Love Your Neighbor

Welcome

Welcome to Sunday morning church! I know we’re at church, but is anybody ready to HAVE church?!

Let’s stand and worship for a minute here.

Find two or three people, shake their hand, and tell them, “Go get your blessing today!”

We’re glad you’re here at New Life today. We’re excited about what God is doing in His church. It’s an exciting time to be living for God.

I want to direct your attention to Matthew 22 this morning.

Let me say quickly: excellent job to our cleaners over the last several weeks. Parking lot is graded, looks great!

It’s almost Independence Day. I hope that you have some plans with family or friends to celebrate the birthday of this great nation. Some might say it’s not great. But it is, in fact, great. I thank the Lord for George Washington and others. I thank God for America.

Text

Matthew 22:34–40 KJV 1900

34 But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. 35 Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, 36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

I am teaching this morning about a simple yet hard-to-swallow commandment of the Lord to “love your neighbor”.

Who Is My Neighbor?

One of the main reasons we have a problem following the commandment of Jesus to “love thy neighbour as thyself” is because there is a modern misunderstanding of who one’s neighbor is.

The modern idea is that it’s a person that you live close to - you have houses on the same street, you share an apartment building, or they are within walking distance from your house. But a lot of times, we try to pick and choose our neighbors from among the people we like. Or maybe those we have things in common with. Or those who can benefit us in some way.

But if you really look at Jesus’ teaching, we find out that there is a difference between who we would like our neighbors to be and who Jesus says our neighbors are.

So… just thinking logically, here… if we don’t understand who Jesus considers to be our neighbors, we might be failing to really follow the second greatest commandment. You could even argue that we can’t fulfill the first greatest commandment (which is to love God with everything we have) until we learn how to accurately fulfill the second greatest commandment as well!

The Lawyer Tried to Test Jesus

In our text, we’re seeing lawyers who are trying to test Jesus, which actually happened multiple times. In this instance (Matthew 22), several people had been grilling Jesus about specifics of the Old Testament Law.

There are a lot of times where you’ll read about Pharisees and Sadducees (religious elites) who are out to trap Jesus. Trying to trip Him up. Asking pointed questions. What they want to do is either get Jesus to say something they can get Him for… or simply… make Him out to be a liar.

And there are still yet, today, a lot of situations in which people are trying to do this.

Why do people hate the Jews? Why is Israel under constant persecution? Why has it been that way for hundreds and hundreds of years? Don’t be fooled… it’s people and Satan wanting to make God a liar. He told Abraham at the beginning “I’m giving you and your descendants this land and you’re going to multiply and be blessed...” It was an everlasting covenant that God made. “Well there’s got to be peace and a coexistence between the religions and the Muslim world has this and that and there’s aggression between the two...” Don’t be fooled! It’s not about peace or rivalry or Muslims being persecuted or whatever they come up with… THEY WANT TO MAKE GOD A LIAR!

Why do they go and make a rainbow the symbol for gay pride? “Well, it shows inclusivity and love and a grouping together of all different kinds of people who love differently. It’s a symbol of love. Peace, homie!” No… that rainbow was yet another promise and a covenant that God made that you are twisting and contorting and using as a symbol of your sexual immorality. You want to make His symbol a symbol of something else. You want to make God a liar.

So… listen to me... this you can take to the bank: any time God makes a covenant, a promise, His word is as good as done. And it’s such a threat to the enemy when He does that, that all the devil can do is try to pervert it and try to make God a liar.

HE HATES THE PROMISES OF GOD.

WHICH IS WHY YOU SHOULD STAND ON EVERY PROMISE HE GIVES YOU!

...

So, the lawyer here asked Jesus what the greatest, or most important, law was in Moses’ writings. So herein lies the trap: whatever law was deemed the greatest must be the law that all other laws must defer to.

But Jesus wasn’t going to be fooled. He knew the Law better than even the lawyers did… after all, He was there when the Law was written - He wrote it with His own hand!

Jesus knew the original intent of every single commandment in the Torah, and He was ready with an answer!

The First and Second Commandments

And so Jesus responded to the lawyer:

Matthew 22:37–40 KJV 1900

37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

And in that short answer, Jesus gave a simple understanding of how to obey the Torah.

The Torah is the first five books of the Hebrew Bible (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy).

The first law Jesus says comes from a section that is commonly known as the Shema, the beginning of which states:

Deuteronomy 6:4–5 KJV 1900

4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: 5 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

I might add that the Jews have less trouble understanding the doctrine of One God the most of modern American Christianity. They just don’t have the revelation that Jesus was the Messiah. The Jewish people get a lot of things right. When they dance in worship, they’ll out-dance most Pentecostals on Pentecost Sunday. Maybe it’s worth making a commitment in your spirit today: “I’m not going to let a Jew out-worship me when I’ve GOT the revelation of Jesus Christ and He lives in ME!”

