Welcome to the Neighborhood!
Loving Your Neighbor as Yourself
Mark 12:28-34
Sermon Objective: God’s love within expresses itself in acts of charity towards humankind.
Supporting Scripture: Leviticus 19: 18; Matthew 7:12; Luke 10:25-37; John 13:34; Romans 13: 8-10; Galatians 5:14; Ephesians 4:25-32; James 2:8; 1 Peter 4:7-9; 1 John 4:19-21
The Greatest Commandment (12:28-34)
28One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"
29"The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: ’Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’31The second is this: ’Love your neighbor as yourself. ’There is no commandment greater than these."
32"Well said, teacher," the man replied. "You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. 33To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."
34When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.
INTRODUCTION
A lawyer came to Jesus with a question, asking, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" Over the course of the past several weeks, we have explored Jesus’ answer to that question, asking ourselves, in the process, whether or not the love we profess to have for God measures up.
We have considered what it means to love God with our emotions … our hearts.
We have discussed what it means to love God with our souls … our psyche and our will.
We talked about how loving God is not long on emotion and absent serious thought, but to a love for God includes the development and deployment of our minds.
Last week we discovered that loving God with our strength includes using our ability and capability – all that our strength potentially includes – is intended to be used as expressions of love for God.
We have also discovered that the command is positive and affirmative. It is designed to help us become like Christ. We are being fashioned into people of love. It is intended to be carried out in a proactive and positive way. As we do this it leaves no place for the loving other things or even a need to say “don’t do ____.” The truth is … I won’t have the desire or the time to love other things if I am loving God and my neighbor as God designs.
We have, for now, finished the first command. But we have only begun. Living that command is an exciting lifetime opportunity. It radically changes our entire outlook on life; our motivations, our behavior, our passions, and our pursuits. It is a wonderful lens through which to view ourselves and our God!
We are not through! There are more exciting discoveries to come. I mean, if you are looking for a Biblical purpose to life look no further than Jesus’ two commands! And speaking of two, let’s look at the second … The second is this: ’Love your neighbor as yourself.’
Fred Douglas Shepard was born on September 11, 1855 in Ellenburg, New York in Clinton County. His father died while he was very young and his mother spent most of her adult life as an invalid. It was probably through this that Fred became associated with illness and caring for the sick. Fred lived with family in Madrid. It was there in a revival meeting in a Baptist church that he accepted Christ as Savior and threw himself completely into the Christian life. At the age of 22 he studied medicine and at 27 married a young lady who was also a doctor. They felt a calling and turned their faces towards the east … Eastern Turkey to be exact.
The Shepards spent the remaining days of their lives in Eastern Turkey. He started a school of medicine and 221 men graduated from there to aid in the terrible disease and suffering throughout the country. His records show that by 1914 he had seen 6000 patients in his clinic, called on others in over 2000 homes, and had only 800 paying patients.
Shepard’s service was so significant that he received decorations from the Red Cross and President Taft in 1909 and from the Sultan of Turkey in 1911. The Sultan said, “The decoration bestowed upon you is nothing compared with your most admiring sympathy shown to the suffering humanity.”
In 1908 the largest protestant church in Turkey held a silver anniversary of Fred Shepard’s ministry there. It was filled with Moslems, Catholics, Gregorians, and Jews as well as Protestants. For two hours these folks stood and talked about what Dr. Shepard had done for them. While reflecting over his ministry he said that the celebration was really not about him but about one even greater; God and His love. “Because I have understood a little about that love, I try to let others know about it. This is my purpose in life. I did not come to this country to make money or a reputation. I came to bear witness that God is love. If by my work I have been able to show you him, I have had my reward and I thank him.”
This 5 feet four inch husky farm lad from Madrid brought relief to an entire country in an era when disease ran rampant.
Fred Shepard understood a little of what of means to: ’Love your neighbor as yourself.’
’Love your neighbor as yourself.’ … Does that not mean that I am to love my neighbor the same way I love God? Is it not telling me to love my neighbor with all my being … with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength? That’s how we love ourselves isn’t it?
Love is intended to be part of the fabric of how we understand God, His law and His world. Even that dry and dusty book we call Leviticus is supposed to be interpreted by this maxim.
The writers of the New Testament understood this didn’t they? Just listen to what they recorded:
Matthew 7:12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
John 13:34 "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
Romans 13:8-10 Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself." Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
Galatians 5:14 The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself."
James 2:8 If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, "Love your neighbor as yourself," you are doing right.
