Won't You Be My Neighbor-Dine With Your Neighbor
Sharing a meal used to be the utmost of courtesy and personal closeness
Sunday was World Communion Sunday. Methodists worldwide took the Lord's Supper Sunday, linking us all with that event. Pastor Joe read from Philippians to highlight our collective Church Universal unity.
2make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.
3Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves;
4do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.
5Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,
6who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped,
7but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.
8Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Philippians 2:2–8 (NASB95)
I cannot find where the scripture was read in my notes, so I'll insert them here. Two were used for Sunday.
19Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus,
20by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh,
21and since we have a great priest over the house of God,
22let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
23Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful;
24and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds,
25not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.
Hebrews 10:19–25 (NASB95)
15I speak as to wise men; you judge what I say.
16Is not the cup of blessing which we bless a sharing in the blood of Christ? Is not the bread which we break a sharing in the body of Christ?
17Since there is one bread, we who are many are one body; for we all partake of the one bread.
1 Corinthians 10:15–17 (NASB95)
Pastor Kristen Lee gave the message on Sunday. This was the final sermon in the Won't You Be My Neighbor series. She started by saying, "Salvation frees us to live in God's goodwill." She then stated that the scripture for today called us to do three things: draw near, confess our hope, and consider each other carefully.
She started off with Draw Near and said it was ambiguous what we are told to draw near to. She asked if it was supposed to be each other or not. My question was if it wasn't supposed to be God. The Greek word used for "draw near" is a single word, proserchomai. Let's look at that.
Greek Strong's Number: 4334
Greek Word: προσέρχομαι
Transliteration: proserchomai
Phonetic Pronunciation: pros-er’-khom-ahee
Root: from <G4314> and <G2064> (including its alternate)
Cross Reference: TDNT - 2:683,257
Part of Speech: v
Vine's Words: Come, Came, Consent, Draw (away; back; nigh; on; out; up), Near (Adverb), Near (come; draw), Nearer
Usage Notes:
English Words used in KJV:
come 30
come to 25
come unto 19
go to 3
go unto 2
draw near 2
miscellaneous translations 5
[Total Count: 86]
From <G4314> (pros) and <G2064> (erchomai) (including its alternate); to approach, i.e. (literal) come near, visit, or (figurative) worship, assent to:- (as soon as he) come (unto), come thereunto, consent, draw near, go (near, to, unto).
James Strong, "Προσέρχομαι," Strong's Talking Greek and Hebrew Dictionary (WORDsearch, 2020).
The fact that the Greek word used has aspects of worship involved tells me it was not a "draw near" to each other because we are never commanded to worship earthly things. However, given the "come near" or "visit" connotations, it could be a call for us to draw near to each other for the purposes of worship. Regardless, the intention is that this drawing near is involved in the worship of God, so God is without question involved whether it is as we come together to worship Him or individually draw near to Him to worship.
Pastor Lee launched into a summary of the show, Mr. Roger's Neighborhood, and how it specifically showed everyone as our neighbor, not just the people we see near where we live. The show began back in 1968. Pastor Lee tried to connect the show with the public pool desegregation movement and cited "filling in pools with cement rather than integrating." I couldn't find an article on this, but I did find everything from 1950 on, including a Supreme Court decision that allowed for cities to close public pools rather than operate them as integrated pools (you can read about that HERE.)
She did show a clip from Mister Roger's Neighborhood with a black police officer sharing a kiddie pool to "cool off his feet" at Mr. Roger's invitation, which you can watch the 2:56 clip HERE. Two things stuck out in my mind. First, they focus on the kiddie pool with the black man's feet in stark contrast to the white man's feet. Second, no one mentions race, racism, or anything else to "make a statement" about what they're doing. They just do it. The one man is polite, kind, and helpful, while the other man is polite, thankful, and grateful. What a fantastic example.
Pastor Lee took that clip and stated, "Sometimes just a minute like this can really make a difference." She referenced Francois Clemmons and an interview he did later in life. Mr. Clemmons was the actor who played opposite Mr. Rogers in the clip. He said that when he read the script, he wanted more from the scene. However, after he saw it, he realized just how powerful it was as it was filmed. He was right.
We are, as a church of believers who follow a risen Lord, Jesus Christ, are called to worship and serve with whomever God sends to us, our church, and our community. It isn't something we should withhold or question, but we should be obedient when it comes.
From this point, Pastor Lee moved into the 1 Corinthians passage and communion. However, after communion, she closed with Mr. Roger's tagline from his show. She said, "I like you just the way you are."
That line is fantastic for Mister Roger's Neighborhood, and it is, in truth, a great invitation for people to come into our church. However, it is a poor approximation to equate that to those of us already followers of Jesus. What do I mean by that?
While Mr. Rogers can like us "just the way we are" and God sent His Son to provide salvation for everyone, which is what I believe Pastor Lee was hinting at, there is a potential miscommunication in that phrase spoken as a benediction to a congregation of believers going out into a fallen world.
God does not want His children to stay "just the way you are." In fact, Jesus did not come to this world to die for our sins so we can stay "just the way you are." Jesus and the Gospel of Christ decidedly call us to change, repent from our sins, and grow closer to God's ways by discarding our ways. Welcome your brother. Welcome your sister. Embrace everyone as your neighbor and put no stumbling block before them as they walk their path, but be sure that in your walk, you discard those things God does not like and take on more of those things He does like. God bless and Godspeed.
13and leaving Nazareth, He came and settled in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali.
14This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet:
15 "The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—
16 "The people who were sitting in darkness saw a great Light, And those who were sitting in the land and shadow of death, Upon them a Light dawned."
17From that time Jesus began to preach and say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
Matthew 4:13–17 (NASB95)
Isaiah 9:1-2; Isaiah 60:1-3