SBTC Reach Texas Student Lesson Who is my Neighbor? Main Passage: Luke 10:25-37 Main Point: A true follower of Jesus is characterized by their compassion towards others. (Bold fonts signify groupings or key focal points, italicized fonts signify discussion questions, and phrases in parentheses signify notes or clarifications to aid you.) Group Activity: (This is meant to be a light and fun opener activity. It is not meant to have students confessing their depravity to one another in hopes that they would be the worst and the one that is left behind.) You are on a sinking boat and the lifeboat will carry one less person than is in your group. For the purpose of this discussion, there are no creative solutions. One person MUST surrender his or her life and each of you must make a compelling case why you should be the one to die. You cannot suggest someone else should die; you can only make a case for yourself. You need to convince the other people in your group why you should be the person who doesn t step into the lifeboat. After each person has presented his or her case, have your group vote for the person with the most compelling case for who should be left behind. Question It: Me! The focus of our lives and the contemplation of our minds is often set on me. In the world around you how do you see people motivated by their own desires? What do you think it means to be self-saturated or self-absorbed? What are evidences around you of the fact that we live in a self-saturated culture? In what ways do marketing and advertising of products appeal to our sense of self? The topic that we are going to continue to think on for today is Our Neighbor. We are going to talk about how it is imperative as followers of Christ to sacrifice ourselves for the glory of God. A person who has been changed by the power of Jesus possesses a new heart and the Holy Spirit, which inevitably leads to compassion for others. Often, this means that we must deny our selfish motivations and love others no matter what consequence that love may bring. Picture It: (See Attached Resources) Divide the group into three smaller groups. Provide for each group a Case Scenario. Instruct the students to read the case scenario assigned to their group and develop a description of the self-centeredness displayed. How is that person expressing self-centeredness? After giving the students a few minutes to develop their responses have a representative from each group give a brief explanation of their scenario and their response. Bible It: In Luke chapters 9-10 we have recorded for us some of Jesus most hard hitting teachings. If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me (Luke 9:23). In Luke 9:57-62, Jesus clearly teaches some would-be followers about the consequences and real costs of following Him. In Luke 10:21, Jesus explains that the wise and understanding cannot understand even the simple commands of Scripture: I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you
have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. In this passage, Jesus was showing the irony that those who considered themselves to be wise within the culture were actually the ones that were not able to grasp the simple teachings of Jesus. They thought they had all of the wisdom in the world but Jesus exposed their hearts to be bankrupt of spiritual truth! On the other hand, his disciples (who were men of humble backgrounds and considered to be the unwise in the culture) were the ones who had received the spiritual truth of the presence of the kingdom. Further, in Luke 10:25-29 we have the introduction to one of Jesus most famous parables, the parable of the good samaritan. The introduction to the parable is capped off when an earnest lawyer asks a question to Jesus, Who is my neighbor? The question was asked but with intent to get more than an answer. But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, And who is my neighbor? Luke gives us the answer to the intent of the lawyer s question, desiring to justify himself. Jesus was fully aware of the lawyer s intent and gave him an answer to the question by telling him a story. We may all know the story but it can be a little confusing. Read Luke 10:30-35. In Jesus story, who is the neighbor? Is it the man that was beaten on his way to Jerusalem? In the end, Jesus says the Samaritan who helped the man proved to be the neighbor (Luke 10:36-37). Jesus exposes the lawyer s selfcenteredness. Jesus turns the question around and through his story says, You are asking the wrong question! The deeper question to ponder is, What kind of person are YOU? The core issue is our love for others. Jesus teaches that true followers are characterized by their compassion and love for others. Discuss It: Who are you? This is the question before us. Are YOU characterized by your compassion and love for others? Are you motivated by your identity in Christ to show compassion to those who do not have a true spiritual knowledge of Jesus. What are some examples of what a person s like would look like if they were characterized in this way? What are specific examples of how they would interact with people and engage with people? The truth is that this person would be consumed with serving and loving those around them. Can you imagine this person not knowing who lived on either side of them in their neighborhood? Can you imagine this person being oblivious to the students who sits beside them every day in math class? Of course not, they would not only know those people, but they would have a strategy of love and service given their individual needs and personalities. Live It: Have a dedicated time of prayer where you lead the students to ask God for this kind of Christ-like love and compassion for those around them. Give each student an index card with I m a neighbor to written across the top. Instruct the
students to write down the names of those around them that they can minister to in this way. Ask a student to identify one of the names that they wrote down. Ask: How do you know this person? What kind of personality or specific needs do they have that could be opportunities for you to minister? How would this look in a practical way? At what point could you/would you bring the conversation to God and the gospel? Would this person likely be open to that conversation? Summary: True followers of Christ sacrifice self-centeredness in order to love and serve those who God has put in their paths. God is glorified through our love and service to others. He has given us an opportunity to share the gospel with these people and to reach our neighbors with the love and the message of hope in Christ. May we go and be the kind of neighbors that see people as potential trophies of God s grace. May we be bold and active as we follow Christ in this way. Romans 12:1, I urge you therefore brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. We sacrifice our lives for the glory of God and the good of others!
