Who Is My Neighbor?

Read

Luke 10:27-29 “He answered, ‘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, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ‘You have answered correctly,’ Jesus replied. ‘Do this and you will live.’ But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbor?’”

Think

The lawyer’s question wasn’t about love; it was about limits. In Jewish culture, "neighbor" often meant fellow Israelites. Outsiders? Enemies? They didn’t count. When he asked Jesus, "Who is my neighbor?" he was looking for an excuse to love selectively.

Jesus didn’t define "neighbor"—he told a story. A Jewish man, beaten and left for dead, lay on the side of the road. A priest saw him and kept walking. A Levite did the same. They were the religious elite, the ones who should have helped, but they didn’t. Then came the Samaritan—the least likely person to stop. Samaritans and Jews despised each other, yet he didn’t hesitate. He saw the man’s pain, had compassion, and acted.

Love isn’t about who qualifies for kindness. It’s about becoming the kind of person who loves without conditions. The Samaritan didn’t ask if the man deserved help. He simply helped. He risked his safety, gave his time, and sacrificed his own resources for a stranger.

Love costs something. It’s inconvenient. It means crossing lines, stepping out of comfort, and choosing compassion over convenience. The neighbor isn’t just the person we like—it’s the one we’d rather ignore.

So, who is your neighbor? The person who frustrates you. The one who’s different. The one who has hurt you. Love isn’t just an idea—it’s a choice. And Jesus calls us to go and do the same.

Apply

Step out of your comfort zone. Engage with someone who isn’t like you. Start a conversation with a coworker, neighbor, or even a stranger you’d normally overlook.

Pray

Lord, open my eyes to see the people around me the way you do, with compassion and grace. Help me to love not just when it’s easy, but when it’s inconvenient, uncomfortable, or costly. Give me the courage to step beyond my comfort and be a true neighbor to those in need. In Jesus’ name. Amen.