1 Peter 4: 7-9 The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.
1 John 4:19-21 We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.
I could go on. I mean there are a few obvious (and more lengthy) ones we have overlooked. Like Matthew 25, Luke 10, and Ephesians 4.
Loving our neighbor the way we love ourselves is the ethic whereby we interact with the world. We do not live by rules but by relationships ... a loving relationship to God enables a loving relationship with others. It certainly changes how I choose to operate.
I have told you before that Mark’s Gospel story is short. It is the “Reader’s Digest version” of the life of Christ. Luke (10:25-37) tells us a bit more about the encounter. Verse 29 sets the stage by referring again to the lawyer: But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" Jesus answers this next question with the story of the Good Samaritan.
We are not going to follow the trajectory of this lawyer, though. We are going to admit up front that our neighbor is ANYONE WHO CROSSES OUR PATH. And we are going to celebrate God’s providence and grace when it happens by seizing the opportunity to genuinely HELP them.
THE GLOBAL NEIGHBOROOD
In a real way though, the neighborhood has expanded. There was a time when the neighbor was just local … like the Samaritan on the road … but not any more. Our world is so structured today that we literally have contact and connection with people all across the globe everyday.
I play a lot of chess. I am part of an online chess community and, at any given time, have between 3 and 7 chess games going at once. I merely log on, study the move of my opponent, look at my notes regarding that game and my strategy for that game, decide on my next move, and log off. I could log on right now and probably have a game or two where it is my move. This chess community has reemphasized and embedded the reality of the “global community” to me. I have played chess with people in Spain, Bulgaria, England, Canada, Croatia, and the list goes on. All from the comfort of my desk at home.
It used to be that I would have to go to a school, or a park, or elsewhere to find people from the community to play chess with. Not anymore. My neighborhood is global now.
You live in an expanding neighborhood too. Whether you know it or not you interact with people all across the globe everyday. Some of you do this in your business. Others of you do it in other ways … but we all do it.
You see, what I do effects people across the globe and what they do directly effects me. So, not only has my neighborhood expanded – so has my opportunities to love them with all my being.
Seriously, what we do affects people all across the global in real time … almost immediately. That means I can have positive effect on my neighbor in South America today.
Some of you understand the global neighborhood better than I do but I have come to the realization in recent years that I am responsible and must take the initiative to help them as best I can. I can no longer cross the road and pretend it is someone else’s problem.
There are some things that we can only pray about because they are out of our hands. I cannot for example, rescue the persecuted Church but I can pray for them. I can also pray for those whom God has strategically placed who can rescue the persecuted Church by fighting against the injustices that have placed them there.
But there are things we can do that, albeit small, are real and tangible. May I mention a few to you today?
1. We can choose to use our resources in a way that does not hurt others. Allowing greedy, corrupt corporations to go unchecked while spewing dangerous poisons into the air and destroying rain forests affects us all. Demanding better of them if they want our support is a holy thing and an appropriate way to help our neighbor.
† How we buy our commodities gets their attention. Do you remember the “banana people of Costa Rica” that Katie F. told us about in June? Those are people (whole communities) who have seen their health ruined because a corrupt corporation didn’t want to spend some extra money to do things right. It is immoral for a company to use resources and humans and leave things worse off (or dead) when they leave.
† When we buy their products and/or do not hold them accountable we endorse their actions and step across the street to avoid our neighbor who has been exploited.
2. We can give an innocent child a chance at life.
† Nazarene Child Sponsorship is designed to serve as an advocate for destitute children around the globe. The goal is to help needy children in the physical, educational, economic, social, emotional, spiritual, moral, development and help them to become responsible Christian adults.
† My wife and I support children through Nazarene Child Sponsorship specifically because we have direct influence and accountability and I know they are proclaiming the gospel to these kids. Feeding them is great but if I can support an agency that feeds the, evangelizes them, and also seeks to make them into adult disciples for the same dollars – well I voted with my money.
† You can sponsor a child for $25.00 a month.
3. Do you enjoy your safe drinking water?
† One of the greatest needs in Haiti is water. Haiti has a population of eight million, and the World Health Organization and other similar organizations estimate that at least half and as much as 60 percent of the population do not have access to clean water.
† About 80 percent of disease there is water-borne, and that stat affects children most acutely in a country where one in eight children won’t make it to his or her fifth birthday (generally because of a mixture of illness and malnutrition).
† The Haiti Water Project aims to provide clean, safe water for communities in Haiti. The goal is to create sustainable water resources that empower local churches to meet the needs around them.
