Impact Your Neighbors (Leviticus 19:16-18)

Impact Your Neighbors (Leviticus 19:16-18)

Five Facts About Neighboring in the U. S.

#1 A majority of Americans (57%) say they know only some of their neighbors; far fewer (26%) say they know most of them.

#2 Even in a digital age, neighborly interactions are still more likely to happen in person than via text or email.

#3 About two-thirds of Americans who know at least some of their neighbors (66%) would feel comfortable asking to leave a set of keys with them for emergencies.

#4 Social events among neighbors are relatively rare.

#5 Rural residents are more likely than people in suburban and urban areas to know all or most of their neighbors, but they aren’t more likely to interact with them.

According to a recent study, there are some very good reasons why it is important to know your neighbors.

1. You will have access to more information and resources.

2. You’ll be healthier.

3. You’ll feel less lonely.

But there is even a better reason why we should get to know our neighbors: God commanded us to.

In Matthew 22, we read this conversation between Jesus and some Pharisees: “When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they came together. 35 And one of them, an expert in the law, asked a question to test him:c 36 “Teacher, which command in the law is the greatest?” 37 He said to him, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. 38 This is the greatest and most important command. 39 The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. 40 All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commands.” (22:35-40)

The Apostle James wrote that. “if you fulfill the royal law prescribed in the Scripture, Love your neighbor as yourself, you are doing well.” (2:9)

FIVE DO’S AND DON’TS

Don’ts

1. do not be a gossip. Interesting: “spreading slander”. Reminds me of the days when I worked on the dairy farm and occasionally spread manure over the pasture. The word slander is from root word from which a variety of words are born that refer to a merchant or a marketplace. The idea is a person who trades or traffics in gossip. The sense is not just the action but that the person him/herself is a market for gossip. Not only does the person “spread” it but also collects it. Gossip is the person’s merchandise.

2. do not harm your neighbor’s. Jeopardize is literally, “take one’s stand” or “to stand against.” It contexts such as this, it came to mean “stand in the blood.” It perhaps parallels the first statement, prohibiting gossip, and brings to mind the civil court, where slandering a person might result in an innocent person being convicted and condemned of a crime. However, I think the CSB translation accurately describes a broader sense of the word. The NLT has an interesting interpretation: “Do not stand idly by when your neighbor’s life is threatened.” The ESV reads: “you shall not stand up against the life of your neighbor.” With the Hebrew word and other translations in mind, we can suggest a variety of ways that a person can “jeopardize” the life of their neighbor, such as:false witness or accusation in a court of law or the court of public opinionintentional actions that would do harmrefusing to take action to defend or rescue a neighbor when their life is threatened.

3. do not harbor hatred. The commands in verse 16 relate to outward actions. This word in verse 17 turns us inward. The reason the CSB includes the word harbor is because the original includes the heart. The ESV reads, “Do not hate your brother in your heart.” The NLT reads: “Do not nurse hatred in your heart …” This resonates with Jesus’ warning against anger in the Sermon on the Mount.

You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! (Matthew 5:21-22)

4. do not take revenge. Romans 12:17 comes to mind: “Don not repay anyone evil for evil.” Also, Deuteronomy 32:35: “Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay.” We do not have the moral authority to take revenge on those who do us harm. This is difficult for us to avoid. We might rationalize revenge by feeling that we are getting justice. This is somewhat parallel to verse 16b: “do not jeopardize your neighbor’s life.”

5. (do not) bear a grudge. This phrase is often used in an agricultural context, describing one who keeps or guards a vineyard. The idea here is the keeping or guarding of one’s anger or resentment toward a person. Using the vineyard imagery, we can see that if we keep anger and/or resentment, the “vine” will produce its fruit, the kind of “fruit” that anger produces, such as taking revenge.

Do’s

1. correct your neighbor with kindness. To “rebuke” is to reprove or chide; to convince a person of wrong, but with purpose of correction, not condemnation. Rebuke is to be in person, frank, and open, rather than hidden in the heart or the topic of gossip, which has already been forbidden in verse 16. The word rebuke is also used as a parent’s role to correct and discipline their children. Consequently, there is not mean-spirited or vengeful agenda in rebuke; at least not the rebuke that God approves. The consequence of illicit or hidden rebuke is “guilt because of him.” I also think of Luke 17:3, which reads, “Be on your guard. If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him.” In fact, in the CSB, there is a cross-reference to Leviticus 17:17 the Luke passage.

2. Love your neighbor as yourself. but love your neighbor. The word but is significant. It sets up a contrast with what preceded: taking revenge and bearing a grudge. Love compels us in a different direction. In this context, the word love means to care or cherish. It’s an affection for another that generates a warmth toward another. This certainly describes the type of love that God has for us. He cares for us. He cherishes us. His love draws us into a warmth of fellowship and relationship. Out of that loving relationship with God, we turn our hearts toward our neighbors.

