Series in Proverbs - Love Your Neighbor

                                          

Love Your Neighbor

Proverbs 3:27-35

Have you heard the Lord’s voice speaking to you about a certain situation or person’s needs? And you are not certain what your next step is? Solomon’s advice is to aptly do what you know is right and from the Lord. 

Solomon is switching from the primary teachings of wisdom, understanding, and discernment to alluding to the gifts of God from the Holy Spirit: hospitality, giving, and mercy, as well as the fruits of gentleness, kindness, goodness, and self-control. 

So let’s begin to read the first portion of the text. “Whenever you are able,do [ do not withhold] good to people who need help [or deserve it]. If you have what your neighbor asks for, don’t say, “Come back later. I will give it to you tomorrow.” (EXB)

First, Solomon is still teaching his children the true nature of God and the practical attributes of a godly person. For it is through the workings of the Holy Spirit that God reaches out to the world through His people. For, Solomon had seen the injustices in the world and even in His own country, and now he is instructing his children in the right path of God and to reach out in love and the compassion of God. He begins with helping or assisting people. Solomon knew the second greatest commandment in the Law of Moses was “Do not hurt someone who has hurt you. Do not keep on hating the sons of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.” (Lev. 19:18 NLT)

It was wrong and deceitful to withhold good to someone who had a legitimate need, and especially someone who deserved the help, like the widow, orphan, or their near neighbor and family. Solomon knew that arrogance and pride were the bane of the rich and affluent. God’s law was unquestionable, the godly person wasn’t just to know the law, but to put it into practice. If their neighbor had a need and they had every ability to help them, not to procrastinate or even worse, putting off by ignoring their needs because of being apathetic. This God saw and would judge.

Application - Being a helping hand has been twisted by some to being their sacrifice for salvation, for others, it has become a means of social control. And then there are those who have taken on the mantra, “God helps those who help themselves.” In other words, let them fend for themselves, the humanist would call this the “survival of the fittest.”

God has a different meaning for seeing a need and filling it. The second great commandment recognized by Jesus, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” was taken from the law of Moses from God. It literally means to treat others as you would want to be treated. Again, mentioned in Matthew’s gospel, “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” (Matt. 7:12 NIV), also in John’s first epistle,  “If you see some brother or sister in need and have the means to do something about it but turn a cold shoulder and do nothing, what happens to God's love? It disappears. And you made it disappear.” (1 John 3:17 MSG) And also Paul’s letter, “But if someone doesn’t provide for their own family, and especially for a member of their household, they have denied the faith. They are worse than those who have no faith.” (1 Tim. 5:8 CEB)

It was this teaching that Solomon desired that he wanted his children to emulate, as well as all those who read the proverb. In today’s church society and the culture of the world. The acts of hospitality and kindness, gentleness, and generosity are actual gifts the Holy Spirit has given to the church not only for the edification of its members, but as the fruit of a spirit-filled life who abides in Christ Jesus. “But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted! When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father. (John 15:7-8 NLT) But there is also a section of the church world that sees these works of kindness, generosity, and hospitality as the means of salvation. It is then a matter of indulgence, the act of fulfillment towards their spiritual account. Sadly, it gets even worse, the apathy and complacency in the church says “let someone else take care of them, or I don’t want to be involved in their needs. I would call these the “NIMBY” congregation. (Not In My Back Yard)

Jesus demonstrated the gifts of the Spirit in the meeting of the spiritual and physical needs of the masses. Even His calling He proclaimed through Isaiah the prophet, “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound…” (Isa. 61:1 NKJV) And in the many miracles performed He met the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. 

Paul and Peter both wrote and explained the Spirit’s gifts for the use in the body of Christ. “If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.” “Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay. God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.  Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.” (Rom. 12:7-8 NLT; 1 Pet. 4:9-11 NLT)

But that brings us to the question in our own lives, are we bearing the fruit of the Spirit for the benefit of the body and for those who are in need? Are we living the Golden Rule of Matthew 7:12, or are  we turning away, saying maybe later, or it's not my problem? Or are we doing the good works in order to earn our way into heaven and God’s good grace? 

