Neighboring

Howdy Pard

Out west, in the ranching world, it is my understanding that on many ranches the way that they get all the work accomplished on the big days when they are branding, vaccinating, etc. is through practice called neighboring. Neighboring is when the other ranches around come together to help each other get the cows worked and the calves processed. This way, instead of each hiring extra help for a few days of work, they each volunteer so everyone's tasks are finished efficiently. It is a humbling and wholesome idea isn’t it? These friends who are probably more like extended family coming together to commit their hard work and experience to the benefit of their neighbors.

Just thinking about this work sharing reminds me of the insightful question that was put to the Lord Jesus. The answer He gave was in the form of the parable that we all know as “The Good Samaritan.” In this blog post I want us to consider this question, this parable, and the many facets of Jesus’ extraordinary answer.

Love Your Neighbor

A lawyer confronted the Lord Jesus with the intent to put Him to the test by asking how he could inherit eternal life? Jesus referred him to what was written in the Law of God. Of course, since he was a lawyer, he gave the correct answer that a perfect and comprehensive love for God is required, including loving one’s neighbor as much as one’s self. Jesus told him to obey that perfectly and live eternally. 

However, we all know that no one is able to love God perfectly or even love other people as our own selves without radical salvation, transformation, and new birth through faith in Jesus. The lawyer knew that he could not keep this law and desiring to press his test upon Jesus he asked, “Who is my neighbor?” (Luke 10:25-37). 

Jesus answered him with the parable of the good samaritan. The point of Jesus' parable was to demonstrate that it is not cultural, ethnic, political, socio economic, or any other status that defines who our neighbor is because the point of the instruction to love thy neighbor is based on our common humanity as image bearers of God. The lawyer wanted a strict definition by which he could justify his own prejudices and account for righteousness according to his own estimation. But Jesus clearly shows through the parable the neighborliness is not about sharing a property line or a neighborhood street but about mercy and love. 

Love the Stranger

I mentioned above that the lawyer knew the law, but maybe he was not as astute in his application of the Torah as I was giving him credit for. Remember, he asked Jesus who is his neighbor because he wanted to justify himself. But the same chapter of Leviticus which outlines the practical requirements of loving your neighbor, the LORD also calls upon His people to love strangers as themselves (Leviticus 19:9-17;33-34). My point is simple, it has been the consistent witness from Cain and Abel in Genesis 4 to the Law of God given to Moses to the New Covenant law given by Jesus, that love for other people is key to understanding the righteousness of God.

Love Your Enemies

But we must also remember that Jesus' teaching was even more extreme than to call for love for the stranger or the outcast. Jesus actually commands us to love even our enemies (Matthew 5:43-47)! Jesus makes His point clear by showing that as believers our love for even our enemies and persecutors demonstrates our distinction from the world and our identification with the Father. 

Love Your Brothers

But ultimately the truest test of the validity of our faith is found in our love for our brothers and sisters in Christ. The Apostle whom Jesus loved made this clear is his first letter when he tells us that we cannot love God whom we have not seen if we will not love our brethren whom we can see (1 John 4:18-21).

I think it is important to point out at this place that this includes believers who are not in our theological, doctrinal, or practical camps. If they are believers professing a Biblical gospel and hope in Jesus Christ then we must love them. Also, we must love not just as fellow humans and image bearers, not just to give a good witness as we love our enemies, not just to excel in mercy as with the neighbor but we must love them as our own family members of the same body of Jesus to which we also belong!

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