September 9, 2001
The Bible says (Leviticus 19.18) that we must love our neighbor. The two questions that immediately come into focus are:
a) What is it like to love a neighbor (be fair)?
b) How do I go about doing just that?
Even Christians have trouble getting along with their neighbors. A little girl wrote a note to her pastor, Dear Preacher, I heard you say we should love our enemies. I am only six and do not have any yet. I hope to have some when I am seven. Your friend, Love, Amy.
Who can argue that today the term good neighbor is often a contradiction in terms? We have a Fortress mentality in our society that separates people.
Barricaded in our air-conditioned forts, we get our information via the tube and newspapers. We even shop for some things by TV. Isolation-itis is a kind of
modern day leprosy.
Two texts address the main questions, Leviticus 25.14 gives the principle,
And if thou sell ought unto thy neighbour,
or buyest ought of thy neighbour¡¦s hand,
ye shall not oppress one another.
Too many people ignore their Christianity in the marketplace. Two men owned competitive grocery stores on the same street. They had frequent price wars over eggs. One week George lowered his price on eggs by one-half. The next day Harry met the price. On the third day George lowered his price by another third. Harry followed suit in a few days. This pattern continued for about three weeks. Finally George went to see Harry. He said, Listen, Harry; every time I lower my price, you match it a day later. We are both losing a lot of money, selling our eggs at a loss like this. Harry said, Who¡¦s losing money, George? I¡¦ve been buying my eggs from you!
In the ancient Hebrew culture God had given the Levitical law for the purpose of making certain there was no question where He stood regarding the treatment of the poor. There was a law of Jubilee. Every 50th year, lands sold out of families, especially because of debt, were to be returned to the original owner.
One writer sums up this practice:
The main purpose of these laws is to prevent the utter ruin of debtors....about once in any man¡¦s lifetime the slate was wiped clean. Everyone had the
chance to make a fresh start.
(*Gordon J. Wenham, Leviticus, Grand Rapids,
William B. Eerdmans Co., 1979, 317.)
The prophet Amos had something to say about oppression of neighbors, Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they sold the righteous for silver, and the poor for a pair of shoes; Amos 2:6
Isaiah also despised the high handed treatment of the poor: Woe unto them that join house to house,
that lay field to field, till there be no place,
that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth! Isaiah 5:8
Good neighbors are fair in their dealings with everyone, not just the poor.
The second text, Romans 12, gives us the how to of being fair to a neighbor. Let¡¦s look at the nuts and bolts of being a Good neighbor...
#1. Humble Enough To Recognize Others¡¦ Worth
For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. Romans 12:3
Paul was specifically talking to believers when he encouraged humility when it comes to the value of other human beings. We are a body, and the eye is no more useful than the foot.
You¡¦ve heard of the two ducks that were getting ready to fly south. A frog, wanting to go with them, but lacking transportation, convinced them to each take the end of a string. The ducks flew toward the frog, draping the string like a clothesline. The frog made a mighty jump, clamping-on the string with his mouth. It was a first class way to fly.
However, just over Pittsburgh, a passing pigeon saw the trio flying at twelve hundred feet, and questioned, Hey, that¡¦s pretty clever. Who thought of that? Said the boastful little frog, MEeeeeeeeeee.
In God¡¦s economy, it doesn¡¦t matter who gets the credit. God¡¦s family is a team that doesn¡¦t need any stars. Paul and Brenda, were watching their grandson, Scott, play basketball. Scott plays center. He is tall and handles the ball well. That night, every time Scott got the ball, he looked around for someone to pass to instead of shooting.
Later, Paul asked his grandson, Scott, why don¡¦t you shoot when you have a good shot? Scott thought for a moment and replied, When you throw the ball out to one of the other guys and he makes two points, then you run down the court giving high fives¡Xthat¡¦s the real thrill. That¡¦s the name of the game.
(*Samuel M. Miller, Oconee, SC, in Preaching Today)
#2. Saved Enough To Be Useful
Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation:
he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that showeth mercy, with cheerfulness. Romans 12:6-8
Paul¡¦s litany of the gifts (giving, prophesying, etc.) should not obscure the fact that he exhorts us to USE those gifts. And they are to be used for God¡¦s glory. That means we are to be useful ¡V contributors to other people¡¦s lives.
An evangelist told how it is the nature of his vocation to eat at many church potlucks. In a small-town Kansas church, the pastor suggested a 10-year-old boy to be host to the visiting preacher. The youngster took his task seriously. He introduced him to everyone, and then took him to the food table.
Jeremy commented on each casserole. You¡¦ll want some of that and that, he said, pointing. Then looking at another dish, Trust me. Skip that one. They got near the end of the table when he said, My mom brought that. When asked if it was good, he said, The recipe has been in the family for years. Passed down from one bad cook to another.
(*Rev Dean Benton, Bulington, in Christian Reader)
Servanthood is not popular these days. However, Jesus never claimed that following Him would make us popular on this earth. He DID say that our reward in HEAVEN would be great!
