Love your enemy?
Jesus said,
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’
But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?
And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Matthew 5:43-47
Here is a very Christian trait. Loving your enemy. Perhaps one of the hardest things we can do. Yet God did it to us when we still enemies to Him.
The apostle Paul writing to the Romans said,
“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.
Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!
For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!
Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation” Romans 5:6-11.
What Paul is saying here is we as mere human beings could not live a life that was good enough to have fellowship with God. We are by nature sinners and sin separates us from God. It if you will, makes us enemies to God.
However God knowing it is impossible for us to live perfect lives entered this world in the form of Jesus, His one and only Son. Who died for our sins. The writer of Hebrews telling us.
“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” Hebrews 1:1-3
Paul writing to the Corinthians said,
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8,9.
We get to heaven by the grace of God through faith in the saving Grace of Jesus.
Now I have said all of that to say this is why we especially if we claim to be Christian, should love our enemies, because God set the example. As Christians we believe we know the way to heaven.
As Christians I believe we have the most important message in the history of mankind that being, The Way to heaven.
We cannot get this message out if we do not love all those we come in contact with, even our enemies.
Paul even tells us to pray for our persecutors for he knew that they too needed to know of the love of Jesus, the Love of God.
The Apostle Peter reminds us,
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Dear friends,
I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.
Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” 1 Peter 2:9-12.
Loving all we come in contact with is a positive sign even if you are not a Christian. Martin Luther King Jr. the American civil rights leader once said,
Jesus said,
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’
But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?
And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Matthew 5:43-47
Here is a very Christian trait. Loving your enemy. Perhaps one of the hardest things we can do. Yet God did it to us when we still enemies to Him.
The apostle Paul writing to the Romans said,
“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.
Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!
For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!
Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation” Romans 5:6-11.
What Paul is saying here is we as mere human beings could not live a life that was good enough to have fellowship with God. We are by nature sinners and sin separates us from God. It if you will, makes us enemies to God.
However God knowing it is impossible for us to live perfect lives entered this world in the form of Jesus, His one and only Son. Who died for our sins. The writer of Hebrews telling us.
“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” Hebrews 1:1-3
Paul writing to the Corinthians said,
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8,9.
We get to heaven by the grace of God through faith in the saving Grace of Jesus.
Now I have said all of that to say this is why we especially if we claim to be Christian, should love our enemies, because God set the example. As Christians we believe we know the way to heaven.
As Christians I believe we have the most important message in the history of mankind that being, The Way to heaven.
We cannot get this message out if we do not love all those we come in contact with, even our enemies.
Paul even tells us to pray for our persecutors for he knew that they too needed to know of the love of Jesus, the Love of God.
The Apostle Peter reminds us,
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Dear friends,
I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.
Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” 1 Peter 2:9-12.
Loving all we come in contact with is a positive sign even if you are not a Christian. Martin Luther King Jr. the American civil rights leader once said,
Love is the only force capable
of transforming an enemy into friend.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Please think about it.
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