Who is My Neighbor

July 14, 2013 Luke 10:25-37 8th Sunday after Pentecost Year C Who is my Neighbor? Who is my neighbor – that is the question for today. But in reality, the question goes much farther than that. Who is my neighbor. That was the theme of annual conference this year- as a matter of fact, the bishop said that would be the theme of all of our work for the next 4 years – working to serve our neighbors. Who is my neighbor? According to the book of law – a neighbor is someone who is related to you. Your kin folk – those around you. Those people who are safe to relate to and to be a part of. Jesus story in Luke – reminds us that being a neighbor is anything but safe. It requires us going out of our comfort zone. When I was a child, one of my favorite shows was Mr. Roger’s neighborhood. I think I liked it because it made me feel safe. At conference, we even sung the theme song – it is a beautiful day in the neighborhood. It was Mr. Rogers, who made one of my favorite quotes to remember in times of trouble. He said that his mother told him that in times of disaster, or trouble to look for the helpers. In my times of crisis, and deep trouble – sure enough there is always someone who was willing to help, to bring comfort and peace. It has been through those people that I have come to know God. It is in those times that I came to know the meaning of God’s grace. Jesus us telling us in Luke – that we are supposed to be those people, those helpers, the ones that represent God’s grace when everything else in life fails. And everything else in life does indeed fail. In order to realize what jesus is really saying, you have to realize the story behind the story. First of all, scripture says that the lawyer comes to test Jesus. When the lawyer asks who is my neighbor, he knows the answer before he even says anything. He just wants to see what Jesus had to say, more importantly, what would he do. But there is another story line that we may not be aware of. We know that the Samaritans and the Jews do not get along. We know that Jesus is trying to make a point when he uses a Samaritan as the hero of this story. But we may have forgotten that in chapter nine – right before this story – Jesus sets his sights on Jerusalem. He sends his disciples out to tell the good news to others. When they get to samaria – the samaraians totally reject Jesus and his message of God’s love for all. We assume that we are supposed to show love to our enemies, and if we make the effort then everything will be alright. But what do we do with the people that we try to love, who make it very clear that they don’t love us. They have no intention of working with us, or being understanding. The lawyers test to all of us – what do you do then? Do you take matters into your own hands or do you trust god? Jesus knew that test very well, and he wanted to make sure that the lawyer knew that he would trust God in all situations. The hatred of others would not stop him from following the ways of God in all circumstance. He would still believe in God’s grace – and he knew that God’s grace was even in the Samaritan. He wanted to lawyer to understand that there are some circumstances where the law cannot help us. We are learning that even today – the law is not always on our side, and does not protect our young men from being attacked. Many are in a state of despair today – we heard the verdict in the George Zimmerman trail. We are asking where is the justice in the law. What is our reaction to injustice? Do we take the law into our own hands? Or do we remember the good Samaritan story? This is not a story about being nice – it is a story about being faithful in the midst of injustice. In the facae of injustice, who are you going to be? – a follower of the law or a follower of grace? Which is easier? Which is logical? Which is right? Which is what God calls us to do? Jesus understood the test very well – he even tells the lawyer that you know better than I do what the answer is. You know what you are supposed to do – Jesus tells him to make sure that he does it. A neighbor is one who is willing to take action and do, when others want to sit around and debate. Jesus turns the question around, the question is not who is our neighbor, it is what does it take for us to be a neighbor. What is it that we need to be doing to help others. Being a neighbor is not about proximity – usually the closer we are to the problem, the less we think about being a part of the solution. A neighbor is not just a relative, it is anyone in need, that we can help. A neighbor is anyone is need of God’s grace. CARRY THEIR BURDEN A pastor gathered a group of people from his church to train them to witness. After some minimal training, he sent the group out into the neighborhood. When they returned to share their experiences, one young man said he had tried to tell an older gentleman about the love of Jesus. The old gentleman replied, “I feel none of the love of God. I feel nothing of God caring for my burdens. I am old and must take care of myself, shop for myself, and carry my groceries home from the store, by myself.” One of the other participants remarked, “Perhaps if you had offered to carry his load for him, he would have believed your words because he would have experienced them firsthand in you.” (From a sermon by Gaither Bailey, Is Your Name Written In Heaven? 7/1/2010) ¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬________________________________________________________________________ LIKE LIMBAUGH AND CLINTON In the story of the “The Good Samaritan,” these men weren’t physical neighbor. The Jews & the Samaritans hated each other. Generations earlier, when the Jews were in Babylonian captivity, the Samaritans had taken over the land … and mixed their religion with the Jewish religion. This would be like a Cuban refugee finding Castro beside the road. Like an Indian finding a cowboy beside the road. Like Rush Limbaugh finding Bill Clinton beside the road. Like a Florida Gator finding an FSU Seminole beside the road. But according to this passage, these men were neighbors. What does it take to be a neighbor? SOURCE: Ray Scott in "The Good Samaritan" on www.sermoncentral.com. DEFINING A NEIGHBOR It’s been said, "One cannot define one’s neighbor; one can only be a neighbor." Haddon Robinson said, "Your neighbor is anyone whose need you see, whose need you are able to meet." A neighbor is someone who says, "What is mine is God’s and what is God’s belongs to my neighbor because my neighbor belongs to Him." (Larson) SOURCE: Victor Yap in "Hero" on www.sermoncentral.com FAMOUS NEIGHBORS Can you name some famous neighbors? *Mr. Rogers Neighborhood in his sweater and sneakers … “It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood … won’t you be my neighbor?” *Dennis the Menace … “Helloooo Mr. Wilson!” *Ricky & Lucy Ricardo … Fred & Ethel Mertz. *Tim “the Tool Man” Taylor … Wilson. Have you ever had trouble with a neighbor? The story of the Good Samaritan is about neighbors, and it has all the elements of a movie: violence … crime … racial discrimination … hatred … neglect … unconcern … love … mercy. Who says the Bible isn’t relevant to the modern world? SOURCE: Ray Scott in “The Good Samaritan” on SermonCentral.