Years ago PBS featured a program where the host would enter the studio, take off his cardigan sweater, and his dress shoes and put on some sneakers – all the while singing his signature song:
“It’s a beautiful day in this neighborhood
A beautiful day for a neighbor
Won’t you be my neighbor?”
What was the name of the long running PBS show?
(Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood)
Now, I’m going to give you the name of famous TV stars and then ask you to give the name of their neighbor:
o Dennis the Menace … (“Helloooo Mr. Wilson!”)
o Daren & Samantha Stevens (Abner and Gladys Kravitz)
o Jerry Seinfeld - (Kramer)
o Laverne & Shirley – (Lenny & Squiggy)
o Flintstones – (the Rubbles)
o The Jeffersons - before they had their own show (Archie & Edith Bunker)
o Ricky & Lucy Ricardo (Fred & Ethel Mertz)
o Tim “the Tool Man” Taylor (Wilson Wilson)
Luke 10.25-37
A Neighbor can be in close proximity
A neighbor can be a fellow traveler/human being
Pointing back to instructions from Leviticus 19.9-18
I. Actions Toward Neighbors:
A. Practice Kindness (Leviticus 19.9-10)
9 "When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge; neither shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest. 10And you shall not strip your vineyard bare, neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard. You shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner: I am the LORD your God.
Rules of Harvest & Care for Poor – Dignity
Poor man was a brother according to Torah
Other cultures protect the rights of “haves” to the neglect of the “have nots”
Care for poor as Job 31.16-23
16"If I have withheld anything that the poor desired,
or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,
17or have eaten my morsel alone,
and the fatherless has not eaten of it
18(for from my youth the fatherless grew up with me as with a father,
and from my mother’s womb I guided the widow),
19if I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing,
or the needy without covering,
20if his body has not blessed me,
and if he was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep,
21if I have raised my hand against the fatherless,
because I saw my help in the gate,
22then let my shoulder blade fall from my shoulder,
and let my arm be broken from its socket.
23For I was in terror of calamity from God,
and I could not have faced his majesty.
Seen at Pentecost (Acts 2)
Shavuot – Harvest/Anniversary of Mt. Sinai
Care for the Needy – Acts 2.44-45
B. Display Integrity (Leviticus 19.11-18)
1. No Theft (v. 11)
11 "You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; you shall not lie to one another. 12 You shall not swear by my name falsely, and so profane the name of your God: I am the LORD.
Not as a joke/not to get back stolen articles
Not stealing good opinions of others with flattering/deceptive words – Politicians
[Absalom – 2 Samuel 15.2-6
2. No Lying (vv. 11-12)
Truth is critical – John 14.6
Truth in love is essential – Ephesians 4.32
Not for harm/shame or revenge
3. No Taking Advantage of Others (v. 13)
13 "You shall not oppress your neighbor or rob him. The wages of a hired servant shall not remain with you all night until the morning.
Cheating out of wages
Pay when it is due (daily)
4. No Deceptions for the Innocent (v. 14)
14 You shall not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block before the blind, but you shall fear your God: I am the LORD.
Blind/Deaf = misfortune/inexperience/moral weakness
Do not lead into sin – many want to corrupt the pure and innocent
5. No Partiality (v. 15; James 2.1-13)
15"You shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor.
Jews vs. Samaritans
6. No Scandalous Behavior (v. 16a)
16 You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people,
Gossip is as murder
Note James 3 (especially vv. 9-10)
9 With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be.
Protection for the Victims (v. 16b) Good Samaritan practiced this
you shall not stand up against the life of your neighbor: I am the LORD.
[At about 3:20 a.m. on March 13, 1964 in Queens, NY, Kitty Genovese, drove home after work. She parked her car and began to walk the 30 yards through the lot to her door. Noticing a man at the far end of the lot, she paused. When he started toward her, she turned the other way and tried to reach a police call box half a block away. The man caught her and stabbed her. She started screaming that she’d been stabbed, and crying for help. Lights went on in the apartment building across the street. Windows opened. One man called out, "Let that girl alone!"
The attacker heard it and walked away. Windows closed and lights went out. So he came back and attacked her again. This time she screamed "I’m dying! I’m dying." This time more windows opened and more lights went on. The attacker went to his car and drove off, leaving Ms. Genovese to crawl along the street to her apartment building. Somehow, she managed to drag herself inside.
But he came back a third time, found her on the floor at the foot of her stairs, and finally succeeded in killing her.
During those three separate attacks over the course of 35 minutes, not one of Kitty Genovese’s neighbors tried to help.
After the third attack someone called the police who arrived there in 2 minutes, but it was too late. Residents who were later interviewed were asked why they did nothing to help, and most simply said, “I didn’t want to get involved.”
