirit this week, and teach me how to share the hope of salvation with my neighbors.”

“Father GOD, I want my life to be marked by loyalty and commitment to You.  I want to be known for loving like JESUS, being generous, and drawing others to You.  Show me how to embrace a life of complete commitment to Your calling.  In JESUS’ Name, Amen.”

If these thoughts have touched you, too, join us for the next two weeks on vinetobranches.com as we contemplate several lessons JESUS taught us through the story of the Good Samaritan.