As you may or may not have noticed, the world is not doing great. I don't want this devotion to be about COVID-19.
I just want to ask the question, "Who is my neighbor?"
Pretty simple question. In fact, Jesus answers this question in Luke 10. Which I already covered in an earlier devotion, which you can find here.
Today, I'd just like to talk about Christian neighborliness. From Isaiah 61:
"The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;" - Isaiah 61:1
Jesus declares the fulfillment of this prophecy from Isaiah in Luke 4. He -- the Lord's anointed -- has come to "bring good news" or Εὐαγγελίσασθαι. This is a verb form of the word εὐαγγέλιον, from which we get the word "Gospel".
Jesus made himself our neighbor. He saw us in our miserable state, and He brought us good news, bound us up, proclaimed liberty to us, and set us free.
We are the bringers of that good news for anyone that is poor, brokenhearted, captive, or bound. That is who are neighbor is, and we are called to be concerned with their well-being! We are called to go into their neighborhoods, living alongside of them. Loving them, supporting them in whatever capacity we can.
You really don't have to go far to find a neighbor. The poor are everywhere -- both the fiscally and spiritually poor -- as are the brokenhearted. I also know plenty of people that are held captive by addiction, by sin, by past mistakes, by their own minds.
If you can't see these people, then I'm going to suggest that you are willfully blind.
Willful blindness is something I wrestle with everyday. It is much, much easier to ignore the needs of my neighbor than to actually give of my time, my resources, or my energy.
But that is not what Jesus asks of us. He asks us to be a neighbor. He asks us to serve one another.
"For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." - Mark 10:45
Now is as good a time as any to serve your neighbor. Get creative. We may have to social distance, but I am positive that we can all find ways to be a blessing to the people around us. Whatever you do, however God leads you... please be safe, wash your hands, wear a mask, etc.
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