Loving Neighbors

"'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’ and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'"
 Luke 10:27

The one who spoke these words was not Jesus, but rather a Pharisee of whom Jesus had asked what the greatest commandments were. The Pharisee answered with these two which Jesus said was the correct answer. But Jesus went on to tell the parable about the good Samaritan. It is a very familiar story: A man who was traveling was attacked, robbed and left bleeding on the side of the road. First, a priest passed by but did not help. A Levite also passed by, but he moved to the other side of the road, leaving the man there. Then a Samaritan man came along and helped the wounded traveler. This is significant, because the Jews considered Samaritans an inferior race. They were outcasts, despised by the Jews. After Jesus finished telling the story, he asked the Pharisee, "Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?" Luke 10:36. 
    It casts a new light on who our neighbors really are. The Samaritan did not know the man at all. He was a stranger. We usually think of our neighbors as those who live near us, who reside in our neighborhoods. But Jesus was clearly pointing out that our neighbors are all mankind. He chose to tell a story in which the hero was a a member of a despised society. Anyone can love their neighbors and our own prejudice must be put aside. 
    Today, there are so many different facets to being a Christian, we sometimes forget the simple, foundational things Jesus taught. We get involved in ministry at our churches and it may consume our time. But these teachings have never changed. We are to love our neighbors today the same way Jesus taught two thousand years ago. It is important, in fact vitally important. The reality is this: We cannot love neighbors unless we first love God. It is impossible to love others if we are not in love with God. It is the most important aspect of the Christian life. Love God and then love people as a representative of God. 
    I don't even know all the neighbors who live on my street. Everyone keeps to themselves and there is very little interaction. If my neighbors are really all people, how can I love them? I think we must apply the Acts 1 concept: First, love those who are in Jerusalem. These are those on your street. Then love those in Judea. These are people who live in our own nation. Then love Samaria. These are people of other cultures and nations. And then love people to the ends of the earth. We may never meet all these people, but we certainly can love them with the love of Christ. We can pray for them with full assurance that God hears. There are few greater things in the kingdom of God then loving our neighbors. Let's never forget to reach all of them with the love of Christ.