Title: Healthy Church, Healthy Saints ②
Contents
A lawyer asks Jesus a question. Verse 25 “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” He brought it to Jesus to solve the problem of eternal life. What is the Lord written about in the law in verse 26? He speaks of our mission to become a healthy church and healthy members by asking questions.
1. Love God.
In verse 27 of the main text, the word ‘done’ refers to doing everything you have given yourself. To love God is not simply mechanical love, but the most important thing in life. So, how do we love God?
First, keep the commandments of God. 1 John 5:3 “This is the love of God, that we keep his commandments” To love the word of God is to keep the word of God. If we love God, it is natural to keep His commandments. If we say that we truly love God, we love and keep the commandments that God has given us, and strive to live according to them.
Second, worship God. John 4:23 “The Father seeks those who worship him like this” Worship is an encounter. Worship is to exalt Him. If worshiping God is cumbersome or not important, it means that your love with the Lord has grown cold. God speaks through worship and blesses us through worship.
Third, pray. It is a conversation with God through prayer. It is confessing that you love God through prayer. Through dialogue with the Lord, we understand the will of the Lord and live according to the will of the Lord. To not have a life of prayer is to love God. We must express our love for God through prayer.
Fourth, love the church. The Lord of the church is our Jesus Christ. The purpose of the church is to testify of Jesus Christ. The church is the place to express and practice the love of the Lord. It is our mission to pray, love, and dedicate ourselves to the Church, the body of the Lord. Those who love God are recognized by God. take charge of your life
2. Love your neighbor
If you love God, of course, what you must follow is love for your neighbor. It is a lie to say that you love God and not love your neighbor. 1 John 4:20 “If anyone says, I love God, and hates his brother, he is a liar. He who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.” If you hate your neighbor, you are lying. Because those who do not love their visible brothers and sisters cannot love the invisible God.
The Samaritan in the text helped a man who was hit by a robber. He stopped his way and put his love into practice for those in danger of death. Samaritans are people whom the Israelites do not treat and do not deal with. It is hard to imagine that such a Samaritan would care for a hostile country, not even his own. But the Samaritan focused on saving lives whoever he was. The Lord now speaks to the lawyer. “Go and do likewise,” he says. How to love your neighbor?
First, you need a heart of pity. The Samaritan did not see the man who was hit by the robber as his enemy, but rather looked at the person's current situation and helped him. When you have pity, you can hug your neighbor. You can pray. We can share pain and suffering. We must look at our neighbors through the eyes of God.
Second, we must meet the needs of our neighbors. The good Samaritan poured his oil and wine on his wounds. Your oil or wine is important. But he valued the needs of his neighbors more than his own. What we have to do towards our neighbors is to meet their needs. If it is a material, it should be filled with a helping hand if it is a material. Third, you must take responsibility. The Samaritan did not end with his task of tying up the wounds, but took him to an inn and took care of him. provided shelter. And if you have more money, they say you will be responsible for it. God has given you a neighbor who is closest to you. What is given to you is to practice God's love. James 2:14 “My brethren, what profit does a man have if he says he has faith but has no works? Can his faith save him?” Today our Lord commands you and me the same. “Go and do likewise”