The love of neighbor is an
ancient Jewish teaching, which
follows the first and primary commandment to love God with one’s
whole heart, mind, and soul. In the
gospels, we hear the stories of those
who choose to question Jesus about
this law. “Which . . . is the greatest commandment?” Jesus answers:
“You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart, and with all your
soul, and with all your mind . . . .
and . . . you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” In Mark’s gospel,
Jesus proclaims that this man is not
far from the kingdom of God (Mark
12: 34). In Luke’s gospel, the lawyer
who seeks to test Jesus pushes him
further: “And who is my neighbor?”
Jesus responds with the story of the
Good Samaritan. The lawyer himself
answers the question “who is neighbor”: the one who showed compassion. Jesus replies to him, and to us:
“Go and do likewise” (Luke 10: 37).
Faith: Service required
Perhaps the clearest and most
detailed description of entering the
kingdom of God is described in Matthew 25. Sometimes called the “Last
Judgment” narrative, Jesus foretells
the time when those at God’s right
hand will be welcomed. The welcome is not a result of pious action
or a fervent prayer life but from what
we have named the corporal works
of mercy—feeding the hungry, giving
drink to the thirsty, welcoming the
stranger, clothing the naked, and visiting those who are sick or in prison.
For “whenever you did this for the
least of my brothers or sisters, you
did it for me.”
Ministering to those in need is
service to Christ himself. As such it
is not an optional commitment for
Enter #027 at VocationMatch.com
VISION 2009
For more features go to VocationGuide.org
Enter #278 at VocationMatch.com
29
