Recently, I volunteered at a community event and met a woman who didn't seem to know any strangers. This volunteer was the friendliest person I've met in a long time. Within 5 minutes, I knew about her husband, what he had done for a living and her upcoming vacation. Within an hour, she made friends with an attendee, introduced him to the director, and made him feel extremely welcome. And in reality, she did the same for me—that attendee even hugged me at the end of the event. What a prime example of being a great neighbor! |
An insightful post about neighbors |
Separately, I happened upon a post by Tim Cooper about his book, When Christians Disagree, and there was a paragraph that gave me pause. Let me give you a very brief set-up. The post is about two Puritans who were so similar in their beliefs that you would expect them to be friends, but they were not. They hated each other. Cooper quoted Joseph Caryl (1602-1673), who "explained that the person who "does not confide in his neighbors hinders them from confiding in him, and he that fears others creates in them a fear against himself." If one thinks the other does not trust him, he "will readily suspect him." I never thought of it this way! Being careful about opening yourself up to your neighbors could be why getting to know someone is so hard. |
Connecting these together inspired me to dig deeper into Mark 12:31 |
In Mark 12:31, Jesus commands us to "Love your neighbor as yourself." When you dig deeper with Bible Gateway Plus, the NIV Study Bible clarifies how "love for a neighbor is an essential component of love for God." |
As I kept digging into the study Resources, I also found additional clarity from the Believer's Bible Commentary. It reads, "The other half of the Ten Commandments teaches us to love our neighbor as ourselves. We are to love God more than ourselves, and our neighbor as ourselves. Thus, the life that really counts is concerned first with God, then with others. Material things are not mentioned. God is important and people are important." |
Now, it's time to do the hard work and reflect on whether I follow Jesus' commands. There are two paths I see ahead of me. First, I can ask myself a series of reflective questions. Such as: 1. Who is my neighbor? 2. How can I love them as myself? 3. Am I treating them the way I wish to be treated? 4. How can I serve Him and help my neighbor? 5. Do I love God more than myself? Second, I can continue studying what the Bible says about being a good neighbor. Naturally, I'm going to continue studying and then go back to the hard work of asking myself these questions and how to put what I learn into practice. If you'd like to join me, here is a list of verses to dig into and some additional themes to review. You can also review the parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37, dig into what it means to bear each other's burdens in Galatians 6:2, and the theme of forgiveness in Ephesians 4:32. |
Bible study and self-reflection is hard, especially when you are busy 24-7. I want to encourage you to subscribe to Bible Gateway Plus. Yes, it's my job, but it is the best tool you can have to study the Bible. With your Bible Gateway Plus account, each of the verses above will open additional resources from over $3,100 worth of trusted tools that bring additional insight into your Bible reading each day. Start with individual verses and create habits like these, digging into individual verses to enhance your understanding of Scripture. Now is the time to start your free trial of Bible Gateway Plus. When you subscribe today, you will save 15% for the life of your subscription. Blessings, Jody from Bible Gateway |
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