Thoughts Of Some Guy In Ohio
Thoughts Of Some Guy In Ohio
Who is my neighbor? The uncomfortable question Jesus won't let us ignore
Worship isn't merely what happens when we gather in a building on Sunday mornings—it's fundamentally about how we love God and others throughout our daily lives. This powerful exploration of Jesus' teaching confronts us with a challenging truth: our worship of God is directly reflected in how we treat those around us.
The familiar parable of the Good Samaritan takes on fresh significance when we understand the historical context of bitter hatred between Jews and Samaritans. By making a Samaritan the hero who helps a Jewish man, Jesus deliberately shocked his audience and expanded their understanding of neighborly love beyond comfortable boundaries. The question "who is my neighbor?" reveals our tendency to draw lines around who deserves our love and who doesn't.
What makes this teaching so difficult is that Jesus doesn't give us the loopholes we desperately want. We can't justify withholding love from someone because they vote differently, believe differently, or have hurt us. Our worship of God calls us to see everyone—even those we struggle to like—as created in His image and worthy of the same grace we've received. The early church demonstrated this connection between worship and love through radical generosity that ensured no believer was in need.
Perhaps most convicting is the recognition that this principle applies not just to strangers, but to fellow believers. Many Christians find it easier to love those outside the church than to extend grace to brothers and sisters with whom they disagree. Yet authentic worship demands we practice the same mercy with fellow believers that we've received from God. When we leave our places of worship, the true test of our devotion isn't the songs we sang, but how we treat the difficult people in our lives. Will you accept this challenging call to make your worship complete through loving others?
You know, last week, when we were talking about worship, jesus kind of has this conversation in the Gospels and the leaders come to him and they're saying, hey, what do we have to do and how do we worship and what's the greatest commandment? And Jesus goes back to the Old Testament and says, listen, you've got to love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. And then he continues the conversation. He said the second one is, like it, to love your neighbor as yourself. And so when we define worship in Scripture for Judaism and I think even for us, worship is defined by two things that you and I should do. Well, one is to worship God and not this false kind of sense of worship.
Speaker 1:I think about Paul and Silas a lot. There's a lot of times when life's going really well and I'm like the biggest fan of God, but when life's difficult, when life's hard, when you're in prison, when you've been diagnosed with a disease you can't overcome and when you come to the end of your life, praise is this idea that God is unchanging, even in our circumstances, and so, no matter how bad something is, the worship of God, his worship or our worship to him, is not dependent on us, but it's dependent on him and who he is. The attitude of our heart is a reflection of what we understand about the one who created us to put him in the highest place, to give him the greatest honor, to acknowledge his name above all names. And then Jesus comes back around and he says to this religious leader the second is like it, and it's to love your neighbor as yourself. Now let's be honest, and I'm going to be a little more honest with myself here. Loving God's easy Love my neighbor is the hard part. I'm not good at that part all the time, and let me define what that means and we're going to talk about this. But my neighbor to me is usually someone who I'm friends with, someone who thinks like me, someone who acts like me, someone who believes what I believe. It doesn't mean my next-door neighbor, even though I do have next-door neighbors. They're both older, they're wonderful couples. I don't know if they enjoy my kids being outside screaming in the afternoon, but they probably don't mind. At least they haven't said anything.
Speaker 1:But when this conversation comes about, there's a bigger moment that happens here and we'll get there. But what does it mean to genuinely love the other people in the world that God has created. So let's go big with this conversation. What does it mean to love the people that I disagree with? What does it mean to love someone on the other side of the political aisle? What does it mean to love someone who doesn't even acknowledge the existence of God? What does it mean to love someone who has a disagreement theologically with me? What does it mean to love someone who doesn't love me?
Speaker 1:And so there's this moment in scripture where this question gets posed. And if you've ever and I know that I've preached on it before, but the story of the good samaritan is always the one that comes to mind. So so luke chapter verses 29 through 37. So the religious leader of the day comes up to Jesus, and Jesus kind of goes he walks through this love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. And he says love your neighbor as yourself. And so this religious leader comes up to Jesus and he says listen. So who is my neighbor? Who do you define as my neighbor? So verse 29,. And it sets the tone of this man's heart. It says but he wanted to justify himself. So he asked Jesus who is my neighbor?
