In America today, our neighbors are being oppressed by prejudice systems. Our neighbors are being killed and incarcerated in part due to the pigment of their skin, our neighbors are being discriminated against based on who they love and how they identify, and our neighbors are being separated from their families and denied refuge and safety. Marginalized and abused, our neighbors are calling out in pain, anger, and frustration, yet too many of us cannot see past our own experiences to realize what is really happening in our nation.
Our neighbors are teaching us how to love them, and it is time to listen and respond:. Many of us feel trapped by the narrow framework of the dominant liberal and conservative views of equality in America. After the parent is finished, ask class members to think of childlike qualities that Jesus would want us to have.
List responses on the chalkboard. Explain that this lesson discusses the importance of developing childlike qualities and treating all people with humility and kindness. Read and discuss Matthew —6, 10—11, Matthew ; Mark — How might we sometimes make similar errors?
How can we set aside such concerns? Display the picture of Christ and the children. See Matthew —4 ; Mark Why is it sometimes difficult to follow this counsel?
How does this counsel compare with what the world teaches about how to achieve greatness? What does it mean to become as little children? See Mosiah Explain that although children are not perfect, they have many qualities that we must develop to inherit the kingdom of heaven.
These qualities include humility, meekness, and a willingness to believe. What have you learned from children? How can we become more childlike and more submissive to the will of our Father in Heaven?
See Matthew , footnote 6 a; in this context, offend means to cause to stumble. What are some of the ways people cause children to stumble? Answers may include being a poor example to them, criticizing them unkindly, failing to teach them, and abusing them. How does the Lord regard these offenses? See Matthew Elder M. How can being childlike ourselves help us care for children? Matthew Read and discuss Matthew , 21— In Matthew , what did the Lord say we should do if we have been offended?
Why is this the best way to resolve disputes? How did Jesus respond when Peter asked how often he should forgive? Explain that Jesus used this high number to teach that we should always forgive others. If we covet our neighbors, this implies we know them and have seen what their lives look like.
A "neighbor" in these verses is defined as someone we have seen or known personally. This list could include those living literally next door to us, or those that we have met in passing.
We are taught here that a neighbor is to be helped quickly, immediately. It also implies that our neighbor is someone we see regularly. These verses in the Old Testament help us unlock the idea of who our neighbor is and then point us to how we need to respond. The New Testament also teaches us who our neighbor is. Jesus has compared the love we have for our neighbors to the love we have for ourselves.
It is not a far stretch to say that we know ourselves more and think about ourselves more than any other person. Jesus is saying that is how much we are to love our neighbor, as much as we love ourselves. Naturally, we will not care about someone deeply unless we are intentional about understanding that person and treating him or her as the Lord has treated us. God is teaching us through these verses that we are to put our neighbors ahead of ourselves in word, thought, and deed.
The Parable of the Good Samaritan is found in Luke In this parable, a man was beaten and tossed on the side of the road by robbers. Three people pass this man on the road from Jericho to Jerusalem.
The first man is a priest, the second man is a Levite and the third a Samaritan. The first two men passed by the beaten man without helping, while the third stopped to help the man. The expert in the law would have expected Jesus to list the three people in the story walking by as a priest, a Levite, and the people Jewish people because they were talking about neighbors and all three of those groups were Jewish; however, Jesus replaced the Jewish people with a Samaritan man.
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