This week I was challenged by a new aspect of God’s command to love our neighbor in the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37). I realized that this parable is given for a Jewish audience, and in response to the question of an expert in God’s law. The audience, like many of us, would not associate with a certain group of people—in their case, the Samaritans. Like many of us in church today, they knew all of the answers to Jesus’ questions. Unfortunately, for all our religion, we often do not really know what it looks like to love and live as Jesus wants us to. This parable is meant to awaken people like us!

How many of us have become “experts in God’s law” and yet fail to put it into practice? Or perhaps we will put it into practice up to a point that remains comfortable—we’ll love those neighbors that we like, when it is convenient. The expert in the law “wanted to justify himself, so he asked, ‘And who is my neighbor?’” In response, the parable shows that when we try to justify ourselves and make excuses for why we are exempted from loving those in need, we are missing the point.

How do we change? In this passage, Jesus calls us to let Him define the conditions of our love. We, like the expert in the law, have a tendency to love and care for those we get along with easily, so we draw the boundaries of our “neighborhood” and pat ourselves on the back for how well we love others. But then Jesus confronts us in this passage, breaks down our spiritual gerrymandering and calls us to be a neighbor to those in need, those who are different, those who are enemies.

The really terrifying thing is that showing this kind of radical neighborly love takes time. Being a neighbor is not writing a quick check, though the Samaritan did leave one at the inn to make sure the man was taken care of. No, this kind of love required the Samaritan to forgo his plans and respond to the dire need of the beaten Israelite.

What are the needs in your community? Or perhaps this parable changes the question, and you need to completely rethink who your “community” and your “neighbors” really are.

Jesus’ command to “Go and do likewise” is a paraphrase: Go and be a neighbor to a victim in need, disregard the fact that they are from a different faction of society, give generously of your time and money to physically and personally meet their need. That is what it means to be a neighbor in Durham.

I hope you will join me in helping the people that God has placed in our path who have been beaten and left by the side of the road in our society. With God’s help and example, let’s be neighbors who cross social boundaries and show love to even the least of these.

What is the ultimate goal and vision of DurhamCares?

The process of asking this question about our organization over the past weeks may prove to be a watershed in DurhamCares history.

Up until now, our main goals have been inspired by the parable of the good Samaritan: to broaden the definition of “neighbor,” help people understand Durham’s needs, and then “remove barriers” and “make it easy for people to give of their time and money.” We wanted to increase and improve volunteerism and donation by helping people in Durham better understand how to love their neighbor. But does giving more correspond to loving your neighbor?

Looking at what our approach and our vision boiled down to, I saw in DurhamCares a mix of United Way, VolunteerMatch, VolunteerCenter, and a charity-consulting group with a strong flavor of Christian inspiration. There is nothing new about having people care for each other more, connecting needs and resources, or ultimately seeking to improve the community. Our hope is to accomplish these objectives more effectively because we work on a local and personal level. If DurhamCares is to be one more way that people can show they care, this is great. None of us could settle for that, however…and here’s why:

When we get to heaven, I do not think Jesus is not going to say “When I was hungry, you gave a check to United Way and they fed me. When I was naked you gave your clothing to the Durham Rescue Mission and they clothed me.” Our goal cannot only be for people to write “$5,000 checks instead of $500” if we want them to love their neighbors. Giving more and volunteering more may never get people to love their neighbors; in fact, it may placate their consciences and insulate them from the challenges of truly acting in love. Though we will encourage and help people give, our vision must be to help them see beyond their gifts and get actively involved in loving.

I Corinthians 13 says that if we sell all that we have and give it to the poor, but have not love, it is meaningless. If DurhamCares increases donations and volunteerism without helping people love, it is meaningless.

To put it in more concrete terms, at DurhamCares our foremost goal is not to get you to increase your giving from 1.8% of your income to 4.3%. That may coddle you into thinking that you are doing better and we may be keeping you from seeing what it means to love. Do you love someone who is “poor”? Do you love those around you enough to know their needs? Have you ever been to a neighborhood where the needs are completely different from yours? What would you think if I told you that we are encouraging you to get involved not because of what you can offer, but because we want to meet your needs?

That’s right, DurhamCares is going to change you-the donors. We are going to take you half way across the world or maybe just half way across town and get you involved in a person’s life that you could not have imagined. We are not doing this just so you will write a larger check, but to give you an entirely new perspective on life-how you spend your waking hours, how you view the city, poverty, need. We are going to show you that the people you saw as “needy” have things to offer you. We are going to get you actively involved in caring for your neighbors, your city, and the world. As you get involved, I am sure that you will give more of your time and money-not because we have convinced you, but because you have experienced what it is to truly care. Do not settle into “giving to charity,” let DurhamCares challenge you.

So why is this a watershed moment for DurhamCares? Now that we have set our sights on “Love thy Neighbor”-an incredibly unique and compelling vision-we need to develop our programs to reach this audacious goal. Our mindset has shifted from helping people give more to providing opportunities that will challenge and enable them to love. Naturally, giving will be part of this, but giving alone won’t cut it.