#3. Loving Enough To Be Involved
Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good. Romans 12:9
Love must be sincere. There is nothing less sincere than a faith that says, I love you, and want the best for you, and then ignores the needs. That better describes hypocrisy. The most captivating aspect of the parable of the Good Samaritan is that he acted upon the compassion he felt! He was hands-on and vulnerable. When you get involved with helping others, there will be an element of risk involved.
When Rosina Hernandez was in college, she once attended a rock concert at which one young man was brutally beaten by another. No one made an attempt to stop the beating.
The next day she was struck dumb to learn that the youth had died as a result of the pounding. Yet neither she nor anyone else had raised a hand to help him. She could never forget the incident or her responsibility as an inactive bystander.
Some years later, Rosina saw another catastrophe. A car driving in the rain ahead of her suddenly skidded and plunged into Biscayne Bay. The car landed head down in the water with only the tail end showing. In a moment a woman appeared on the surface, shouting for help and saying her husband was stuck inside.
This time Rosina waited for no one. She plunged into the water, tried unsuccessfully to open the car door, then pounded on the back window as other bystanders stood on the causeway and watched. First she screamed at them, begging for help, then cursed them, telling them there was a man dying in the car.
First one man, then another, finally came to help. Together they broke the safety glass and dragged the man out. They were just in time -- a few minutes later it would have been all over.
The woman thanked Rosina for saving her husband, and Rosina was elated, riding an emotional high that lasted for weeks. She had promised herself that she would never again fail to do anything she could to save a human life. She had made good on her promise.
(*Bits & Pieces, June 24, 1993, pp.20-21)
This involvement is uncomfortable. Today children carry guns to school. More civilized people use lawsuits. The idea is protection ¡V spelled isolation.
If you think Christians are immune to this, you have not taken a long look at why we have a trend towards mega churches today. When you gather with several thousand others, you can be very anonymous. You don¡¦t have to be involved. I¡¦m not saying large churches are wrong. But some people use the large crowd as a place to hide.
Sometimes, the discomfort level has to be bridged, and we must be loving enough to be involved. Greg Norman intimidates most other professional golfers with his ice-cold stoicism. He learned his hard-nosed tactics from his father. I used to see my father, getting off a plane or something, and I¡¦d want to hug him, he recalled once. But he¡¦d only shake my hand.
Commenting on his aloofness going into the 1996 Masters golf tournament, Norman snorted, Nobody really knows me out here. After leading golf¡¦s most prestigious event from the start, Norman blew a six-shot lead in the last round, losing to rival Nick Faldo.
Rick Reilly writes, Now, as Faldo made one last thrust into Norman¡¦s heart with a 15-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole, the two of them came toward each other, Norman trying to smile, looking for a handshake and finding himself in the warmest embrace instead.
As they held that hug, held it even as both of them cried, Norman changed just a little. I wasn¡¦t crying because I¡¦d lost, Norman said the next day. I¡¦ve lost a lot of golf tournaments before. I¡¦ll lose a lot more. I cried because I¡¦d never felt that from another man before. I¡¦ve never had a hug like that in my life.
(*Sports Illustrated 12/30/96, Leadership 17, no3)
#4. Joyful Enough To Share
Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer; Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality. Romans 12:12-13
Mature, patient believers realize who provides everything. Thanksgiving is not just another Thursday off from the job. It is a lifestyle for believers. When we understand the ultimate sharing that God did for us in Christ, it is not too difficult to then become sharers of both spiritual and temporal gifts with a world that needs both desperately.
#5. Christ-like Enough To Build Harmony
Near the end (15:2) of his letter, Paul restates our task. We are to build-up our neighbor. There are many commands about treatment of neighbors that will create harmony. And indeed, we would all love to live in harmony. The background for all Paul says is found in Leviticus 19:17:
Do not hate your brother in your heart..."
What is the best way to build-up" a neighbor?
He that winneth souls is wise.Proverbs 11:30.
There is no better way to create harmony than to make a brother out of a neighbor.
Question:
How Do I Cultivate These Qualities?
It is important to note that you cannot hope to cover all of these qualities.
„Ñ In strictly human reasoning, there are too many possibilities for error.
„Ñ Spiritually speaking, you are also not Jesus! Don¡¦t go on overload if you fail at any point. It isn¡¦t failure that offends Christ; it is in failing to try.
Obedient submission to Christ is the beginning of becoming a great neighbor. So the question is a matter of the condition of your heart.
„Ñ Do you WANT to be a good neighbor, humble, useful, involved, joyful and Christ like?
„Ñ Do you wish to live in harmony? The primary consideration is to have your heart right with Jesus...the rest will come. Not easy ¡V but attainable ¡V and part of the command to be fair to one another
Debra Johnson tells about her seven-year-old daughter who wanted to take violin lessons. So Mom took her to a music store to rent an instrument. Hoping she would understand the importance of practicing, Debra explained that violin lessons were expensive so she would have to work hard.
There may be times when you feel like giving up, she said, but I want you to hang in there and keep on trying. She nodded and then in her most serious voice said, It will be just like marriage, right Mommy?
(*Debra K. Johnson, Christian Reader)
From their mouths to God¡¦s ears!
Want to be fair, as a good neighbor? Start with a vow of commitment ¡V then, even when it seems like throwing in the towel is the only sane thing left to do¡Khang in there!
