Jesus taught that it was impossible to love God and not love
your neighbor.
When asked what the greatest commandment was, Jesus said,
“Love the Lord your God with all your soul, mind, and strength.
The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:31-32). How is it then that we can be concerned about God, yet overlook what our neighbor may need?
There once was a farmer who grew award-winning corn. Each year he entered his corn
in the state fair where it won top prize.
One year a newspaper reporter interviewed him and learned something interesting
about how he grew corn. The reporter discovered that the farmer shared his seed corn
with his neighbors. “How can you afford to share your best seed corn with your
neighbors when they are entering corn in competition with yours each year?” the
reporter asked. “Why sir,” said the farmer, “didn’t you know? The wind picks up pollen
from the ripening corn and swirls it from field to field. If my neighbors grow inferior
corn, cross-pollination will steadily degrade the quality of my corn. If I am to grow good
corn, I must help my neighbors grow good corn.”
To this question, Jesus’ point was quite simple yet profound: you cannot say you love
God yet hate your neighbor. The Apostle John adds that “anyone who does not love his
brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen” (1 John 4:20).
This February at Christ’s Body, we want our homeless guests to know that we love
them. More importantly, we want to tell them that God loves them too. In turn, our
prayer and hope is that they will take God’s love with them and love their neighbors.
The corn farmer got it. He knew that his neighbor’s corn would be better by cross
pollinating with his corn, and vice versa. Corn pollen was his way to love his neighbor.
When we love our neighbor, we give away God’s love to others. Sometimes, it is
unappreciated or rejected. But often, it bears fruit in ways that we do not expect. To
love my neighbor is an attitude from God. Who knows-your neighbor needs corn pollen,
a plate of food or a place ahead of you in the morning traffic.
Pastor Jim