Speaker 1:In reply, jesus said a man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, they beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So, too, a Levite when he came to the place and saw him passed by on the other side. By the way, that's probably not completely untypical with them, because there's a priest, there's a Levite. So there's a lot of religious laws currently happening in this context. You don't want to touch a dead body, because if you touch a dead body you're unclean. So they're probably protecting themselves a little bit. So they walk on the other side of the street because they cannot tell if this man is alive or he's dead.
Speaker 1:And then Jesus says something that to that audience would have been like a gasp of a moment. And Jesus says in verse 33, he says but a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was and when he saw him he took pity on him. And if you've ever paid attention or read anything in the Scripture, you understand that the Jews and the Samaritans absolutely hated each other. You want to talk about people who are on different sides of the aisle. They're it. Their understanding of God is dramatically different. The other group feels that one group is condemned because of how they worship and then the other side feels like the other group doesn't have a chance at eternal life because of how they worship. They don't interact with each other, they don't talk with each other. They actually go out of their way to ignore each other. At some point in their history there was a division and they could not reconcile the break. And so Jesus is telling this story and he says a Samaritan finds this man, who's a Jew, on the side of the road, beaten, broken, left for dead. But as a Samaritan, as he traveled, he came where the man was and when he saw him he took pity on him. He went to him, bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine, and he put the man on his donkey, on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. He said look after him. He said and when I return I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have. Which of these three and this is Jesus posing a question at the end of this parable. Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers? The expert of the law replied the one who had mercy on him. Jesus told him to go and do likewise.
Speaker 1:Nt Wright says this about. He says the hatred between Jews and Samaritans had gone on for hundreds of years and is still reflected tragically in the smoldering tension between Israel and Palestine today. Both sides claim to be the true inheritors of the promises to Abraham and Moses. Both sides, in consequence, regard themselves as the rightful possessors of the land Few Israelites today will travel from Galilee to Jerusalem by the direct route because it will take them through the West Bank and risk violence. In exactly the same way, most first century pilgrims making the same journey would prefer, as Jesus himself did, to travel down the Jordan Valley to Jericho and then turn west up the hill to Jerusalem is much safer. So this feud between them is still ongoing. Culturally, we still see the division. Just pay attention to the news. It's everywhere.
Speaker 1:And so Jesus is telling this parable. He's talking to this religious leader. And listen, I relate. I relate more to the religious leader sometimes than I want to care to admit that I do, because my response sometimes, when it comes to worship with God and loving my neighbor, is well, but I did just enough, oh my God, I. I told him about Jesus comes to worship with God and loving my neighbor as well. But I did just enough, oh my God. I told him about Jesus. God, I gave him a ride to the store. Why did I need to give him a ride back, god? I was going to that Christian concert the other day and I saw that man on the side of the street who had nothing to eat and I prayed for him.
Speaker 1:God, that broken relationship that I have in my family, my own personal struggle. I've forgiven them, but I don't want anything to do with them anymore. God, I do just enough sometimes when it comes to worship and listen. I say all that because I know stuff's complicated. I know relationships are complicated. I know that loving people is hard. I'm not always good at it. People it's hard. I'm not always good at it. I love people who are like me. I mean, you spend any time in any school across this country. You're going to find that out.
Speaker 1:I remember when I used to sit at lunch. I sat with the jocks at lunch because that's what I was supposed to do, right, I was the guy that I sat with. The jocks. I didn't like most of them. I only had one friend in the group that I really had, but I sat with them because in that lunchroom that's what you did. You sat with people who are most like you, because that was easy, and if you didn't, then there was conversation, you know.
Speaker 1:And so when Jesus is talking to this religious leader, he kind of puffs himself up and says, well, who's my neighbor? And what he doesn't expect to come out of this conversation is Jesus talks about a Samaritan helping a Jew, and I can only imagine that this religious leader, in a sort of kind of righteous attitude, kind of steps back and says, well, that doesn't make any sense. Why would a Samaritan help a Jew? But Jews, don't you understand how much we hate them and how much they hate us? Right? Let's unpack that.
Speaker 1:Sometimes we justify the treatment of other people because of but God, look at how they treat us. Look at what they said about us online. Look at what they said about us online. Look at every time they see me, how they snub me and they act like they're better. Why would I love them, and I think the simple answer is well, god created them. That's at the heart of not only what we talked about last week, but that's at the heart of this parable is to love people that might never love us is a true and honest form of worship to the God who created us. Our worship of God is reflected in the way that you and I love other people. That should change some things. That should convict us a little bit, because people will recognize the God who died for me. People will recognize the Jesus that I worship and the way that I treat them. It's a reflection of them.
