Love Your Enemies

Happy Sunday! Today we wrap up the fifth chapter of Matthew. The Sermon on the Mount continues in chapter six and seven, and we'll be here for a while. If you thought that last week was hard, this week is really hard. Let me get right to it.

This is what Jesus said in verse 43. He said, "You've heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy." I'll stop there. Religious leaders of the day were often not telling the truth. It was indeed taught over 2,000 years ago that it was okay to hate your enemies.

I'm convinced that today many are drawn to the Muslim religion because it's not just okay to hate your enemies, it's applauded. And it's human to hate our enemies. It's also far from God's truth. You will not find "hate your enemies" in scripture.

Jesus is refer referring to Le Leviticus 19:18. There it says, "You shall not take Vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord." Now, Through The Years, teachers surmised that "love your neighbor" meant those nearest and dearest to you. Men added the teaching that it was okay to not love your non neighbors. That reminds you of the question of "who is my neighbor" that Jesus was was asked once.

But in those days, "hate your enemies" became ingrained in even the religious community. Jesus would have none of it. In verse 44 he lets the people know what's expected. In verse 44 he said, "But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you."

Jesus is clear here: love is to be our default setting. Not just love for family and friends, but for everybody, even those who persecute us. Romans 12:14 puts it this way: "Bless those who persecute you; bless and do do not curse them." Jesus goes on to tell the crowd that this is proof of our Salvation.

After telling us that we are to love our enemies, he says this in verse 45: "Love them so that you may be children of your father in Heaven, for he makes his son rise on the evil and on the good, and he sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous." Now, we do not do this, love our enemies, to gain our Salvation. We do this to prove our Salvation. There's no way to do this without the love of God in our lives.

God is our great example here. He gives sunshine and Rain to everybody, The Good, The Bad. God loves the people of this world, and he expects us to as well. Now, our natural inclination may be to return evil for evil. If we are hated, we hate right back.

"They started it" may be our flimsy defense at times. Returning evil for evil is human; returning good for evil evil is divine. That's what Jesus did. Jesus asked two really poignant questions in verses 46 and 47.

In verse 46: "For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?" And now verse 47: "And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?"

Here Jesus points out that even the tax collectors, who would have been hated by the crowd listening to his words that day long ago, even the tax collectors were nice to their friends, maybe the other Tax Collectors. The Gentiles, or pagans to the crowd, were also good to their own kind. As Christians, we're to go above and beyond. Like our lesson said last week, the extra mile is our path.

Now, if you want biblical examples of loving enemies, you'd immediately think of Jesus, Jesus's example on the cross. Those words, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing," amaze me. Jesus sure practiced what he preached. And you may say, you know, it's impossible for the average man to do something so Divine.

You need to read the seventh chapter of Acts. There we read the story of stepen. Steven was chosen by the apostles to be a helper and a servant to help in the ministry in the early days of the church. When he preached the truth, he was brought up on charges to the high priest, and the decision was made to Stone him to death.

Listen to his last words, found in Verses 59 and 60 of Acts 7: "While they were stoning Steven, he prayed, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. Then he knelt down and cried out in a loud voice, Lord, do not hold this sin against them. And when he said this, he died." Steven followed the teaching and the example of Jesus.

One thing I read that struck me, and and it stuck with me: Jesus does not promise that our love will turn our enemies into our friends. Results don't matter. Our love is to be given without any expectation of return. Let me close with these words from Ephesians 4:32: "Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you."

Pray with me. Lord, you have not given us what we've deserved. If you'd have done that, we'd have all been Zapped a long time ago. But you're patient, and you're loving, and you're kind, even when we have been unfaithful.

Help us to emulate the life of Jesus, the life of stepen, when we're told to love everybody, to forgive, to pray for. Chang Us in that way. In Jesus name, amen. God bless, have a great day.