† Something as simple as clean, safe water can transform a community. It means less illness and fewer deaths. It means focusing more on life and less on survival. It means more opportunity for educating children. It means hope for the future.
† Creating a well is a low-cost project that meets a great need and shows much love. Imagine churches in Haiti becoming places where people can come for both the literal and spiritual water of life.
† The cost of a well or a cistern is as little as $1,000.
† You can literally give a cup of water in Jesus’ name.
4. Are you familiar with our Nazarene Hospitals?
† Some of you have seen the coffee cup I carry here at the church with the Kudjip Hospital name and logo on it. It is another ministry I have supported.
† Our hospital in Kudjip, Papua New Guinea is the ONLY hospital in PNG offering chemotherapy.
† The Kudjip Hospital provides quality health care to over 5,000 outpatients and nearly 500 inpatients each month. The staff also ministers to patients’ spiritual needs, and as a result, an average of 75 people are won to the Lord every month
† You can sponsor someone’s chemotherapy treatment for $200.00.
† You can underwrite the average surgery costs performed there for $300.00
5. Have you considered drinking Fair Trade coffee?
6. Have you considered making a no-interest loan to someone in the third world?
† You can give someone who has shown responsibility and initiative a hand-up.
† Are you familiar with an agency called KIVA? You might want to be. I was recently introduced to KIVA by some Nazarene friends of mine, one is a former President of a Nazarene College and a lawyer and the other is a pastor. This is an agency that screens applicants in third world areas and finds ways to provide those with a real plan and initiative some meager resources to start a home business or a farm. You can make an interest free loan of as little as $25.00 to someone through KIVA knowing that it will be monitored, accountability will be enforced, and someone will get a new start at life.
I could give you PLENTY more options if time permitted.
And I know you cannot support all of these … but you can support one of them!!!!!
Like it or not, your neighborhood has expanded. It is easy for us to cross to the other side of the road, mumble something about “getting what they deserve” or “somebody’s else’s responsibility” and go about our day. But love will not let us do that. Our neighbor is anyone who crosses our paths and today that has global implications. You can act locally to influence globally
THE LOCAL NEIGHBOROOD
There are some things that I can do to love my neighbor locally that I cannot do quite as effectively for those who live elsewhere. We do have a special responsibility for our neighbors in the North Country. We see them, talk to them, and know them.
The situation in today’s North Country (not to mention America) has brought unique and renewed opportunities to love our neighbor as ourselves.
Did you know that 37 million Americans go without some basic necessities, such as food, shelter, medical care every day?
Did you know that one out of every three working families with young children (living in the North Country) has an income level that does not to make ends meet?
The working poor are among us. They are our neighbors. In fact, some of us are the working poor.
Do you remember the passage I read to you last week from 2 Corinthians 8? It is about the working poor too. But it gives a refreshing slant to things.
And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints. And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God’s will.
This “working poor” was a church and did you catch what these working poor did? They BEGGED. They begged the Apostle Paul for an opportunity to serve others who were working poor.
You see, being in need does not let you off the hook or allow you to just stand with your hand out being serviced by others … if you are a believer you can expect the power of God to so transform you that you can look beyond your own need to the needs of others too. God will take care of his own when his own live like Jesus and look to the needs of others.
It isn’t that just a certain economic class of Christians has a responsibility to love their neighbor – all Christians do.
But I digress.
I do have a special responsibility for my neighbors in the North Country
So how can I love my neighbor as Jesus shows us in the parable of the Good Samaritan?
We cannot give money to everyone. We don’t have it. But there is something all of us can do.
By-the-way, the early Church didn’t always have it either. I know we read in Acts 2 of people selling things to take care of others but they still did not have enough money for everyone. In fact, it was the leaders of the Jerusalem Church in Acts (Peter and John) that told one person "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." (Acts 3:6). This happened just a few verses after we read about people selling things. Giving money is not always the answer you see … even though those in need usually think it is the answer.
I digress again.
We cannot always give money to pay fuel bills, rent, or even food (the three primary reasons people seek financial help). But there are still ways we can help our local neighbors. We just have to allow the Creative God to give us creative solutions … like Peter and John’s solution God’s solutions are often long-term solutions (with immediate relief) too.
What can we do to help our neighbors here? Have you considered options like:
† Providing school supplies?
† Teaching a budgeting classes?
† Working in local ministries like the prison ministry, hospital, or Helping Hands
† Giving tax advice and preparation?
