Would You Be My Neighbor? Who is My Neighbor?

25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the law? How do you read?”

27 And he answered, “You shall 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 your neighbor as yourself.”

28 And he said to him, “You have answered right; do this, and you will live.”

29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

30 Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him, and departed, leaving him half dead.

31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on
the other side.

33 But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was; and when he saw him, he had compassion,

34 and went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; then he set him on his own beast and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.

35 And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’

36 Which of these three, do you think, proved neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?”
37 He said, “The one who showed mercy on him.” And Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

Luke 10:25–37 (RSV)

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I. It Begins with Him

1. Three Essentials

12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

John 15:12–13 (RSV)

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A. Our salvation is totally reliant on the work of Christ

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God— 9 not because of works, lest any man should boast.

Ephesians 2:8–9 (RSV)

1 My little children, I am writing this to you so that you may not sin; but if any one does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous;

2 and he is the expiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.

1 John 2:1–2 (RSV)

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B. We are His Workmanship

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Ephesians 2:10 (RSV)

4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.

5 I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

John 15:4–5 (RSV)

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C. Our Response

3 And by this we may be sure that we know him, if we keep his commandments.

4 He who says “I know him” but disobeys his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him;

5 but whoever keeps his word, in him truly love for God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in him:

6 he who says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

1 John 2:3–6 (RSV)

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II. It Stems from Him

1. We love because He loved first

10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.

11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

John 15:10–13 (RSV)

9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.

10 In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the expiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

12 No man has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.

13 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his own Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son as the Savior of the world.

15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.

16 So we know and believe the love God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

1 John 4:9–16 (RSV)

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2. We love in response to His love created in us

10 Create in me a clean heart,
O God,
and put a new and right spirit within me.

Psalm 51:10 (RSV)

And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

Ezekiel 36:26 (ESV)

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3. We love in response to seeing as He does

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

Genesis 1:27 (RSV)

4. If we love Him, we will pursue His example

3 And by this we may be sure that we know him, if we keep his commandments. 4 He who says “I know him” but disobeys his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him;

5 but whoever keeps his word, in him truly love for God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in him:

6 he who says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

1 John 2:3–6 (RSV)

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III. It is Our Response to Him

1. Who is Our Neighbor?

33 “When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong.

34 The stranger who sojourns with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.

Leviticus 19:33–34 (RSV)

And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments.

Luke 23:34 (RSV)

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