Who is my neighbor?
key words
biblical reference
Luke 10: 25- 37
lesson objective
To help children learn that we must love God and respond with love to the needs of our neighbors
memory verse
“He answered, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’” (Luke 10:27, NIV*).
prepare yourself to teach
During the last days of his ministry, Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan. Back then, there was a lot of controversy surrounding him and his message. Among most of his listeners were people who loved him and listened. But within that group, there were also people who had tried to trap him into saying something that would send him to jail. Such was the case when an expert of the law (Luke 10:25) asked Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”
In telling the Parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus referred to the phrase “and love your neighbor as yourself.” Although the expert of the Law asks, “Who is my neighbor?” he should have known because Leviticus 19:18, 33-34 refers to this.
In the parable, Jesus refers to the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. This road, though only 25 km long, drops about 1,000 meters into the Jordan Valley. This road passed through deserted places where there were notorious criminals. The people who were listening to the parable assumed that the person was Jewish (Luke 10:30).
Both the Levite and the priest who passed by served in the temple. Some commentators say that they did not stop because they did not want to become impure and thereby would not be allowed to serve in the temple.
Jesus mentioned a Samaritan who was passing by (v. 33). The Samaritans were despised by the Jews, but Christ used them as an example of one who fulfills the law.
The money mentioned in verse 35 was equivalent to two days salary. Jesus noted that the Samaritan was not interested in the nationality of the injured man, he only saw the need the man had and how he could help him.
When Jesus asked who of the these three was a neighbor, the expert demonstrated his prejudice against the Samaritans by not answering (v. 37) with the word “Samaritan,” but instead by saying, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Today there are many problems like those between Jews and Samaritans. There are problems due to different skin colors, borders, etc. (Give an example that is common in your neighborhood, city or country.)
Often times, we can act like the priests and Levites who are too busy or too focused on other good things, and we fail to care for those in need! For example, at school, there is a boy that nobody likes and we avoid him instead of helping him or even join others to make fun of him. Maybe we have our group of friends and we do not let anyone else in, and so doing reject others.
introduce the lesson
Activity: Who is my neighbor?
Give your group Student Activity Sheet #287-A and read the question aloud, “Which of these is your neighbor? Why?” (Allow time for them to observe the picture and answer the questions.)
Explain that today’s Bible story is a parable. Tell them that Jesus often used parables to teach the people. Ask, “Have you ever learned something difficult by doing something easy first? For example, to teach us that it is not good to tell lies, we tell the story of the boy who cried “Wolf! Wolf!” People ran to help him, but when they came to where he was, he laughed because he had lied. However, one day the wolf was real, and although he shouted, no one ran to help because they believed it was lie.”
teach the lesson
Who is my neighbor?
“Master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
The man who spoke to Jesus was an expert in religious law. He was testing him, trying to make him fall.
“What is written in the law?” said Jesus. “What do you read?”
This person cited the law: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with your entire mind; and your neighbor as yourself.”
“I already have it!” he thought. For years, people have argued about what the law means by using the word “neighbor.” Some teachers would tell people to love your neighbor and hate your enemy.
He wanted to do what he thought was right, so he said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
The Lord was ready for this question and answered with a story:
“A man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among thieves, who stripped him, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead.”
The expert knew the road from Jerusalem to Jericho was dangerous. Thieves lived in the hills near the road and often attacked people.
Jesus continued: “It happened that a priest came down the road, and seeing the beaten man, passed on by. Likewise a Levite, upon seeing the man passed by.”
The expert continued to listen. He knew why the priest and the Levite had not stopped. The man could die while they were helping him, and the law said that the priests and Levites could not touch corpses. If they did, they were not allowed to work in the temple for some time.
Jesus continued the story: “But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to the place where the injured man was.”
“A Samaritan!” he thought. “Everyone knows that the Samaritans are good for nothing.”
Jesus continued: “When the Samaritan saw the poor man, he had compassion. He came and bound up his wounds ... put him on his donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him.”
“The next day, when he departed, he took out money for the inn keeper and said: ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you need as compensation, I’ll repay you when I return.’”
Then Jesus looked at the expert and asked, “Who, then, of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who was beaten and robbed?”
The expert said, “He who showed mercy on him.”
Jesus said, “Go and do likewise.”
connect the lesson
Activity: My neighbor
Make sure your group Student Activity Sheet #287-B and 3287-C. Let them write on their “hearts” the different ways they can show love to their neighbor.
Ask them to close their eyes and think of someone they know who might need love and understanding during the week. Encourage them to pray silently, that God will help them serve that person through their actions of love and kindness.
practice the memory verse
Write out the memory verse on the board or on a poster board where children can see it. Leave sufficient space between each word. Ask them to sit in front of the board or poster. The first child should stand and say the first word of the verse, and then sit; the child on his left will say the next word, and so on until they finish. When this is done, do it again in the opposite order.
The idea is to have them repeat the procedure until they memorize the verse.
Activity: Who can I share Jesus with?
Give your group Student Activity Sheet #287-D. Have them fill in the blanks to complete the name of the person they can talk to about Christ.
wrap-up
Pray
Ask the children to tell their prayer needs. Then pray with them. Do not forget to ask God to help them find ways to help and show God’s love to others.
Encourage
Thank your children for their attendance and ask them not to forget what they learned.
Invite
Announce something interesting about the next session to increase the children’s interest and to welcome visitors.
* Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™