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A few years ago, Jon and I moved into a tiny, slightly dilapidated bungalow in East Hollywood.
I loved it. It was cozy, quirky, and exactly what we needed at the time. But the best part about this house wasn’t the natural light or tandem parking - it was our neighbors.
On moving day, our next door neighbor Gloria came out to meet us. She was ninety years old and only spoke Spanish. Fumbling my way through our conversation, she stops mid-sentence to go inside and bring us out two cans of diet coke “to beat the heat.” I knew then this place was special.
Over time, we began to develop a friendship with the family of four that lived above us. They spoke little English so we ended up communicating mainly through food. They would often make us extra plates of their dinner, and I would regularly drop off baked goods in return.
Since having to move last year, I’ve found myself missing these small interactions with them. After bouncing around LA for awhile, we settled in a large apartment complex where everyone keeps to themselves. The most interaction I get now is an obligatory nod in the elevator. This has me wondering, “what does it actually look like to love my neighbor?”
Sure, I have some ideas, but much like the man who asked Jesus in Luke 10 - I want specifics.
25 On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
26 “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”
27 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.”
28 “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”
29 But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’
36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
Go and do likewise.
In other words, go and show mercy.
But what does it mean to show mercy? And how is this different from compassion or kindness?
Tim Mackie from the Bible Project explains that,
“Mercy is a step beyond doing what is simply right or fair - mercy is generosity. It is an extravagant kindness that goes beyond what is required.”
Going beyond what’s required of us, or inconveniencing ourselves for the sake of others - that’s mercy.
While compassion is feeling empathy for another and wanting to ease their suffering, mercy takes it a step further. It is the action that results from compassion.
As Susan Sontag said,
“Compassion is an unstable emotion. It needs to be translated into action or it withers.”
Mercy is the fruit of compassion.
To show mercy means to first feel compassion for another person and then go out of our way to help them, bearing the cost. The cost could be our time, money, resources, energy, or comfort, but anytime we “act justly and love mercy”(Micah 6:8), there is a cost. We see this in Luke when the good samaritan uses his own resources and we see this ourselves anytime we try to someone.
This parable demonstrates that loving our neighbor goes beyond those living next door—it means offering mercy to anyone in need around us. It’s about letting our lives be interrupted by others' pain and stepping into their stories. Oftentimes, this looks like small, daily sacrifices where we choose to show up, listen, and help.
One of my favorite examples of this comes from Lyndsey Medford of Creaturely and her story of a bus stop.
Despite owning two cars, she and her husband choose to ride the bus to better understand their city. During one of these rides, she noticed an unmarked stop with no bench for waiting commuters. Instead of simply notifying the city, she and her neighbors spent an entire day building and installing a bench themselves. They went above and beyond, using their own money, time, and effort to actively care for the needs of others and ensure they had a place to rest.
While acts of mercy can be big demonstrations of love, they can also be tiny ones as well - like exchanging food with your neighbor or handing out a can of coke on a hot day.
As I work on getting to know my new neighbors, I am constantly on the look out for ways I can go above and beyond what is required of me - not just for them, but for the most marginalized in my neighborhood as well. I recall Jesus’ words to “go and do likewise.”
Think back to a time when someone showed you mercy—when they went above and beyond what was expected. How did that make you feel? What stands out most from that moment?
What’s one act of mercy you can extend to a neighbor this week? Consider reaching out to the one you know the least or even the one who annoys you the most. Take over dinner, offer to pick up their kids from school, bring in their garbage cans, invite them to game night, etc.
Who is the most marginalized person on your block? Who has the greatest need? Is it the homeless man on the corner, the elderly woman two doors down, the bodega owner struggling to attract customers, or the neighbor whom others might label as “crazy”? Take a moment to consider how you could show them love and mercy this week. What might that look like in action?
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