C. Express Affection (vv. 17-18)
17 "You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but you shall reason frankly with your neighbor, lest you incur sin because of him. 18 You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.
1. No Hatred IN the heart (without this would have meant just injury)
When that happens we can become like the little girl who had spent the whole day fighting with her sister. That evening they prepared for bed, still mad at each other. As usual, they knelt beside their beds for their prayers.
"Dear God," the 8 yr. old began, "Bless Daddy and Mommy, bless our cat and dog." Then she stopped.
Her mother gently prodded, "Didn’t you forget somebody?"
She glared across the bed at her 6 yr. old sister and added, "And, oh yes, God bless my ex-sister."
That’s like us when we forget to "love one another."
2. Rebuke in kindness (2 Timothy 4.1-2) -- with complete patience and teaching.
3. No Revenge
Talmud – “If a man finds both a friend and an enemy in distress, he should first assist his enemy, in order to subdue his evil inclination.” – That is, passion for revenge
Joseph’s conduct toward his brothers
David toward Saul
4. No Grudge
Explanation by Rabbis – If a man says, ‘I refuse to loan you a tool because you did not lend to me when I needed it,’ this is vengeance; If he says, ‘I will loan you the tool, even though you did not lend it to me when I asked you,’ – this is a grudge.
5. Forgiving from the Heart
One with a forgiving spirit is already forgiven
Yom Kippur – forgiveness between people as well as with God
II. Loving Neighbors as God Loves Us
G.K. Chesterton said “All [people] matter. You matter. I matter. It’s the hardest thing in theology to believe.”
A. Loving Our Neighbor as Ourselves is an Imitation of God
“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. John 15.9
20 If anyone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother. 1 John 4.20-21
B. God Loves Us (His Neighbors):
1. Intentionally – John 3.16
2. Unconditionally – Romans 5.8
3. Perfectly (Maturity) – Matthew 5.43-48
43 "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? 48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
[Bruriah was the wife of R. Meir; she was a trained Torah scholar; Some individuals had caused R. Meir some difficulties and, based upon Psalm 104.35 he prayed for their demise;
(Let sinners be consumed from the earth, and let the wicked be no more! Bless the LORD, O my soul! Praise the LORD!); Bruria corrected him – the Hebrew was written without vowels, and depending on your perspective, the verse could be translated, “Let SIN be consumed from the earth . . .”; so he prayed for their sins to be removed instead of them; as a result, his prayers were answered and the individuals ceased causing the Rabbi distress and the parties were reconciled.
4. Personally (Levite and Priest were not/Samaritan was as Leviticus 19.17-18)
Several years ago a news report told about an incident where a crew excavating a piece of land… when the hole they were digging caved in trapping several men under the dirt.
One bystander was just watching the rescue attempts, when a woman in a nearby house shouted to him “Jim, your brother is down there!”
Instantly he stripped off his coat and began digging frantically.
Why did he do that? What changed his mind so he went from casual bystander to frantic rescuer?
Well – up until he actually “knew” someone in that hole – he didn’t care. And so he didn’t get involved. (Ray Pritchard: www.keepbelieving.com)
5. Patiently – 1 Peter 3.20-21
6. Sacrificially
Good Samaritan – gave money; time; effort; also risked his life
God -- Son
We may try to justify ourselves as the Torah teacher did with Yeshua (Jesus)
Who is my neighbor?
Genuine – What am I to do/who am I to serve?
OR – What is the least I can get by with?
Remember – “With the measuring vessel that a man uses to measure, it will be measured to him.” (Avot 2.3) 1 "Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Matthew 7.1-2
Back in 1985, Carolyn Cooley, of Sarasota, FL, was taking her 2 daughters to church one Sunday and was disgusted to find an unkempt man sprawled against a palm tree on the church property. His shoes had holes in them, his battered hat was pulled down over his eyes, and he was surrounded by beer cans. How dare he desecrate church property like that.
Now, she wasn’t the only one to be offended by this vagrant’s behavior, but her indignation dissolved into tears when, when the "bum" walked up into the pulpit later that morning to give his sermon. The vagrant was church’s preacher, Neville E. Gritt. He had dressed like a bum and stationed himself outside the church building to draw the church’s attention to needs he’d seen while driving through town.
She was so overcome with shame by what this experience said about her attitudes that back in 1985 she and her husband Ray decided to scrape together what money they could to rent a house in Sarasota. They used it as a home for the homeless and called the “Good Samaritan House”. For 25 years they have pursued this ministry, and in 2001 received one of Florida’s “Points of Light” awards. In reaching out to the homeless, the Cooley’s found a new sense of self-worth and value before God. (World, June 16, 2001)
