“Who is my neighbor?” It’s a legitimate question that is not quite as easy to answer as it might seem. In the past, your neighbors were simply those who lived around you. It probably included most of your family, friends, and co-workers. Remember, daily travel was limited to the back of a donkey or to how far you were willing to walk. As advances in travel have “shrunk” the world, they have also dramatically expanded the number of “neighbors” we have.
For many of us today, the people we live near do not include family, co-workers. or even friends. We might drive to the other side of town to go to a job that we left our family and childhood friends to get and work long hours that keep us from getting to know the people who live to the left and the right of us. We might have better relationships with people at the gym or the local coffee shop than we do with the person across the street.
Add to this the technological advances that allow us to have digital “friends” who could live anywhere in the world. Now we can have virtual relationships with hundreds of people we may or may not have ever met face to face. We can talk, chat, tweet, skype, text, facetime, or snapchat with anyone anywhere at any time.
So, who IS my neighbor and why is this so important?
Jesus said, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matt. 22:37-40.
Loving our neighbor is the second greatest commandment in the Bible so we’d better know who our neighbor is… As exciting and fun as it can be to have a worldwide network of relationships, it also can be overwhelming and even debilitating. Trying to maintain meaningful relationships, let alone meeting any real needs, becomes complex.
As we continue in our Sunday morning series “Love Like Jesus Loved” we’ll try to sort out WHO our neighbors are and HOW we can show them the love of Christ. Join us at 9 or 10:45 am.
In Christ,
Kurt
P.S. This week two of our precious saints went to be with the Lord. Please pray for the families of Goldie Williams and George Manoukian.