So Jesus tells this first commandment: “Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.” And some consider that to be the simpler of the two to follow. But, it is impossible to perform the first commandment accurately without fulfilling the second: “Love thy neighbour as thyself.”

And so it was like this… are you ready??? If they truly believed that God was who He said He was and each person was made in God’s image, then they would treat each other accordingly.

And if WE truly believe that God is who He says He is and each person is made in God’s image, then WE will treat each other accordingly.

Now think about that fact that all people, even the worst sinners, are still made in God’s image. The crack addict that’s passed out in the crackhouse this morning - made in God’s image. The man who’s gambled away his whole check this weekend - made in God’s image. The woman who has abandoned her kids to run off with some man - made in God’s image.

We get all fluffed up and aggravated and resistant to all of that type stuff, but they are all made in His image and are given a purpose and a potential to reach. They have the potential to be a powerful child of God. And not only that… SUCH WERE SOME OF US!

If you think through the lens of “they are made in His image, too” it really changes our perspective and approach to loving our neighbor.

The Lawyer Tried to Justify Himself

So then, another lawyer in Luke tries to test Jesus by asking Him, “Teacher, what can I do to inherit eternal life?” And Jesus answers like He did in Matthew 22, by reciting the two greatest commandments: love God and love your neighbor.

But, this time, the answer is not specific enough for the lawyer, who presses Jesus further and asks, “And who is my neighbour?” And the book of Luke tells us that he was asking in attempt to “justify himself” (Luke 10:29). If this lawyer could determine specifically who was and was not his neighbor, then he would have a justification from Jesus Himself for not loving some people.

Sounds like a true catch of a man, doesn’t he? A real man of heart and warmth about him.

But, that’s the way many people approach this question today. Instead of seeing everyone as a neighbor and loving everyone as much as we love ourselves, we like to pick and choose who our neighbors are. And that can come from a internal desire, whether intentional or unintentional, to avoid having to be neighbors to people who are different from us.

There are many today that are still looking for an answer to the lawyer’s question, asking, “If I am commanded to love my neighbor as myself, then who is my neighbor?”

Thankfully, Jesus was ready with a story that would answer the question...

The Parable of the Good Samaritan

Jesus told a story about a Samaritan. But what’s important is that they were not just any Samaritan - a good Samaritan. And that was appalling to the Jews listening to this story because they hated the Samaritans. Neither got along with each other. But they were still neighbors - whether they liked it or not.

Jesus started telling this story of a man suffering on the side of the road and needing help, and the audience was expecting a character like the priest or the Levite to be the hero of the story. But when Jesus announced that it was the Samaritan who cared for the man, the audience was shocked.

And not only did the Samaritan care for the wounded man, but he went above and beyond, by binding up his wounds using his own things and providing the man transportation to a safe place, and paying for his stay somewhere and to be treated.

At the end of the story, when Jesus asked the lawyer who it was that acted like a neighbor to the wounded man, the lawyer had to respond:

Luke 10:37 KJV 1900

37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

He couldn’t even bring himself to say, “The Samaritan acted like a neighbor.”

The fact that a Samaritan, that all the Jews had an aggression toward, was the only honorable man in the story left the lawyer and everyone listening without excuse.

God Requires Us to Love Our Neighbors as Ourselves

Jesus finished the story with the command: “Go, and do thou likewise” (Luke 10:37).

And that command still stands today. We are to treat our neighbors with love and compassion in the same way the Samaritan treated the wounded Jewish man.

This is still relevant today. “Well, these people out on the street wanting money… they just...” I know. I seen one of them get in their BMW and drive off one time. Sometimes that’s the case. Does that mean we’re going to disregard Scripture???

Uh-oh… it seems sometimes we’re trying to justify ourselves like the lawyer, doesn’t it?

The Word of God is STILL RELEVANT TODAY!!! These two basic guidelines for Christian living haven’t changed.

But the second one carries something with it… not only are we commanded to love our neighbors, but to the same degree we love our own selves. That’s probably one of the most challenging aspects about this whole deal. Most of us have no trouble treating ourselves to nice things...

Eating delicious food...

Sis. Kierstin and I got to go on a date this weekend. Dropped Anna off at mom and dad’s for awhile to terrorize them for awhile. Went to - what is it? - Pier 88? Pier 1? I don’t know. The place where they basically do a shrimp boil or crawfish boil or crab boil - whatever you want. It’s nice. I love it. Matter of fact, when I pass from this world, just throw me in the boil - that’s where I want to be, hallelujah.

