As Jesus went with him, he was surrounded by the crowds. A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding, and she could find no cure. Coming up behind Jesus, she touched the fringe of his robe. Immediately, the bleeding stopped. “Who touched me?” Jesus asked. Everyone denied it, and Peter said, “Master, this whole crowd is pressing up against you.” But Jesus said, “Someone deliberately touched me, for I felt healing power go out from me.” When the woman realized that she could not stay hidden, she began to tremble and fell to her knees in front of him. The whole crowd heard her explain why she had touched him and that she had been immediately healed. “Daughter,” he said to her, “your faith has made you well. Go in peace.” (Luke 8:42-48 NLT)

We’ve all heard the jingle: “Like a good neighbor, (say it with me!) State Farm is there!” You probably groaned when I said that because, let’s admit it, we’re pretty tired of hearing the same line over and over again.

The passage that we are looking at this week as two instances of Jesus being a “good neighbor,” but I am going to focus on only one of them: when Jesus acknowledged the bleeding woman. 

At the start of this story, Jesus is on his way to heal a sick girl (one “good neighbor” point). On his way there, he is surrounded by a plethora of people who are all trying to get closer to him. All of a sudden, Jesus feels a tug on the tassels of his robe. He stops everything he is doing to figure out who pulled on his robe, not to embarrass or shame the person who did, but to commend her for her faith. The woman’s bleeding is considered “unclean” and by touching Jesus’ robe, he is also considered “unclean” and therefore has every right to be upset at her. But the woman confesses through tears what she did, and Jesus responds with gentle words saying, “Daughter, your faith has made you well.” 

A good neighbor should, like Jesus, 1) care for his neighbors and 2) acknowledge his neighbors in a kind and uplifting way, not in a rude or belittling way. If something is wrong in a neighbor’s life, help them in some way, even if it is just praying for them. If you have to say something to your neighbor, say it with kindness and a smile. And maybe it’s hard to imagine this kind of relationship with our neighbors, one of compassion and kindness. But through being kind to the “unclean” woman, Jesus shows just how sometimes the unimaginable is what we need to do.

What are some ways you can be a good neighbor? List some actions you could take that would make people think: “Like a good neighbor, *insert your name* is there!”