And Who Is My Neighbor?

 It's time for the first ever theme month on my blog!

That's right!

THEME MONTH!

And what's the theme, you ask? I can hear your excitement, it's palpable.

The theme of the month is...

The lectionary!

(holds for applause)

I can't find a stock photo image for "the lectionary", so you'll have to settle for a Bible.

The lectionary text for this coming Sunday is pretty well known.

Luke 10:25-37

A legal expert stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to gain eternal life?”

Jesus replied, “What is written in the Law? How do you interpret it?”

He responded, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and love your neighbor as yourself.”

Jesus said to him, “You have answered correctly. Do this and you will live.”

But the legal expert wanted to prove that he was right, so he said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

Jesus replied, “A man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho. He encountered thieves, who stripped him naked, beat him up, and left him near death. Now it just so happened that a priest was also going down the same road. When he saw the injured man, he crossed over to the other side of the road and went on his way. Likewise, a Levite came by that spot, saw the injured man, and crossed over to the other side of the road and went on his way. A Samaritan, who was on a journey, came to where the man was. But when he saw him, he was moved with compassion. The Samaritan went to him and bandaged his wounds, tending them with oil and wine. Then he placed the wounded man on his own donkey, took him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day, he took two full days’ worth of wages and gave them to the innkeeper. He said, ‘Take care of him, and when I return, I will pay you back for any additional costs.’ What do you think? Which one of these three was a neighbor to the man who encountered thieves?”

Then the legal expert said, “The one who demonstrated mercy toward him.” 

Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

This is one of those passages that feels like everything that can be said about it already has been said. And that's probably true. We live in a post-Christian culture at this point and it is generally not safe to assume any specific scriptural knowledge, but this one I am confident assuming most people have heard.

But just because we've heard so much about it and know it so well doesn't mean that it's not worth reading again. Go back and read the story again. 

Did something new occur to you? Did you see a phrase or idea that feels different? Is there something about it that speaks fresh?

For me, I'm really struck by this verse:

But the legal expert wanted to prove that he was right, so he said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

I love the way this story is framed. I love how Jesus keeps his cool. I love how this lawyer came to Jesus not for a lesson, but to show how much he knows. I love that Jesus doesn't really give anyone an answer, but keeps asking questions. I love it. 

We can try to justify ourselves all we want, but all we can do is answer the questions we're asked. And this is the important next step - once we answer the question, we need to actually internalize the answer. Otherwise, we're just answering to hear our own voices.

This passage is dense and beautiful. I've got tons I can say about it, but I don't need to right now. I want you to re-read it and hold onto it for the time being. It's well known for a reason.

Peace,

Jeff

 

 

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