43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you: Love your enemiesand pray for those who persecute you, 45 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. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
This passage follows right on the heels of Jesus' admonition to not desire vengeance but rather to desire love, mercy and forgiveness. And this very much includes our enemies.
In his sermon, Love Your Enemies (Part 3), MacArthur says...
We all have friends, and I guess we all have enemies. We all have people who love to be with us and people who love to attack us. The test of our Christian character is not how we treat our friends, it's how we treat our enemies; that's the bottom line. You can really tell all there is to know about a man's true spirituality by what he does when people attack him, what he does when people despise, hate, persecute, stand against, or criticize him. That will be the revelation of the reality of his life. If he is a creature of love, made so by the indwelling presence of Jesus Christ, he will love that person just as much as he will love his dearest friend, because it will be his character to love and have little to do with the person involved.
I love that last line. Is it my character to love? Is it my character to love all those who cross my path, no matter who they are or what they've done?
Another important note....
You say, "What do you mean by love, John?" I don't mean affection. We talked about that the last time. God doesn't expect you to love themphilia, like a friend. He doesn't expect you to love them storge, like you love someone in your own family. He doesn't expect you to love them eros, with affectionate, desiring love. But what He does say is to love the agapao, which is a love that seeks their highest good and seeks to serve their needs....
Lenski says, "I cannot love a low, mean criminal who robs me and threatens my life, at least in the sense of liking him. I cannot like a false, lying, slanderous fellow, who perhaps has vilified me again and again. But I can, by the grace of Jesus Christ, love them all, see what is wrong with them, desire and work to do them only good, and most of all, to free them from their vicious ways."
So we are to love, not in terms of a feeling, but in terms of service.
Love does not mean that we trust someone, that we condone someone's wrong actions or that we even like them. Love means seeking their highest good, seeking to serve their needs, loving in terms of service, loving in action.
Tomorrow's scripture focus: Matthew 6:1-4
1 comment:
I like the translation of the different forms of love here. Very enlightening. Unfortunately, human nature is not often very loving. General sentiment is "you get what you give". I've said it myself. If someone doesn't treat me well, it is hard to be kind and patient with them. Definitely something to keep working on!
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