Case Scenario #1 Jack is a stud football player. He has been preparing for his high school football days since he was a small child in Pop Warner football at age 5. He has taken very seriously his physical conditioning and finds himself in peak condition for top performance. He is a natural athlete who can run fast, jump high, and hit hard. Jack s coach realizes that he is the best player on the field at any given time. Even though Jack is valuable to his team on the field, his teammates express disdain at his character. He skips mandatory workouts and gets away with it. He only works halfheartedly in practice while his teammates are giving 100%. Then they find him playing every down on game day while they watch from the sidelines. Not only that, Jack is just a mean guy. He seems to think that those around him should bow down to him since he has this physical ability. In the playoffs, a crucial 4th down and 2 is in Jack s hands. As the quarterback, he is faced with a decision. As the play begins, he reads the linebacker coming straight for him and in that moment, he realizes two teammates are wide open for the first down. However, if he gives up the ball to one of them, they will probably get the accolades for the winning catch. So, Jack keeps the ball and is crushed by the linebacker 1 yard short of the first down. Jack s team has lost. The scene shifts to the locker room where Jack has to answer for his actions. He explains that since he is the best player he thought it best to make a run for it himself for a sure-fire first down and game winning drive. If you are one of Jack s teammates how do you respond?
Case Scenario #2 Joe is a good husband and father. At least he thinks so. After all, he gets up early each morning to get ready and is always at work on time. Many days, he stays late at his job in order to provide for his family and their financial needs. He often reminds his family of all that he puts into his work for their sake. They often get tired of hearing it. Joe is proud of the work that he does. All of the people in his office comment regarding his ability to drive sales and perform at a high level. It was one of the greatest joys of his life to be recognized by the president of his company for his outstanding drive and achievement to become the top sales associate in the company. Joe strives to have that guy s job. He dreams of being the leader of a company who could be recognized for all of his achievements and decisions. The recognition that Joe has achieved at work has not come without sacrifice. He often stays at work so late that his family has already eaten dinner by the time he arrives home. He is so often worn out after coming home that he is short and snappy with his wife and kids. He almost can t stand to hear their voices or deal with their issues because he just needs to relax. If you are one of Joe s children, how do you respond?
Case Scenario #3 Andrea has always dreamt of caring for others by going to school to become a nurse. She can remember playing as a child with a toy stethoscope and thermometer as she examined her baby dolls as patients. She just knew that after high school she would attend a school where she could be instructed in the foundational knowledge and practical skills for nursing. She finally got the scores she needed to attend her parent s Alma Mater down south to pursue her dream of nursing. Her dream was going to become a reality this fall. She imagined of the friends she would make, the games she would attend, and the college swag she would wear as a student of the university. One night during DNOW her Senior year of high school, the Lord began working on her heart. Although she tried to suppress it, she couldn t escape the reality of God calling her to the mission field. God wanted to use her right away. The theme of the DNOW was Faithful Obedience and she knew what that meant for her life. She knew that in order to be faithfully obedient to God she would have to postpone her dreams of college to follow him onto the mission field. Andrea struggled. There were nights of restless sleep and laying awake looking at the ceiling as she contemplated what she would do. At the end of the day, she just couldn t sacrifice the opportunity before her. After all, once she had the degree, worked full-time for a few years, and established her life with a husband and all maybe they could go on a trip together. She justified her disobedience in these ways. She knew the right thing to do and yet she just couldn t do it. She has come to you as her trusted friend to ask for some help. How do you respond?