A Pharisee who was a lawyer asked Jesus this question: “Which is the great commandment in the law?” Jesus answered this in Matthew 22:37-40.
Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
The Pharisees wanted Jesus to name the most important “Thou shalt not,” and instead, Jesus spoke “Thou shalt.” Many believers are still living under the Old Testament Law mentality. They are trying to earn the love of a God who already made the decision to love them unconditionally.
The lawyer, once he knew the commandment, tried to justify his actions by interpreting God’s Word in a way that would conform his actions. He knew he had not loved everyone as he loved himself. He wanted to “define” neighbor as just his close friends whom he treated well.
Jesus is clear in his response that any fellow human being that crosses our path and is in need of our assistance is our neighbor.
In the story of the good Samaritan, Jesus was not teaching that we must meet the need of every person in the world. The wounded man was in the path of 3 people. Jesus is telling us to take advantage of the opportunities we have – Luke 10:33-35 – like the good Samaritan we should see ourselves as “stewards” of God’s resources Luke 16:1. We can work to be a blessing to others Ephesians 4:28 and the Lord supernaturally takes care of us Matthew 6:33 and 2 Corinthians 9:10).
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