Luke
6:27-28 “But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies,
do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those
who spitefully use you.” NKJV
The desire to love those who hate you and seek to
hurt and harm you is not natural to our fallen human nature and it comes under a
part of what the Holy Spirit speaks through the Apostle Paul when he says, “For
the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these
are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.” The
word love our Lord uses here speaks of “moral love” and it is not meant to be
understood in a social sense only here but that one would desire the highest
good for their enemy as our Father in Heaven does and so sent His only Son to
die that men might be brought out of their sinful enslavement (that separates
man from God) and into fellowship with Him. A love that suffers long with the evil
perpetrated against it and not repaying said evil with our own evil acts in
return.
It is wrought in us from the first instance of our
new birth to will or desire to see all men and women come to faith in our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. And one cannot want to see lost men or women saved
from sin and hell and not love them. However, this love we cannot somehow
produce or work up but it can only flow from being led by, walking in, and
living under the control of God the Holy Spirit and not grieving Him with our
stiff-necked and stubborn rebellion and disobedience. Our Lord has to place us
in His Divine School and teach us how to walk and live in this world that is
hostile and hateful to Him, His gospel, and His Teachings. One would have few
enemies if one would refuse to deny themselves and take up their cross and
follow Him but instead become politically correct in this day and age agreeable
with all the popular opinions of the times and not living and obeying the Lord’s
Teachings.
Our Lord’s first disciples did not come out of their
fishing boats, politics, tax collecting, and other occupations and ways of life
into full and complete understanding and acceptance of His ways and Teachings. We
have to look no further than the occasion when our Lord was steadfastly setting
His face to go to Jerusalem and He and the disciples were refused lodging by a
Samaritan Village and two of His disciples James and John wanted to call down
fire from Heaven as did Elijah to consume those people. I suppose every true
disciple of our Lord Jesus has been there before just as these two men, I know
I have. They did definitely not love their enemies but they thought they were
showing love to their Lord by wanting to destroy those who would cause harm or
injury to Him. The response to them from our Lord was swift and it was lovingly
harsh, for He wanted them to know that He desires men and women to receive
forgiveness from His hand no matter their expression of sin from a heart uncircumcised
and unregenerate. He knew these people and all people minus union with Him are
slaves to sin and evil and cannot free themselves and they only do what comes
natural from their fallen nature. Therefore, the Scripture says that our Lord
turned and rebuked His disciples by saying, “You do not
know what manner of spirit you are of. For the Son of Man did not come to
destroy men’s lives but to save them” (see the article entitled “He turned and rebuked
them”, http://www.faithwriters.com/article-details.php?id=91008
).
Our Lord did not gloss over the disciples sin of the
spirit, but corrected them and showed them by those words and His actions of
bringing no reprisal to those people for what they said and did to Him and
wanted them to understand how He loves all men and it is their purpose to learn
of Him and go and do likewise. Our Lord was the One who created hell for the
devil and his angels and it is not His will for men and women to go to this
place of eternal torments. This is why He desires us to pray for the people who
hate us and even hurt us because what they are doing to those of us who love
the Lord Jesus is temporary, but what will be done to them minus regeneration
and new birth will be eternal. Therefore, as hard as it is and make no mistake
it is hard to love those that hate us, but we are to look past their natural attitudes
and behavior to those of us who love our Lord Jesus Christ and see them as He
sees them desiring them to be brought out of the control of sin, darkness, and
the devil into His marvelous light and love and thereby escaping a place we
should not desire to see anyone spend their eternity.
Romans
12:17-21 Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight
of all men. If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with
all men. Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to
wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance
is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
If he is thirsty, give him a drink;
For in so doing you will heap coals
of fire on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil
with good. NKJV
“We wish well to the person of another, though we
cannot approve his conduct. This is the love of benevolence, and this love we
are to bear toward our enemies. It is impossible to love the conduct of a
person who curses and reviles us, who injures our person or property, or who
violates all the laws of God; but, though we may hate his conduct, and suffer
keenly when we are affected by it, yet we may still wish well to the person; we
may pity his madness and folly; we may speak kindly of him and to
him; we may return good for evil; we may aid him in the time of trial; we may
seek to do him good here and to promote his eternal welfare hereafter. This
seems to be what is meant by loving our enemies; and this is a special law of
Christianity, and the highest possible test of piety, and probably the most
difficult of all duties to be performed.” Albert Barnes 1798-1870
“This is therefore one of the most reasonable
precepts in the universe. But who can obey it? None but he who has the mind of
Christ. But I have it not. Seek it from God; it is that kingdom of heaven which
Christ came to establish upon earth. See on Mat_3:2 (note). This one
precept is a sufficient proof of the holiness of the Gospel, and of the truth
of the Christian religion. Every false religion flatters man, and accommodates
itself to his pride and his passions. None but God could have imposed a yoke so
contrary to self-love; and nothing but the supreme eternal love can enable men
to practice a precept so insupportable to corrupt nature.” Adam Clarke
1760-1832
If
you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this
from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear
Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I
believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from
the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn
from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control
of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...
Sincerely in Christ,
Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you
Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus
Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and
Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple
I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reader,
Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…
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