The question remains, when we see someone in need, or our neighbor has a need, what will you do or say, and what will be your motivation?

Next, Solomon didn’t want his children to experience the ugliness of the deviant persons, who spent their time thinking of ways to harm their neighbor. So let’s read the next portion of the text. “Don’t make plans to hurt [intend evil toward] your neighbor who lives nearby and trusts you. Don’t accuse a person for no good reason; don’t accuse someone who has not harmed you. Don’t be jealous of those who use violence, and don’t choose to be like them [prefer their path  of life]. The Lord hates those who do wrong [The devious are an abomination to the Lord], but he is a friend [confidant] to those who are honest [virtuous].” (EXB)

Many were the enemies of God’s people during the days of king David, but in the times of Solomon, he lived in relative peace with those around and near him. But there was still friction between peoples, and family members even among those who lived near each other and were at peace and trusting with one another for the most part. Solomon exhorted his children to live at peace, and not to plan to do evil by devaluing the nature of your neighbor, second, not to devise oppositions and options against your neighbor, and third, not to implement vengeance by violence. Solomon laid out for his children the process that evil takes in the heart of jealous, violent, and devious people. 

First, the person that hates his neighbor, devalues them into insignificance or worse. The bias and prejudices that emerge from the heart define the nature of the person that controls the actions, thoughts, and words that come out. Once they are convinced of this, they create a stereotyping of the neighbor. They are of little value or importance and need to be eliminated, even when the neighbor is living at peace, and striving to live in a godly manner. They break what trust they have with the neighbor and begin to accuse them of false claims and malicious acts, defame them as worthless or even harmful because of the bias and prejudices. Third, they plan to implement actions of force by bullying and gerrymandering (manipulating) by violence. They strive by aligning themselves in numbers in a show of force, strength, and authority. Intimidating the neighbor into submission or banishing them by eviction.

Solomon shows the horrendous side of a person, but for the one who fears God and desires to love their neighbor as themselves, they are built on the trust in the Lord, to love, and establish themselves as a confidant, an honest and godly person, not an assailant. For God hates those who use violence to manipulate, accuse of evil (slander), and use hate to banish those through any means possible.

Application - As I underlined the key principles and means that are used even today, it looks like the actions of our daily breaking news. It is evident that the need for the fear of the Lord and the need to love our neighbor is lacking if not totally absent. 

So that brings us to the point that God is making through the proverb. What kind of person will you be? The opposites are black and white, dark and light. The enemy of God’s plan is still the same, to kill, steal and destroy. (John 10:10a)

The devious person’s game plan is still the same, devaluation through bias and prejudice. Defamation through stereotyping. And implementing violence through bullying and intimidation.

I have seen the use of words lately that smack of desiring control and power. The political world enjoys the term “leveraging” but its near cousins are “extortion” and “intimidation and coerce.”

It makes me think, what wisdom are we using today, and what are the elements of the plan devised against our neighbors in the world?

Last, Solomon gives his children God’s perspective on evil, mocking, and malicious people and how God will treat them in truth and righteousness. So let’s read the final portion of the text. “The Lord will curse the evil person’s house, but he will bless the home of those who do right [the righteous]. The Lord laughs at [mocks] those who laugh at [mock] Him, but he gives grace [shows favor] to those who are not proud [the humble]. Wise people will receive honor [possess glory], but fools will be disgraced [give off/exude shame].” (EXB)

God has no equal, especially when it comes to love, holiness, goodness, and strength. For these qualities are His very essence, for He is love, holy, good, and all powerful.

