“Loving my Neighbor”
Leviticus 19:13-18; 1 John 4:19-21
Premise: Loving our Neighbors satisfies our calling to offer the justice and mercy of God.
** Justice = to help someone fulfill God’s plan for their life.
Note: Opposite of Justice is pacification.
** Mercy = the empathy that restores someone’s life.
1 John 4:20 – “Those who say, ‘I love God,’ and hate their brothers or sisters, are liars.”
Note: Opposite of “Mercy” is judgmentalism.
General Biblical Truths about Loving my Neighbor
Principle 1 – Loving my neighbor means treating everyone honestly.
Leviticus 19:13 – “You shall not defraud your neighbor; you shall not steal; and you shall not keep for yourself the wages of a laborer until morning.”
Principle 2 – Loving my Neighbor means Valuing everyone equally.
Leviticus 19:14 – “You shall not revile the deaf or put a stumbling block before the blind; you shall fear your God: I am the LORD.”
Point: So, we value everyone equally since ALL are created in the image of God...
...knowing that God loves every person equally even if he chooses to bless differently.
Principle 3 – Loving my Neighbor means Showing no favoritism.
See: Leviticus 19:15, 16 and Matthew 5:45
Application: To Love my Neighbor
Application 1 - Loving my Neighbor means Correcting others humbly.
Leviticus 19:17, 18 – “You shall not hate in your heart anyone of your kin; you shall reprove your neighbor, or you will incur guilt yourself. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.”
Point: When we hurt God his immediate reaction is not REVENGE, but restoration.
Note: Our culture has turned “Loving my Neighbor” into:
Blind Acceptance (i.e.: “Tolerance”)Moral License ... “Who am I to judge?”
Point: Neither Blind Acceptance or Moral License is “Love” because neither enables Justice or
Mercy.
Application 2 – Loving my Neighbor means going overboard to extend mercy.
Matthew 18:21 – “Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, ‘Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?’
Application 3 – Loving my Neighbor means speaking to edify, not pacify.
Proverbs 28:23 – “Whoever rebukes a person will afterward find more favor than one who flatters with the tongue.”
Ephesians 4:14, 15 – “Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.”
Point: Pacification encourages someone to live a life NOT designed by God.
Application 4 – Loving my Neighbor means loving willfully and unconditionally... including your enemies.
Luke 6:27, 28 – Jesus said, “I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.”
Note 1: Jesus says Loving my Neighbor is decision manifested in an action.
Note 2: Why does Jesus call us to love even our enemies?
A. Because God still loves even those who defy him.
B. Because we are less likely to hate someone when we are seeking their good.