Speaker 1:I was watching a video recently and there was a pastor in a church and he got kind of honest with his congregation and he was talking to his worship team specifically. Right, and so I love our worship team and I love being part of it. I love the men and women who are involved with it. I think God has given us some incredible people at that helm, and so this pastor was talking to his ministry, his worship team, and he says it's really easy for you to get up here and praise God and worship and do a cool bass riff and play some drums and have this really upward kind of experience on Sunday morning, he's like.
Speaker 1:But if your worship on this stage on Sunday morning doesn't transfer over into Monday morning and how you love the people around you, he's like, then you're doing it wrong, because the praise that you bring to the one who created you is reflected in the way that you love those around you. So if you're going to praise and worship the Almighty God, you're going to be called to love some difficult people and I can tell you, having been in ministry as long as I've been in ministry you learn to love some difficult people. By the way, I'm trying not to make eye contact with anyone because I don't want you to think that I think you're difficult, so don't. It's not personal. If I make eye contact, I'm looking at your forehead. But you learn that when God gets a hold of you, that he is going to bring challenging people into your life, he's going to put this to the test, because every person outside these walls was created by God. Every person has the same opportunity for salvation. Every person who's alive today, and even way back when in the future, is still under the saving grace of the work that was done on the cross. That's an option for them. God created them, he saved them.
Speaker 1:You might not want Mike from the hardware store worshiping in your church, but God wants him in heaven worshiping with him. I personally think, and I'm not God, I don't want to be, but God wants them in heaven worshiping with Him. I personally think, and I'm not God I don't want to be, but if I was God, I would, and we all get to heaven. I would put people next to me that I don't like on purpose. Just to prove a point, because a lot of times we act like well, there's no way that person can. Well, no, they can. They need to accept Christ, but God has the same love for them that he does for you. Listen, I don't know how to say this, you're not special, and I mean that Like with as much love as I can say, because the creation was made for the creator. We cannot miss that.
Speaker 1:So when Jesus is having this bigger conversation and he's challenging the Pharisee, he says listen, you want to talk about loving your neighbor, the one you despise the most. That Republican help, that Democrat Right, that Samaritan stopped and helped your Jewish brother. Not only helped him, put him on his own, donkey took him, paid for him and said whatever's left, I'll take care of the bill. He went above and beyond loving him and Jesus says that's what it is to love people. And he asked the question which one had, which one loved him the most, which one was his neighbor? And the leader says the one who's done mercy to him. And Jesus said now go and do the same thing. Live that out in your life, because the way that you treat others is a direct correlation in the way that you worship God, is a direct correlation in the way that you worship God. They're connected. They always will be. Because when I understand who God is and when I worship the God of creation, I realize that those people that I have a hard time having a relationship with are still the sons and daughters of God. I also realize that my love for them, my treatment of them, is not depending on whether or not they deserve it. It's the fact that I've been loved and treated with so much mercy and grace that I can't help but share it with the person next to me.
Speaker 1:We see this lived out in Acts 2, 42 through 47, as the church was getting started, said they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs were formed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day, they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved Acts 4, 32-35,. All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had With great power, the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God's grace was so powerfully working them all that there was no needy person among them. For from time to time, those who owned land or houses sold them. They brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles' feet and it was distributed to anyone who had need. So these men and women, as they entered into a relationship in the worship of God, they became generous to those around them.
Speaker 1:So let's talk about this from another perspective. It's easy sometimes to go into the world and love people who don't know Jesus, but it's really hard sometimes to love the person sitting next to you in the pew, because we come into our worship service with our relationships and all the turmoil that that can bring and we start to kind of divide against each other. You know, in my life I've had to accept that some people don't like me. But when we come together, when we're focused on God and we're worshiping the God we love and we cherish and we value, I've got to see my brother and sister in Christ in the same way that I see my neighbor, to show them love and mercy and grace and to model for them what it means to be loved by Jesus and listen. I'll be the first to admit that in there I struggle. I'll be the first to admit that in there I struggle.
Speaker 1:I've learned in my very short time in this world that I have a heart for people outside the church. I love to go to places where people don't know Jesus. Man, it fires me up and I just want to tell them about Jesus. But I oftentimes struggle loving the very people that I sit next to in church because in my mind. I'm frustrated. Why don't they get it? Why is there no growth here? Why are we arguing about this? Why is this getting in the way of what we're trying to do? And I allow myself to get consumed with these conversations, and the truth is that's a me problem, because my worship of God is reflected in the way that I love not only those outside the wall but the person who's sitting next to me in the pew, because that same love, compassion, mercy, grace that I've come to enjoy knowing God is extended to them, and they're still growing in their faith. We are still trying to figure this out together.
