You're listening to Mountain View Church Audio, Christ-centered teaching from the Wilderness City, Whitehorse, UConn. Here's this week's message. Imagine being asked to summarize everything you know and believe in just one sentence, especially in the Jewish religious culture where they have taught to follow 613 commandments in the law. What would you say? This is the challenge Jesus faced in Matthew chapter 22, verse 36, when asked.
Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law? These questions go to the heart of our faith and provide a roadmap for how we live our lives. So, this is the way Jesus answered. Love God and love your neighbor. As simple as it sounds, these commands become the lens through which we understand all the other's rules and teachings in the Bible. As we unpack this today, let's consider how these two commands simplify and guide our lives in ways that can transform our relationships, our actions, and our hearts. Because love is not a feeling, it is an action.
Love your neighbor as yourself. This commandment is first found in Leviticus chapter 19 verses verse 18, right after the instruction not to take revenge or halt grudges against others. It is a call to show kindness, compassion, and forgiveness. And of course, it is right to ask yourself, do this include people like that colleague who constantly undermines you, or a family member who has hurt you repeatedly? It is a pretty challenging commandment.
And it even seems a little impossible. It might seem more realistic if the verse said, Hey, love your neighbor when he is nice to you and when everything is going well. But if he annoys you or does something that annoys you, then you don't have to love him. We forgive you. But Jesus was pretty clear in his answer. We are to love our neighbor all the time.
This is pretty impossible commandment, isn't it? But it is essential. So much that Jesus made it the second most important commandment. Welcome to Mountain View Church. My name is Herbert. I'm the children's pastor. Today, continuing with our series, That Thing Jesus Said, we'll explore Jesus' profound answer when he commanded us to love our neighbor, and we'll discover how it applies to our daily walk with God. But before we start, with our content, feel free to connect with us.
at mountainview.church slash connect or texting connect to the number on the screen. As for the kids, we offer a kids program every Sunday morning at 9.30 or 11am. And at home, you can also download the lessons and activities at mountainview.church slash base camp, which is the name of our children's program. If you are a teenager or you have teenagers, we offer a youth program every Sunday evening from 6 to 8pm. Visit mountainview.church slash youth for more information.
Now, feel free to use your Bible app, your physical Bible, or if you don't have a Bible, contact us, we'll send you one. And let's jump into our scripture reading. Hi, my name is Elena, and today I'm reading from Matthew 22, verses 34 to 40. But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law? And he said to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend on the law and the prophets. What is the meaning of the word neighbor?
When we think of neighbor in the literal sense, we think of it as someone who lives next door to us. In order to know what neighbor means, we need to look at the meaning of this word in the original language that was written. I'm going to use this source by Walter Bauer about this word, the meaning of this word in Greek. In the New Testament, the Greek word often translated as neighbor is the word plesion, which comes from the root plesios, meaning near or next. In the New Testament context, plesion refers to a person who is near you, or proximate to you, not only in physical proximity, but also in terms of relationship. But what is the idea of this word in Matthew 22, verse 39? The term neighbor is most famously used in the command of Matthew 22, verse 39, and Mark 12, verse 31, where Jesus commands, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. The Greek word plesion here is understood as anyone who is near you.
whether by proximity, relationship, or in a broader social or moral sense of someone with whom you share a responsibility. As for us to understand who my neighbor is, the word plesion in the New Testament means that a neighbor is anybody, especially those in need, whether they are friends, strangers, or even someone with whom we might have a little bit in common. All of this falls under the umbrella of neighbor. This expands the scope of Jesus' command to love our neighbors, challenging us to show love and compassion to everyone, not just those close to us in distance or relationship. But how do we put into practice these two commandments that Jesus asks us to fulfill? To make it practical, we are looking to what Jesus did while he was here on earth. Jesus expands on this concept in the New Testament with the parable of the Good Samaritan.
showing that neighbor extends to those who are outside of your immediate community, to include those you might even consider enemies. In Luke chapter 10, verses 25 to 37, we find the parable of the Good Samaritan. Jesus tells the story of a man who was attacked and left on the side of the road, believed to be dead. A priest saw the man and crossed the street to avoid him. Another person who worked in the temple did the same.
