Monday, February 25, 2019

Enemies


Have you ever had someone in your life that simply was not easy to love?  Maybe they did something horrible to you.  You even considered them an enemy because they hurt you or someone you love. 

Matthew 5:43
You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’  

Matthew 22:37-39
Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

Loving your neighbor who you like is easy.  So, when we are told to love our neighbor as ourselves, it doesn’t seem so hard.

Matthew 5:44
I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.

This gets to be harder and takes more effort from us to accomplish.  So why should we love our enemies? 

Matthew 5:46
If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?

Luke 6:35a
But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back.

But why?  What’s in it for me?

Luke 6:35b
Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.

We are told to be children of God, we must love even those that we classify as enemies.  Imagine if God considered us enemies because we did something that hurt him.

Luke 6:36
Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.



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