Aaron Carlberg - November 23, 2025
NRABV Pt 2 - Week 10: The Neighbor
Many people who have looked at the parable of the Good Samaritan have misunderstood its central point. The story isn't primarily about identifying who qualifies as our "neighbor" that we should help, but rather about examining how we function as neighbors to others. When Jesus asks "Which of these three proved to be a neighbor?" He shifts the focus from defining limits on our love to challenging us to embody neighborly love without boundaries. Biblical mercy involves both compassion and action, rooted in God's mercy toward us while we were His enemies. Just as the Samaritan helped his ethnic enemy, Christians are called to show practical love even to those they might consider adversaries.
Scripture References: Luke 10:36-37
From Series: "Never Read A Bible Verse*"
* Without Context. There are some Christians who say that those who don’t believe the Bible or trust in Jesus, “just need to read the bible,” but what happens if they do and it has the opposite effect? There are many things in the bible that are written that are hard to understand without having a clear cultural understanding of the context in which it was written; many Christians even assume the Bible says things that it does not because we fail to understand context. Cultural changes over time can lead to shifts in the way we use certain words, and this makes a difference when reading/translating texts of the Bible. There are a lot of people who do not know or understand the Bible and yet they claim it is filled with nonsense, it is why study of the Bible is important for us…because as I said ultimately the Bible is about Jesus. It shows us who we are and who He is in His person.