Sunday, June 13, 2025

Meditation

Neighbors come in all shapes and sizes. Neighbors can be the best of friends because of proximity, the age of the kids, or simply because of similar interests. These are the neighbors that you know by name and also the same ones who would give you the shirt off their back.  Then there are the neighbors that you wave to as you drive in and out of your driveway. You know their faces but don’t know their names. And still there are “those” neighbors who must live a complicated life because they seem to enjoy making everyone else’s life difficult. But no matter the type of neighbor, they are still our neighbors.  

In Luke 10 we discover what it means to be a neighbor. In the Parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus tells a story that seems to be about one of “those neighbors”. When everyone else walks by the wounded, weary, and wayward traveler, “that kind of neighbor” is the only one who cares enough  to show love in action. God calls us to love our neighbor as ourselves. No matter who they are or where they live, we are to care for those around us with the love that we have first received from God. As Jesus sets His face towards Jerusalem He shows His love in action. Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection are where sins are forgiven, hope is restored, and true healing begins.