|
CHRISTADELPHIAN BIBLE POSTAL COURSE No. 46 |
LOVING YOUR NEIGHBOUR
Reading : Luke 10
In this lesson we are going to concentrate on the instruction by Jesus that if we really want to be his disciples then we must show in our lives quite extraordinary amounts of love for other people.
The starting point for this lesson is the parable of the Good Samaritan. When we look closely at Jesus € words in Luke chapter 10 verses 30 to 37, we see a number of important things. First, that Jesus chose a Samaritan to put into this parable, for the Samaritans were hated by the Jews, looked down on as inferior people. Secondly, that the man attacked by thieves is not helped by the two men who should have been the first to care for him. The priests who came from the tribe of Levi were responsible in the Law of Moses for the health and the general care of the people of Israel. It was the Samaritan who showed love and compassion and was practical in the things he did to help. He dressed the wounds; he took the injured man on his donkey to a place of security and rest. Finally, it was he who made future provision for the injured man € s care.
When we read in the Gospels about the many acts of healing done by Jesus the writers often include the words And Jesus had compassion on the sick person or in the case of the young man who had died, upon his grieving mother. Look at Luke chapter 7 verses 11 to 15.
Once Jesus had chosen his twelve close disciples he began to teach them the lessons of love, of forgiveness and of mercy. If you now turn back in your Bible to Luke chapter 6 verse 17 we will now look at these things together. The audience listening to Jesus that day was very large and had come from a great distance to watch him. Most of them had come either to be healed or to see Jesus € acts of healing. They stayed though to hear his teaching on Christian discipleship and we will do the same, concentrating on verses 27 to 36.
There is no coincidence that what we are reading in Luke € s gospel is almost the same as we read in Matthew € s gospel in our last lesson. This information is so important that it appears many times in the Bible. What starts as a thought in our minds often gets turned into action, so the laws of Jesus need first to govern our thinking in order to eventually govern our actions. When we show love and compassion to another person, we do so by our actions.
Just before Jesus left the upper room where he had enjoyed the final meal with his disciples before his death, he repeated this very special command about love. We find it in John € s gospel chapter 13 verses 34 to 35. His words need some careful thought, for the Christian love shown by his disciples has to be as great as that shown by Jesus to those men and women of his time and all who would follow him through history. He showed his love by his willingness to die on the cross so that all of his followers who showed real faith might have the opportunity of having everlasting life in his kingdom on this earth. Look at John chapter 15 verses 9 to 14 and notice how the command is repeated in verse 12 and in verse 17.
When Peter protested that he would never desert Jesus, John chapter 13 verses 36 to 38, Jesus told him that before day-break when the cock crowed he would deny his Lord three times. When this happened exactly as Jesus foretold, Peter was ashamed but learned the lesson that loving his Lord was not an easy thing to do when put under pressure.
After Jesus € resurrection, he met his disciples in the north in Galilee where seven of them had decided to take a boat and go fishing. They joined Jesus on the shore where he had prepared a meal of bread and fish John chapter 21 verse 9. It is significant that Jesus showed his compassion on the multitudes of five thousand and later four thousand people by miraculously feeding them with bread and fishes. After the meal on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, Jesus completed the lesson of love by asking Peter three times about his love for his Lord. Jesus then added new words to the previous instruction, verses 15 to 17; in effect, each time when Peter said that he loved Jesus he was given an instruction and a responsibility, feed my lambs, feed my sheep.
In the early years of the new church, there were many lambs (new disciples) to care for. As new churches were formed in many parts of Israel and other countries, so the responsibility changed and there was a need to care for established communities (the sheep). Paul used this same language in his farewell message to the elders of the church at Ephesus, look at Acts chapter 20 verses 28 and 29.
The apostle John also learned this valuable lesson of love from Jesus. As he hung on the cross Jesus spoke to him and gave him responsibility for his mother Mary. You will find this in John € s gospel chapter 19 verses 26 and 27.
About 50 years later John wrote a letter that he intended should be read by all the churches. In this, he explained very simply the law of Christian love. Find the first letter of John and look at chapter 4 verse 7 to 21. Read these carefully for they are especially important in countries where there is fierce hatred between one section of the community and another, the madness of genocide between tribe and tribe. War between one area and another, between town and town, village and village. Hatred and vendetta between family and family. John € s words are firm and leave no doubt in the mind. It is not possible to become a disciple of Christ, to say that we love God and at the same time have hatred for our fellow Christians in our hearts. If a man says I love God and hates his brother he is a liar. It is not possible to avoid these words and for those wanting to be baptised or those recently baptised, this is an essential lesson.
There are so many important things for us to remember from these words that I would like to use the remainder of this lesson to look at them carefully.
1. Verse 7 Love is of God: this means that at creation the ability to show selfless love was built into us by God € s design. He wants us to respond to his love and Jesus € love for us.
2. Verse 10 God sent Jesus as a sacrifice for our sins. This is the measure of his love for us.
3. Verse 11 Because God loves us, we must show love to others.
4. Verse 12 When we show this God-given love to others, there is something of God within each of us.
5. Verse 17 When we can honestly feel that we are capable of showing this God-given love to others then we need have no fear of the judgement at the return of Jesus.
6. Verse 18 Perfect love casts out fear. There are very real advantages to those who are able to show this kind of love.
7. Verses 20 and 21 These are the verses we have already looked at but because of the growth of murder and enmity between peoples in many countries of the world I really want to emphasise the importance of this message. We cannot love God and hate our brother or sister. First of all John is talking of baptised disciples of Jesus, once baptised there is no excuse for enmity between us.
Just as the neighbour of the man in Jesus € parable was the Samaritan, so our neighbour can be any person who needs our help. In the wider sense of neighbours being the people we meet each day we have a far greater task. Fortunately we have no need to get involved with most of the people who pass by us each day but, when we do, the command of Jesus must be remembered: Love God and your neighbour as yourself.