Our Accountability

Notice one more notable phrase: “I am the Lord.” We saw that phrase at the conclusion of the Lord’s first two commands toward our neighbors, a command to avoid slander and doing harm to our neighbors. We have it here again in the Lord’s instruction to love our neighbors, in contrast to taking revenge and carrying grudges. Again, the change of direction and actions toward our neighbors is not simply a suggestion. I am the Lord is a brilliant “neon sign” in the passage telling us this is the direction God has designed for our lives. I’m reminded of the covenant God made with Abram: “I will make you into a great nation, I will bless you, I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing” (Genesis 12:2).

The Parable

If we have questions about God’s intentions for us to love our neighbors, we only need to turn the pages of Scripture to Luke 10:25-37 which contain the famous parable Jesus told: The Parable of the Good Samaritan.

features the brokenness of a sinful world

exposes the emptiness of religion without love

challenges racism and prejudice

highlights risk and sacrifice

In Jesus’ parable, it was the Samaritan, not the priest nor the Levite, who rightly understood God’s command to love our neighbors as ourselves. And that is the shocking conclusion of the story. Samaritans and Jews did not treat themselves like “good neighbors.” Quite the opposite. The slander, harm, taking revenge, and bearing grudges, which are prohibited in Leviticus 19, were the normal relations between Jews and Samaritans. Consider the conflict happening right now in Israel and Gaza, and there you have it. Of course, the present conflict is extreme, but that is what happens when people continually ignore God’s commands: extreme dysfunction, uncorrected, usually leads to extreme violence.

Jesus told this parable in response to a lawyer’s question: “Who is my neighbor?” The conversation began by the lawyer asking Jesus what one must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus responded with a question: “What is written in the law?” And the lawyer answered correctly by quoting Deuteronomy 6:5 — love the Lord with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind — and the passage in Leviticus — love your neighbor as yourself. Though Jesus was satisfied with the man’s answer, the man wasn’t quite finished attempting to catch Jesus in a theological trap, which, other than wanting to make himself look good, was the motivation for asking Jesus to define who his neighbor was. Jesus’ answer (the parable) sheds important light for us today as we consider how to impact our neighbors. In the end, the lawyer (probably reluctantly; notice he couldn’t bring himself to say “Samaritan”) correctly applied the parable: “the one who showed mercy” (the Samaritan) demonstrated what it means to love our neighbors. So let’s examine the Samaritan’s actions.

Five Lessons from the Samaritan

1. Loving our neighbors means that we value all human life. The Samaritan drew near to the wounded man on the side of the road. This is in contrast to the priest and Levite, who both crossed to the other side of the road. They had no intentions of getting anywhere near the hurting man. Perhaps he was already dead. Perhaps he was actually not a victim of a crime but rather bait to draw someone into a trap where bandits, hidden in the rocks, would attack. Perhaps there were more pressing matters in Jericho that needed their attention. Whatever the case, the priest and the Levite did not value the life of the hurting man, so they passed by on the other side. In contrast, the Samaritan did value the man’s life, and approached, came closer to check things out.

The Key Word: SOLIDARITY

2. Loving our neighbors means observing and paying attention to those around us. The Samaritan “saw the man.” The word see involves more than the eyes. He observed the situation, paying attention to the surroundings, the man’s condition, and other factors. Who knows? Perhaps when he first saw the situation, he too thought of crossing the road to the other side; but he didn’t. Why? What motivated him?

The Key Word: HUMILITY

3. Loving our neighbors means possessing Christlike compassion that moves us to action. The Samaritan felt compassion for the man. That is, he experienced a gut-level empathy for the man who needed mercy, not neglect. In a way, the Samaritan placed himself in the beaten man’s situation. Perhaps he had been in a similar situation, or at least could personally identify with the hurting man. Compassion is one of the chief characteristics we see in the heart of Jesus.

The Key Word: EMPATHY

4. Loving our neighbors means participating in their care. The Samaritan gave himself to the needs of the man. He went to him, bandaged his wounds, carried him to a safe location, and provided for his lodging and ongoing care, all out of his own resources. Out of compassion, with a sense of solidarity and empathy with the man, the Samaritan humbled himself, willing risking himself and sacrificing his own resources to help the man.

The KEY WORD: GENEROSITY

5. Loving our neighbors means encouraging others to come along beside the hurting. The Samaritan enlisted the help of the innkeeper. He gave the innkeeper a sum of money and instructed him to continue caring for the man. More often than not, we need others to help us love our neighbors.

The Key Word: ADVOCACY

FIVE HARD QUESTIONS

What actions or attitudes prove or disprove that I respect the God-given dignity of all people? SOLIDARITY.

What actions or attitudes reveal that I live as though the world revolves around me? HUMILITY

What actions or attitudes show that I am a caring person? EMPATHY

What actions or attitudes expose a greedy or selfish heart? GENEROSITY

What actions or attitudes demonstrate a passion for serving others? ADVOCACY

WHAT TO DO!

Find a way to get to know your neighbors.

Be prepared for God to bring a “neighbor” into your life.

Ask God to show you how to love the neighbors around you.

Give yourself to meeting their needs.