The Great Gospel of John
Volume 10
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
The Lord on the way to Bethsaida
- Chapter 139 -
Who is my neighbor?
I said: "The living faith that you have in Me will protect you against this, and if you will show your faith in Me through works of true neighborly love, you also will be entirely aware that I truly am the promised Messiah, and you will then reread in the prophets and see that everything written about Me in the Scripture was accomplished by Me and everything confirmed in Me."
2
The eldest said: "Lord and Master, to show neighborly love to the people would be all right if we only would know very clearly who actually our neighbor is."
3
I said: "Your neighbor is every human being, friend or enemy, who needs your help in no matter what good manner that is in accordance with God's commandments. But it is obvious that you should not help anyone who acts against God's commandments, but should withhold him from doing it. If you will do that, you will practice neighborly love and your reward in Heaven will be great.
4
If poor people come to you and grieve about their need, help them according to your strength and ability, because what you will do for the poor I will consider it as if you have done it for Me, and I will repay you already here and even more everlastingly later in My Kingdom.
5
When some true disciple and prophet in My name will come to you, accommodate him, listen to him and show love to him, for by doing so you have accommodated Me and you will also be worthy of the reward of a prophet.
6
But soon a great number of false prophets in My name will arise. They will teach the people for the sake of their own wallet and will deceive them through false signs which they learned from the magicians. Do not accommodate such false teachers and prophets, even when they loudly shout: 'Look, here, or, there is the Messiah, the anointed One of God', but show them with love and earnest that they are and act against Me. If they will listen to you and will give up their wrongdoing, then you also may consider and treat them as friends. But when they will not listen to you and will not repent, then chase them out of the community.
7
You will easily recognize a false teacher and prophet from his selfish works and deeds that are full of self-love, because from thistles you do not reap figs and from thorns no grapes.
8
Be always full of love, meekness, humility, mercy, justice and truth to everyone, then I also will be like that to you. Do not become deaf or hardhearted to the voice of poverty concerning the spirit as well as the body, then I also will not be like that to you when in some need you will lift up your voice to Me. With the measure with which you will measure, will also be measured to you.
9
If you - as I very well know - possess big earthly treasures and you lend it only with a good interest to those who can repay you at a fixed time, then you also have practiced a certain kind of neighborly love, but such neighborly love which rewards yourselves with a good interest will not be taken into account for a reward by Me. However, if you also lend your treasures to the poor without interest, of whom you know that they will not have it easy to pay you back, then I will be the One who will pay the interest and will repay your treasures, and no one will fall short with Me.
10
Look at the inhabitants of this village, who were poor. They only could live very scantily, but when poor or needy people came to them, they were immediately accommodated and were taken care of as possible without repayment. I surely knew that and came to them now at the right time as the best Rewarder, and none of them will say that I came too early or too late. Do likewise, then at the right time I also will be your Rewarder.