But a Samaritan, who was despised by many Jews, saw the man and went to help him. Perhaps it was enough to help the injured man and make sure he was okay. But this good Samaritan went further and cared for his wounds, taking him to an inn in a nearby town and then leaving money for the innkeeper to continue to care for him. The Samaritan did not know the man when he met him, but he decided to love this unknown neighbor anyway. Let's pause for a moment to understand who the people called Samaritans were in this time, the ethnic and religious background of these people. The Samaritans were descendants of Israelite tribes, particularly from the northern kingdom of Israel, which was conquered by the Assyrians in 722 BC.
After the conquest, the Assyrians deported many Israelites and brought in foreign people to settle in the land. These new settlers intermarried with the remaining Israelites, resulting in a mixed population that came to be known as the Samaritans. And how was their relation with the Jewish? In Jesus' time, there was a deep hostility between Jewish and Samaritans. The Jewish considered the Samaritan heretics and impure because of their mixed ancestry.
and divergent religious practices. As a result, many Jewish avoided even traveling through Samaria and took a longer route to avoid Samaritan territory. And how did Jesus interact with the Samaritan? Jesus, in contrast to the usual Jewish attitudes of the time, showed compassion and openness toward the Samaritans. Notable examples include the parable of the good Samaritan, but also the Samaritan women at the well that we find in John chapter 4, verses 1 to 42. This encounter is significant because Jews typically avoided speaking to Samaritans, especially women. Jesus' willingness to interact with her breaks social norms and highlights his brother's message of inclusion. We find another example, the 10 healing of lepers.
or the healing of the ten lepers. That is, find in Luke chapter 17, verses 11 to 19. Jesus heals ten lepers, but only one, a Samaritan, returns to thank him. And Jesus highlights the Samaritan's gratitude, emphasizing that he was the only one who returned, despite being a foreigner. But back to the parable of the Good Samaritan. In this parable, Jesus is pointing what to do when we see someone in need, and by doing so, showing our love to God and our neighbors.
but also highlights how we are tempted not to do anything to help those in need. As we are going to see what the people mentioned in this parable did. As we talk about their attitudes, think about if you identify yourself with any of these three attitudes. In Luke chapter 10 verse 31, we look at the first of the attitudes. Luke 10 31 says, Now by chance a priest was going down the road. He was walking.
When he saw him, he was walking, he was going down the road and saw these people injured. And he passed on the other side. What is the attitude behind this verse? That I keep my distance. Some scholars have come up with some reasons why the priest didn't stop to help this person. One of these is ritual purity concerns. Priests in ancient Israel were bound by strict laws of ritual purity, as outlined in Leviticus chapter 21.
Encountering a dead body or even a person who might be dying could have made the priest ceremonially unclean. Another reason that this scholar mentioned is fear of danger or ambush. The role between Jerusalem and Jericho was known for being dangerous, often used by bandits. And the last reason, it is a lack of compassion or indifference. It is also possible that the priest simply lacked compassion for the man in need. He might have been more focused on his duties or personal concerns than on showing mercy. Now, I want to ask you to think if something like this has happened to you. When you see someone in need and makes you wonder, what if I help?
But at the same moment you think that you don't have time to do this, or you fear others may think that you were the responsible, and you end up passing by the opportunity to help. We need to question ourselves. Are we called by Jesus to do this? Think about this. What will be your reaction when you see someone in need from now on? Now for the second attitude. Curious, but not getting involved.
Luke 10, 32 says, So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. He came close. Something caught his attention, but he decided to move away. And this can happen to us. For example, when there has been an accident on the road and we drive slowly to see what happened. We drive slowly to see better, but we do nothing more than traffic.
The Levite's choice to pass by the men, despite coming close, emphasizes the danger of merely noticing a needle without acting on it. This part of the parable challenges us to consider not only whether we see the needles around us, but also how we respond when confronted with the suffering of others. And the last attitude, in Luke 10, verse 33, I treat others as I want to be treated. But as a Maritan, as he your need, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him, bound out his wounds, putting on oil and wine. The Samaritan actions show that true compassion often requires more than just a feeling. It involves tangible acts of care. What if we were the one badly injured? Would you like some help? It would be lovely if a Samaritan come out for help and take care of our wounds.
