What finally counts is not whether we know Jesus and his words but whether we live our lives in the Spirit of Jesus. The Spirit of Jesus is the Spirit of Love. Jesus himself makes this clear when he speaks about the last judgment. There people will ask, "Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?" and Jesus will answer, "In so far as you did this to one of the least...of mine, you did it to me" (Matthew 25:37-40).
This is our great challenge and consolation. Jesus comes to us in the poor, the sick, the dying, the prisoners, the lonely, the disabled, the rejected. There we meet him, and there the door to God's house is opened to us.Reflecting further on this passage, I'm inspired to add the following.
For Christians looking to follow the two great commandments to love God and love neighbor as self, the questions arise, who are those neighbors and how do I serve them? For the answers to these questions, I suggest turning directly to Jesus, the head of the church, our leader in all things faithful, and our reliable trailblazer who has gone ahead of us and beckons us to follow. When the lawyer in Luke stand up and asks Jesus this very question, he is told the following parable.
Luke 10:25-37 25Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 26He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” 27He 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.”28And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.” 29But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. 31Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. 34He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.’ 36Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” 37He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”
From this parable, we discover our neighbor is anyone who needs our help and who it is within our power to help, even an enemy as shown in the actions of the good Samaritan. From the Samaritan we also learn we should take that aid just as far as we are capable. The Samaritan undid all the harm done to the wounded stranger by both the bandits and the religious leaders. That's a powerful message. So, now we have a basic and BROAD understanding of who, thanks to Luke and Jesus.
To put a finer point on it, we turn to Jesus in Matthew near the beginning of the book, seeking out the Beatitudes from the Sermon on the Mount (what has been termed Jesus' mission statement) where we receive some further suggestions on who we should seek out, what sort of help we should offer, and what kinds of helpers we should be.
Matthew 5:1-12 When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:
3“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.4“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 7“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. 8“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 9“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. 10“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
These three Bible verses leave a lot of territory to cover. It is tempting to throw up your hands and throw in the towel before you even begin, saying its all just too big for me! But, wait, here's some further help from a seminary professor I had not too long ago. He stated you need to turn to the issue that makes your blood boil, the injustice in the world that really upsets you (and falls within the parameters listed above), and act upon that in whatever small ways you can. You'll soon find that once you start, unexpected opportunities in that field will quickly crop up for you.
Jesus calls. Jesus wants to meet you out there among struggling humanity. Will you answer? Will you take the risk and go meet Jesus?
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