March 24, 2022
Thursday
Who Is My Neighbor?
Luke 10: 25-37
"But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?"
Jesus once advised a certain lawyer to love his neighbor as himself. The lawyer asked a burning question: “And who is my neighbor?” In response, Jesus told the story of a Jewish fellow who was waylaid by thieves on the ancient road from Jerusalem to Jericho, a trail that wound through a stark and treacherous valley. This was likely the same gorge David had in mind in Psalm 23—the Valley of the Shadow. It was a dramatic, twisting, dangerous path of several miles, riddled with thieves.
The victim was attacked, beaten, robbed, stripped, and thrown into a ditch. A priest and a Levite passed by on the other side, but it was the Samaritan who saw the wounded man, rescued him, and tended to his needs. The Samaritan knew that one’s neighbor is anyone in need.
It’s as simple as that. Whoever is in trouble, whoever is hurting, whoever has been abused, whoever is experiencing trials, whoever needs us—that is the neighbor we’re to love as ourselves.
We’re to go and do likewise.
A point to ponder…
Not everyone is your brother or sister in faith, but everyone is your neighbor, and you must love your neighbor.
Timothy Keller, in Generous Justice
Read the Bible through in a year
I love you!!!
© 2000-2022 B. Michael Goerlich