th<\/sup> century English novelist, Israel Zanwill, noted, “Scratch the Christian and\nyou will find the pagan.”\n 1. By this, he meant that all it took for many so-called Christians to “lose\ntheir religion” was an irritation\n 2. When people are hard to get long with, the facade of Christianity become\nthin\n E. True Christians are called to better behavior and deeper commitment – Romans\n12:17-18\n 1. When those around us scratch us with their behavior, we want to display\nmore than a think veneer of Christianity\nII. Who is my neighbor?<\/p>\n
A. A lawyer asked Jesus what was needed to reach heaven – Luke 10:25-28<\/p>\n
1. But he didn’t like the implications and asked – Luke 10:29<\/p>\n 2. Jesus didn’t answer stating that it was people living within a certain\ndistance of you\n 3. The Greek word plesion<\/i> refers to someone nearby. The Jews, however,\nused the equivalent Hebrew word rea<\/i> to mean a fellow member of the\ncommunity, in particular, someone in a covenant relationship with God.\nThus, Jews would not regard strangers, Samaritans, or Gentiles as\nneighbors\n 4. Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan in response to the lawyer’s\nquestion – Luke 10:30\n
a. A priest coming that way failed to help – Luke 10:31<\/p>\n
b. A Levite also was indifferent to the man’s needs – Luke 10:32<\/p>\n
c. It was a Samaritan who stopped and helped – Luke 10:33-35<\/p>\n 5. Jews had no dealings with Samaritans. He would not have been considered\na neighbor – John 4:9\n 6. Jesus then ask who was the neighbor in the story. The answer was obvious\n– Luke 10:37\n a. Jesus then drove the point home by telling the lawyer to do the\nsame\n
B. In our times, attitudes about neighbors have shifted<\/p>\n 1. “Friends and neighbors” used to be a common expression. Neighbors were\npeople you could count on for help in times of need.\n 2. Today few people know their neighbors. If you know the names of\neveryone whose property touches yours, you are more aware than most\n 3. Sadly, when neighbors do interact, it is often because of a disagreement:\npets, noise, property lines, and appearance of the yard.\n C. But our neighbor is not just the person next door. Our neighbor is anyone are\nnearby at the moment – the people we work with, are sharing the road with, or\neven in the same aisle at the supermarket.\n
D. How are Christians to treat their neighbor? How do I show mercy?<\/p>\n
III. Showing mercy to my neighbor<\/p>\n
A. Be humble<\/p>\n
1. The biggest hindrance to being a good neighbor is pride – Romans 12:16<\/p>\n
2. This was the problem of the priest and the Levite in Jesus’ parable<\/p>\n
3. We should treat people with equity and not consider ourselves as superior<\/p>\n 4. Don’t hate those around you. But notice that correcting is not hatred.\nActually, not correcting a wrong is hatred – Leviticus 19:7\n
5. Seek your neighbor’s good instead of your own – I Corinthians 10:24<\/p>\n
B. Don’t seek revenge<\/p>\n 1. Jesus had said, “love God” and “love your neighbor” were the two core\ncommands.\n 2. “Love your neighbor” comes from Leviticus 19:18. Notice what it also\nsays.\n
3. If there is a problem, let God handle it – Proverbs 20:22<\/p>\n 4. The Jews had taken rules for how judges were to handle personal injury\ncrimes and used them to justify personal vengeance – Matthew 5:38-42\n
C. Do what is right<\/p>\n
1. Respect what is right – Romans 12:17<\/p>\n
2. Have a regard for what is honorable – II Corinthians 8:21<\/p>\n
3. Leave a memory of good deeds – I Peter 2:12; 3:16<\/p>\n
D. Seek to be at peace with all people<\/p>\n 1. It isn’t always possible. Peace is a two-way street and some people refuse\nto be peaceable, but we try – Romans 12:18\n
2. Do what you can. If there isn’t peace, then the fault is not attributed to you.<\/p>\n
3. Therefore, be the one who tries to initiate peace – Matthew 5:9<\/p>\n
IV. Have you been a good neighbor?<\/p>\n
A. If not, it is time to start<\/p>\n
\n
Based on a lesson written by John Gaines<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Romans 12:16-21 I. Putting off the old man A. When we become a Christian, we are supposed to become a new person – II Corinthians 5:17 B. We are supposed to have the mind of Christ – Philippians 2:5 C. That isn’t so hard when everything goes well D. But 19th century English novelist,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[119,32],"tags":[65,519,1392],"class_list":["post-59610","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-audio","category-sermon","tag-love","tag-mercy","tag-neighbors"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":49237,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/love-your-neighbor\/","url_meta":{"origin":59610,"position":0},"title":"Love Your Neighbor (Works)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 6, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"by Joe Works Studying Leviticus","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5763,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-do-you-handle-a-problem-with-the-neighbors-dogs\/","url_meta":{"origin":59610,"position":1},"title":"How do you handle a problem with the neighbor’s dogs?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"June 1, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: As I went to mail at the mailbox today, I noticed a spot where a large dog fertilized our front yard. The owner of most of this subdivision is living temporarily in one of the homes a few doors up from us until his home in the country is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1206,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/holiness-a-study-of-leviticus\/","url_meta":{"origin":59610,"position":2},"title":"Holiness: A Study of Leviticus","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 26, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"2016 Fall Gospel Meeting by Joe Works The Tabernacle of God Tabernacle of God (Handout) Tabernacle of God (Powerpoint) God with Us (Powerpoint) The Value of Old Testament Study The Value of Old Testament Study (Powerpoint) Be Holy for I am Holy Be Holy for I am Holy (Powerpoint) Acceptable\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":42311,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-am-i-supposed-to-get-from-john-112\/","url_meta":{"origin":59610,"position":3},"title":"What am I supposed to get from John 1:12?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 24, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Good morning. I really don't know. What am I supposed to get from reading and studying the Bible? For instance: \"But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.\" What should this mean\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":89778,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/bombard-your-heart-with-good-things\/","url_meta":{"origin":59610,"position":4},"title":"Bombard Your Heart with Good Things","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 27, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Terry Wane Benton If you let social media bombard your mind with all this social, political, and racial tension, soon you feel like everything good about our country and our neighbors has gone. But when you notice the birds, nature, and your surrounding neighbors, and you hear children laughing\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":62873,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-the-seed-still-in-the-barn\/","url_meta":{"origin":59610,"position":5},"title":"Is the Seed Still in the Barn?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 22, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Text: Haggai 2:10-19 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0After the people returned from captivity, work began in rebuilding Israel. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The people quickly laid the foundation of the temple, but the work stagnated. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The people were distracted with rebuilding their own homes and efforts to produce a living. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0C.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Over time they became apathetic. For 16\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59610","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59610"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59610\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59610"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59610"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59610"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}