It Is My Business
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It Is My Business
fennywest Mon 18 Jan 2010, 7:37 pm
: Leviticus 19:11-18
You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge . . . , but you shall love your neighbor as yourself. —Leviticus 19:18
In 1955, when the South was still highly segregated, Emmett Till, a black teenager from Chicago, visited relatives in Mississippi. After Emmett “dared” to talk to a white woman, two white men brutally murdered him. An all-white, male jury found the two “not guilty”—after deliberating for barely an hour. The two men later confessed to the crime in a Life magazine article.
Following the verdict, Emmett’s mother said, “Two months ago I had a nice apartment in Chicago. I had a good job. I had a son. When something happened to Negroes in the South, I said, ‘That’s their business, not mine.’ Now I know how wrong I was. The murder of my son has shown me that what happens to any of us, anywhere in the world, had better be the business of us all.”
Making another’s concerns our own is what Leviticus 19:18 calls us to do: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus quotes this verse and interprets it as not placing any limitations on loving those around us (Matt. 22:39; Luke 10:25-37). Our neighbor doesn’t just mean someone close by; it’s anyone who has a need. We are to care for others as we care for ourselves.
To love our neighbor means to make the persecution, suffering, and injustice of our fellow human beings our own. It is the business of all who follow Christ. — Marvin Williams
Our Daily Bread- Radio Bible Class
The article above was written along time ago but is it not amazing how poignant it is in the light of what is happening, especially in Haiti, where between 50000-100000 are feared dead in the recent earthquake.
The tragedy underscores how close we are to death. It can happen any time and we need to be ready to meet our Maker. Tomorrow is not promised anyone,
Therefore firstly, we who are alive need to reflect soberly how we are living our lives.
Secondly, we need to respond to the crisis even if it is not in our own backyard.
As testified by the mother of Emmett Till, “what happens to any of us, anywhere in the world, had better be the business of us all.”
You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge . . . , but you shall love your neighbor as yourself. —Leviticus 19:18
In 1955, when the South was still highly segregated, Emmett Till, a black teenager from Chicago, visited relatives in Mississippi. After Emmett “dared” to talk to a white woman, two white men brutally murdered him. An all-white, male jury found the two “not guilty”—after deliberating for barely an hour. The two men later confessed to the crime in a Life magazine article.
Following the verdict, Emmett’s mother said, “Two months ago I had a nice apartment in Chicago. I had a good job. I had a son. When something happened to Negroes in the South, I said, ‘That’s their business, not mine.’ Now I know how wrong I was. The murder of my son has shown me that what happens to any of us, anywhere in the world, had better be the business of us all.”
Making another’s concerns our own is what Leviticus 19:18 calls us to do: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus quotes this verse and interprets it as not placing any limitations on loving those around us (Matt. 22:39; Luke 10:25-37). Our neighbor doesn’t just mean someone close by; it’s anyone who has a need. We are to care for others as we care for ourselves.
To love our neighbor means to make the persecution, suffering, and injustice of our fellow human beings our own. It is the business of all who follow Christ. — Marvin Williams
For Further Thought
How can we be a good neighbor? Be respectful to all. Lend a hand. Volunteer. Join a neighborhood association. Speak up when others are treated unjustly.
Compassion puts love into action.
How can we be a good neighbor? Be respectful to all. Lend a hand. Volunteer. Join a neighborhood association. Speak up when others are treated unjustly.
Compassion puts love into action.
Our Daily Bread- Radio Bible Class
The article above was written along time ago but is it not amazing how poignant it is in the light of what is happening, especially in Haiti, where between 50000-100000 are feared dead in the recent earthquake.
The tragedy underscores how close we are to death. It can happen any time and we need to be ready to meet our Maker. Tomorrow is not promised anyone,
Therefore firstly, we who are alive need to reflect soberly how we are living our lives.
Secondly, we need to respond to the crisis even if it is not in our own backyard.
As testified by the mother of Emmett Till, “what happens to any of us, anywhere in the world, had better be the business of us all.”
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Jeanne Guyon (1648-1717) wrote powerfully about the need for an intimate relationship with Almighty God, including this: “He who has a pure heart will never cease to pray; and he who will be constant in prayer, shall know what it is to have a pure heart.”