We don’t usually do this. And so I took advantage, praise God. Brother, I’ve got shrimp shells flying through the air and landing in people’s hair. I tear into that corn and I’ve got corn juice flying across the room into someone’s eye. They’re thinking, “My God, look at this slob. Must eat spam sandwiches and apple sauce all day long.”

But we treat ourselves, don’t we? Bro. Wilson knows. Ask that man about Hickory Logs. He likes to eat good. He can’t help he’s ugly, but he likes to eat!

Wearing nice clothes...

I got this fishing shirt this week that has a little fishing line cutter - attached to the shirt. I’m wearing a suit this morning. It’s JC Penney’s but it’s a suit.

Playing with expensive toys...

Don’t get me going on that zero-turn again. I used it again this weekend. Whole neighborhood’s jealous - they all hate my guts. And they should, I’m having fun. I can’t help I’m ugly, but I’m having fun.

We make time for ourselves to enjoy all the pleasures we desire.

Remember… nothing wrong with pleasure. The problem is that Scripture says that “men will be lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God” (2 Timothy 3:4).

But we do spoil ourselves… and then we’ll often scrimp when it comes to loving others.

But really… this exactly the way God calls us to love others - as ourselves! I can’t just love my neighbor at arm’s length; I have to be willing to treat my neighbor at least as well as I treat myself!

“Bro. LaRue this Sunday morning lesson sure is a little convicting.” Well praise God, brother or sister - I hope it is. We need to hear this. It’s Scripture. It’s the Word of God.

And so it’s a good measuring stick of if we’re really fulfilling this commandment. Even if it’s somewhat true that we are loving our neighbors, are we loving our neighbors as much as we love ourselves?

I Do Not Choose My Neighbor

At the end of the day, we don’t get to choose our neighbors as much as we might wish we could.

A quick study of the original language makes it clear. The word neighbor comes from the Greek pleosion, which is always used to refer to someone who is close by. Therefore, anyone who is within relatively close proximity to us… they are considered a neighbor.

So this includes the house on the block that plays loud music. The coworker that is constantly cussing. The homeless man on the corner waving his sign at us on our daily drive to work. We can like it or not, but all of these people are our neighbors.

A neighbor might even be a person who has hurt me in the past. But if they are ever close by, then I have to show love and mercy toward them.

The Law Is Fulfilled in This Command

The apostle Paul talked about the second greatest commandment on more than one occasion. In Galatians 5:14, Paul said:

Galatians 5:14 KJV 1900

14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

He said all the Law; this includes all five books written by Moses - Genesis to Deuteronomy. In other words, instead of trying to meticulously read, remember, and obey all the fine details written in the Torah, you could simply follow this guiding principle and fulfill all those laws efficiently. Which is exactly what Jesus was saying.

It’s a lot like a mission statement. Our church’s is:

Sharing, Growing, Equipping

To SHARE new life in Christ

To GROW as disciples of Christ

To EQUIP for the work of Christ

And if we do anything, we want to be sure that it falls in with these parts of our mission. We’re going to have Bible Workshop later this month because we’re going to GROW from it.

And in all of God’s ways, in everything we do and the people we interact with, the guiding principle should be to love our neighbor. Whatever that looks like in each instance.

I Will Love My Neighbor

Choosing to love God… that’s a choice. But many Christians already know that. But choosing to love one’s neighbor is also a choice. Sometimes this is a more difficult choice to make than the first.

But, we’ve seen from Scripture this morning (and I think you feel it in your heart), it’s impossible to love God completely or correctly without also loving our neighbors as much as we love ourselves.

Learning to love God is a process. Some of us are still learning that. But so is learning to love others. Especially when God has called us to love people what have hurt us and don’t ever love us in return.

It’s really hard to love people who have abused us - physically, spiritually or some other way. It’s extremely hard to love the murderer, the rapist, or terrorist. But… I’m going to send a strong one your way… are you ready?… the Bible contains examples of God loving and saving murderers, rapists, and terrorists. And furthermore, He often used people like you and me to communicate that love.

Internalizing the Message

I thank God that there was somebody who was willing to follow God’s command to love thy neighbor when they came to me. Some of the most influential people in my life simply started by loving me when they had no other reason to other than being commanded by God.

Shane Clark

Christ Dixon

Chantry Dean

John Ison

Norman Hamby

Rick Lovall

Dennis Anderson

These are all people who are not immediately close to me weekly, but at some point early in my relationship with God, they chose to love me. And it left an impression.

A lot of times we don’t get to see the ultimate fruit of loving our neighbors. And sometimes they’ll outright reject us and reject God, never to darken the doors of the church again. But we can’t be discouraged. Even Jesus loved, taught, and fed people who would just turn away from Him and never return.

But if we can just learn to love our neighbors like Jesus commanded us, we will se benefits above and beyond what we can imagine.