Speaker 1:I love the early church because they saw it collectively. They were working together for one common goal, and that was to bring the masses the knowledge of Jesus, so much so that they sold their houses. They took care of each other, they provided each other, they made sure that no one was in need. Imagine that, that if we lived so generously that those around us were never in need. Imagine what that would look like to be there for each other. Imagine what the world would see if they could walk into a church that was so in love with God that it was exemplified in the love for each other. That's what changes people.
Speaker 1:That's what Jesus is arguing at the heart of this parable. He said listen, loving God's hard, but loving your neighbor is even harder, so much so that the religious leader tries to justify his behavior. But loving your neighbor as yourself is a reflection of worship To put someone above your own needs, your own preferences, your own desires, your own preconceived notions, to see someone as a son and daughter of God, the one who created them the most high. When we worship God, we reflect our worship of him by the way we love those around us. So you can raise your hands all day, you can sing as loud as you want, you can drive down the road and have K-Love blaring all your windows down and everyone hears the new Zach Williams song playing on your radio. You can wear shirts like this, you can walk around and claim all of these things about how much you love God. But if you don't love your neighbor, my question is do you really? Because the way that you perceive God, the way you worship God, is reflected in the way you love those around you. And that's hard.
Speaker 1:Some people in this world are really easy to love. Friends of ours were at a wheeling nailers game a couple weeks ago. Danny's friend, nicole, she calls us and at the nailers game there's a guy that has a shirt on and says simply, jesus loves you. So I don't have to Listen. We laugh. I'd love to talk to that person Because really I'd like to know the back story behind that shirt.
Speaker 1:But, by the way, that's not true. That's biblically unfounded, because if you love Jesus, you love people. Loving Jesus, loving people go hand in hand. They have to. You cannot have one without the other. It's impossible, because how you love people is a reflection of how you see them. And if you understand God as your heavenly father, who created you, then you understand that God created them too. And the same grace, mercy, all of that is available to you, is available to them and it's reflected. So when Jesus tells this parable, he's getting at the heart of the matter. It doesn't matter who they are. You love them because God loves them. That's it. Because God loves them. That's it.
Speaker 1:When you talk about a true act of worship loving God and loving people and people say is it really that simple? Yeah, it is, but it's hard Because I can worship a perfect God. Because I can worship a perfect God. I can love a perfect God man. I have a hard time loving that person. That's mean to me. That guy at my work who cusses all the time Not here, I'm just the only one in the office, so that would be mean. But that's all I'm saying. But you know what I mean. I have a hard time loving that person. I have a hard time loving that co-worker that never does anything, no matter how much I tell them.
Speaker 1:I have a hard time loving the person who's coming to church and I know their life and what they've done and the mistakes that they've made, because you just don't know. I have a hard time loving that person in my life, that family member that just won't leave me alone. I'm not saying it's easy. I would be a liar if I told you that I love everyone all the time, without question. Some people drive me nuts Once again, not looking at anybody, don't take it personally. Some people drive me nuts, but that doesn't change the fact that I still have to love them. And I have to love them because my reflection and my worship of God calls me to it. I talked about this last week and I love the church that I went to. It says as we enter, we worship and as we leave, we serve.
Speaker 1:I believe that Because the world around us needs to see something different, they need to see and understand that we're going to love them, oftentimes in spite of themselves and even in spite of us. Because you and I have been given so much grace and mercy, you realize that God chose us right. Jesus going to the cross wasn't some random event in history. That was the plan All the way back in Genesis. God lays out the plan that there's coming a day when a Savior will come and he will give up his life for the broken and the needy and the undeserving, and that's why we worship Him.
Speaker 1:And that's the same reason why I look at the person sitting next to me every day and have to remind myself that I'm called to love you too. You're my brother and sister in Christ. We might not always agree, but I'm going to love you anyways, and I hope that you'll love me too, because at the end of this life, when we all die, we're all going to the same place standing before the King of Kings worshiping, and I'm not going to be worried about you anymore. If I really love God, then I have to really love people too. Alright, let's pray. God, we thank you so much for who you are. We thank you for the fact that you just we love the fact that you love us the way that you do. I mean how incredible it is to even think about the fact that we get to enter into this.