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Await My return: Mr. Robber’s Neighborhood
“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” (Luke 10:27).
“Love is all around, no need to waste it.” — a familiar line from the Mary Tyler Moore Show theme song. We’ll get back to the show after a word from the Lord. It may not seem like love is all around, but opportunities to love are all around. What do we mean by “love”?
There are many words translated “love” in the bible. The one we are concerned with in this context is the word “agapao” and its variations, like the familiar word “agape.” Were I to translate the bible, I would not use the word “love” to translate “agape” — I would translate it “serve.” This is not the emotional or physical type of love; agape love is an act of the will. It is something you choose to do for someone, not a kaleidoscope of butterflies that lodge in your tummy when you see that special someone or hear that old Mel Tormé song. Emotional love cannot be commanded, and can change with the situation.
People fall in love and fall out again when a relationship becomes tiresome. But agape love actually becomes more evident when emotional love is not involved.
According to Jesus, the two greatest commandments are to agape God “with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” and agape “your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37, 39). How do you love yourself? Not with hugs and kisses but by providing your needs and comforts — actions. Jesus illustrated true agape with the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25–37). A man traveling from Jerusalem (presumably, a Jewish man) was attacked by robbers and left half- dead. Some Jewish leaders passed by unconcerned. A Samaritan — a race hated by the Jews— stopped and bound his wounds, put him on his own beast, and took him to an inn. He took care of him, paid the innkeeper, and promised to look in on him when he returned. Jesus said to go and do likewise.
At first reading, this parable just seems to be a nice story about helping someone. As we pick the story apart, details emerge that make it more dangerous to the average person’s self-interest.
- Expressing agape service is for everyone, not just the “professionals” (vv. 31–33).
- Agape takes compassion and the willingness to show mercy to those whom we
think may not deserve it. Remember, Jews and Samaritans were enemies, and these
were strangers in passing (v. 33). The “religious” Jews should have helped one of
their own. Our common humanity makes strangers our neighbors. - Agape is an action word — it results in deeds (vv. 34–35; James 2:15–17).
- Agape requires sacrifice and may take us out of our way and cost us something (v. 35).
- Agape requires follow-up (v. 35). The Samaritan provided for the victim’s continued careand checked up on him.
In another passage, Jesus makes a more severe point: “But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you” (Luke 6:27–28). This is true Christlikeness — he died for us sinners, his enemies.
The MTM theme continues, “It’s time you let someone else do some giving.” Wrong. I’d rather stay with Mr. Rogers, who sang, “Won’t you be my neighbor?”
– Alan Allegra
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