So, next time, when we all see anyone in need, remember this statement. Love is not a feeling. It is an action. And to complete this idea, let's go a little bit deep into Matthew 22, verse 37, where we read, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. and to have a better understanding on what really moves people to practice love and leads us to act as the Samaritan did, let's look at these three words. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, which is the core of the will. It is where I hold the resentment or love that motivates me to do something, good or bad, and with all your soul.
It is the essence of humanity's being. It is who we are. And with all your mind, which is the logical reasoning that leads to action and understanding that I must do something. Jesus' inclusion of all these aspects shows that love for God must be complete. Not just a part of us, but all of who we are should be involved in our relationship with God.
Remember that the first and great commandment is to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind. And only then we are capable to love ourselves and love others. There is four things the Samaritan did that we should do to love our neighbors. Number one, have eyes to see. Noticing the needs of others begins through our eyes.
We become sensitive through what we see. The three men in the parable saw, but only one was able to be sensitive. And seeing him, he was moved with compassion. Imagine you are at work. Focus on your task. A co-worker, usually quiet, looks down and seems troubled. You notice them, but don't stop. But if you pause and really see them, you might recognize that.
They are struggling with a heavy workload or personal issues. Taking a moment to ask if they are okay offering help or just showing kindness can make a big difference. Having eyes to see is about noticing the silent struggles of others, even during our busy routines. Number two, build others up. With our words and action, we do one of two things. We build up or we destroy it.
Our world is not always friendly. So, let us be bearers of good news for the people around us. We read in Luke 10, verse 34, He went to him and bound up his wounds, putting on oil and wine. Let us begin to make a difference, just as this man did by restoring hope in humanity to the person in need. Imagine you are at work and a colleague is struggling with a project.
Instead of ignoring them or pointing out their mistakes, you take a moment to offer encouragement and you say, I can see you're putting a lot of effort and I believe you can handle this. If you need any help or a fresh perspective, I'm here. Just as the Samaritan restore hope with actions, you can build others up by showing care and kindness, offering hope when it's needed the most. And third, Your help is needed today. It's today. Do not postpone helping others, keeping in mind that we must be willing to be interrupted and willing to risk. We read the story that the Samaritan went to him. The priest and the Levite evaded this opportunity to help the needy, probably because they believed that what they had to do was more important and could not be interrupted, or perhaps because of fear. Remember, kindness is not something that you schedule.
And four, pay the cost. In verse 35, we read, and the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, take care of him. And whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back. Now, imagine a friend facing financial struggles. You offer to pay for their groceries or help with rent for a month. Even though it is not convenient or easy, you choose to help because their needs is greater than your comfort.
You don't just give a little. You give what it takes, knowing that sometimes love involves personal sacrifice. This level of sacrifice shows willingness to go out of one's way, both in time and resources, to help someone in need. Let's summarize what we have learned. In Matthew 22, 36, Jesus was asked to summarize all God's commandments in one sentence.
He responded with a clear and powerful message. Love God and love your neighbor as yourself. This simple command is the foundation of our faith and how we are to live. It not only directs us to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind, but also to extend that love to others, even those who might be difficult to love. Through the example of the Good Samaritan in Luke chapter 10, verses 25 to 37, Jesus teaches us the importance of loving our neighbor.
Not just those who are close to us, but anyone in need. The Samaritan's compassion and willingness to help, even at personal cost, exemplify the action-based love Jesus calls us to show. We are challenged to follow the example of the Samaritan by having eyes to see, the needs around us, building others up with our words and actions, and being willing to help without delay, no matter the cost. Love is not just a feeling. It is an active choice to care for others, regardless of who they are or where they come from. Just as Jesus showed mercy and compassion to those often overlooked, we are called to do the same. This command may seem challenging, but Jesus' words are not just an idea. They show us how to change our relationships, our hearts, bringing hope and healing to those in need. And to close,
As we reflect on the parable of the good Samaritan and the teaching of loving our neighbors, we are reminded that being a neighbor goes beyond physical proximity. Jesus calls us to see beyond our difference, to act with compassion, to offer help to those in need, regardless of their background or belief. In the same way, the Samaritan showed love and mercy to the injured man. We are called to extend that same love to others in our daily lives. It is not enough to merely acknowledge the needs around us. We are called to act. Let us make every effort to embody the spirit of true neighborly love, knowing that by doing so, we reflect the love of Christ himself. May we be a light in the world, showing mercy and grace to those around us, just as Jesus showed us.
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