Solomon, after living a life seeking all that there is to do and see, he knows the extreme value of knowing the eternal and true God, and he wants his children to know these qualities of God as well. First, God has stated he will bless those who seek righteousness and curse those who seek evil. “Look now; I myself am he! There is no other god but me! I am the one who kills and gives life; I am the one who wounds and heals; no one can be rescued from my powerful hand! Now I raise my hand to heaven and declare, ‘As surely as I live, when I sharpen my flashing sword and begin to carry out justice, I will take revenge on my enemies and repay those who reject me.’” “The Lord detests people with crooked hearts, but he delights in those with integrity. Evil people will surely be punished, but the children of the godly will go free.” (Deut. 32:39-41, Prov. 11:20-21 NLT) 

God’s cursing and blessings were in the last part of Moses’ written laws, (Deut. 28) and He boldly proclaimed the adjudication for each group. Second, God will not be mocked by his creation, He is holy, good, and righteous. He will stand in judgment of the mockers with his own version of the derision of their slanderous hearts. But God shows favor, His grace to those who are truly humble and contrite in heart, “But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.” (Isa. 66:2b ESV). Third, for those who fear the Lord God; they will receive honor from Him in this life and in the next, “True humility and fear of the LORD lead to riches, honor, and long life.” (Prov. 22:4 NLT) , but the foolish, prideful, deceitful, and the deviant will receive disgrace and exude shame, guilt, and mortification. 

Application - Cursings and blessings, the judgment contrasts of God the Father. For God doesn’t have favorites, nor is He swayed by bribe or intimidation. God is just and righteous, and all that He does is in truth, honesty, and integrity. 

I had a professor in university that hated God because of man. She saw God as a bully, and she judged God by man. I told her that we cannot judge God by man but we must judge man by God. After I repeated this a few times, she saw the justice in this.

God is above approach and He cannot be compared to man, but man who was created by God will stand before the holy and almighty One and be judged according to his ways and life. This goes for the Christian “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”  As well as for the heathen. “And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.” (2 Cor. 5:10 NIV; Rev. 20:12 ESV)

In conclusion, I quote Paul’s admonition and Peter’s exhortation to those who know the truth. “Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness…” (2 Pet. 3:11 NKJV) For we have heard the truth, and have been shown what to do and how to live by His Holy Word and by His Son, Jesus Christ. We have been given the Spirit of God to guide, speak to us, and equip us with everything needed to live a holy life and to be a loving neighbor. “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” “Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.” (Gal. 5:16; Heb. 13:20-21 NKJV)

As always, I want to end with presenting the gospel in the form of the ABC’s of salvation for all those who have not yet received Jesus Christ for salvation. For Jesus, God the Son, came to this world to save all who would believe and trust in him. He desires to reveal himself to you, He is the Light that overcomes the darkness of this lawless world. He hears your prayers, and all authority in heaven and earth have been given to him. He will answer you if you will truly believe. If you haven’t asked him to be your Lord and Savior, today could be that day.

 First, A - Admit that you are a sinner. This is where that godly sorrow leads to genuine repentance for sinning against a righteous God and there is a change of heart, we change our mind and God changes our hearts and regenerates us from the inside out. Romans 3:10 - As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one." Romans 3:23 - For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (We are all born sinners which is why we must be born spiritually in order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven). Romans 6:23 - For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. The bad news is that the wages of sin is death, in other words our sin means that we have been given a death sentence, we have the death penalty hanging over our heads, that's the bad news. But here's the good news: The good news is that the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Ephesians 2:8-9 - For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith —and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. Second,

 B - Believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and that God raised Jesus from the dead. This is trusting with all of your heart that Jesus Christ is who he said he was. Romans 10:9-10 - That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. Third, 

C - Call upon the name of the Lord. Every single person who ever lived since Adam will bend their knee and confess with their mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord, the Lord of lords and the King of kings. Romans 14:11 - For it is written: "As I live, says the Lord, Every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall confess to God." Don't wait until later — do this now. Romans 10:13 - For "whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved." "O God, I am a sinner. I'm sorry for my sin. I want to turn from my sin. I believe Jesus Christ is Your Son; I believe that He died on the cross for my sin and that He was buried and You raised Him to life. I have decided to place my faith in Jesus Christ as my Savior, trusting only in His shed blood as sufficient to save my soul and to take me to heaven. Thank You, Lord Jesus, for saving me. Amen."

Please share this with someone this week, the Lord knows that we and they need it.

If you would like other lessons, please go to http://pmdinhisservice.blogspot.com 

Until next week, In His Service Mike Davis

I have revised my webpage on Spiritual warfare. Please give it a look. Thank you. 

http://uss-warfare3.webnode.com