† Attending local municipal meetings and speaking up about the oppressive taxes?
† Organizing a community garden?
† Starting another compassionate ministry like we did years ago (Helping Hands)? Believe me … there is room for another similar ministry.
† Slinging a hammer with Habitat for Humanity?
† Entering the Helping Hands Golf tournament?
† On this very day we have a team of people pulling into Nashville, Tennessee to do inner-city mission work. I applaud that and want it to be the start of something regular. But I have also asked myself … why go to Nashville? Why not do something like this right here in the North Country? Do you know why? Because no one has organized anything in a manner that satisfies the Gospel call. No one is offering something meaningful and workable for the “neighbor” as well as the Samaritan. As a result, our Samaritans go where the need is well articulated and the opportunities to serve are prepared and organized. I applaud those who organized these events as well as those who were willing to cross the road (literally) to offer a helping hand.
WRAP-UP
We are instructed to love God the way he loves us – with our heart, soul mind, and strength. We are instructed to love people the way God loves them too. The word “agape” is the same word for love used in both of the commandments.
I really want to please the people I love. I love you and I want to do what I can to be a pleasant pastor for you. I love my wife and my kids and I want to do what I can to be a pleasant husband and father for them. They (and you) deserve it!
And I love God too. And I want to do whatever I can do be pleasing to him. And God has made is VERY VERY clear in His word how I can please him. It isn’t by keeping the Ten Commandments or any other set of rules and expectations.
Matthew 7:12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
Galatians 5:14 The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself."
James 2:8 If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, "Love your neighbor as yourself," you are doing right.
++++++++++++++++++++++
29"The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: ’Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.
If we start with our neighbor, we get so wrapped up with all the hurts, difficulties, and friction that we start responding in the same way they treat us. But when we start with God and we have experienced his love and responded to it with love, then we can pass it along to our neighbor.
It never works when we start with "love your neighbor" first, as we always are trying to do. All the social ills of our day teach us that we ought to love our neighbor and they are right. But if we start there, without loving God first, we only have half the solution.
To begin anywhere other than with loving God means we are back to seeing our problems not the God who solves them.
31The second is this: ’Love your neighbor as yourself. ’There is no commandment greater than these."
We all have skills and abilities that God can use. We just have to use our spiritual imaginations and let God birth some creative opportunities within us. Some of you are good with your hands, others with your minds, but all of us can invest our hearts and souls to loving people. You see the connection to the first command don’t you?
We you cannot solve all the problems in the North Country or our world ... but we can make a difference none-the-less.
He who has ears to hear,
Let him hear
THINGS TO PONDER
† Who is your neighbor?
† Does loving God naturally lead us to loving our neighbor?
† In what ways can you be compelled by love to serve your North Country neighbor this week? This month? This year?
† Are you seizing the opportunities that the “global neighborhood” has made available to you? How are you serving your “global neighbor”?
This sermon is provided by Dr. Kenneth Pell
Potsdam Church of the Nazarene
Potsdam, New York
www.potsdam-naz.org
Children’s Sermon
The Tie that Binds
Scripture: Romans 13:8-10
Objective: Love is God’s glue to hold people together
Sermon props: a nail, a screw, glue. a stapler, and some tape
Hi everyone. It is so good to see you today. I have some things in treasure box to show you. In here we have a nail, a screw, some glue, a stapler, and some tape. What do all of these things have in common? That’s right! They are all used to help hold things together. They are very good for that – they work perfectly.
But they will not all work in every situation. If I am building a house and want to hold the boards together I would not use tape and if I want to hold some papers together I would not use a nail.
What do you think we should use if we want to hold people together? Would the nail work? Ouch! No! Would the glue work? That would be sticky wouldn’t it?
Did you know God does have something special that He uses to hold people together? Listen to what the Bible says:
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself." Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. (Romans 13:8-10)
Did you catch it? Sure you did! God says the thing that he gives us to keep people together is … love!
Love is what compels us to forgive each other. Love is what compels us to treat each other right. Love is what compels us to spend time together.
Did you know that love can grow? In fact, the more our love grows for one another and for God the more close we will be with each other. And the more we will forgive. And the more we will serve. And the more we will spend time together.
Nails are the perfect choice for keeping boards together. And staples are the perfect choice for keeping papers together. Let’s thank God that he has given us the perfect thing to keep people together!
This Children’s Sermon is provided by Dr. Kenneth Pell
Potsdam Church of the Nazarene
Potsdam, New York
www.potsdam-naz.org
