The Standard October 7, 2023
In a circular letter to be read before several Christian congregations, the Apostle John asserts, “Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. Whoever says they are in the light and hates their brother or sister is still in darkness. Whoever loves his brother or sister abides in the light, and in them there is no cause for stumbling. But whoever hates his brother or sister is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where they are going, because the darkness has blinded their eyes.” (1 John 2:7-11)
It is likely that John is referring to instructions in Leviticus 19. The people of God are told in this Old Testament passage to lead generous and ethical lives while loving their fellow Israelites and sojourners within the community as they love themselves.
“When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge, neither shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest. And you shall not strip your vineyard bare, neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard. You shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner: I am the Lord your God.
You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; you shall not lie to one another. You shall not swear by my name falsely, and so profane the name of your God: I am the Lord.
You shall not oppress your neighbor or rob him. The wages of the hired worker shall not remain with you all night until the morning. You shall not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block before the blind, but you shall fear your God: I am the Lord.
You shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor. You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not stand up against the life of your neighbor: I am the Lord.
You shall not hate your fellow Israelite in your heart, but you shall reason frankly with your neighbor, lest you incur sin because of him. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against anyone among your own people. but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.”
“You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love them as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.” (Leviticus 19: 9-18, 34)
Jesus expands on this old commandment, by telling his hearers in the Parable of the Good Samaritan that their neighbors are any people who need help. Love for one’s neighbor is not to be reserved only for folks within one specific group or geographical area. Jesus tells us to go and do likewise, showing mercy as the Good Samaritan did, to anyone who needs it.
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