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Love for Enemies
Submitted by Jennifer McClure
I am not a big believer in signs, really; but I feel like this truly was one.
So…I received a monthly devotion in the mail from the Charles Stanley’s ministry called “In Touch.” Soon after cracking the seal, I flipped through it and soon happened upon the verses contained in a day’s devotional entitled “Loving Your Enemies.” I paused and thought to myself, this is exactly what I need right now. Strangely enough the Bible verse entailed began with Luke 6:27. Coincidentally, my birthday is June 27th(6/27); and I just knew this was meant for me specifically at that moment, so I definitely read on. While I am familiar with the verses, my heart needed to “hear” them again.
Luke 6:27-36 27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.
32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
These verses were dropped in my lap today. God’s timing is, indeed, perfect. I thought I would share my reminder, because maybe you needed to “hear” them again too. I am personally struggling with loving my enemies and at times even identifying them at the moment. I am unsure if this makes it easier, or more difficult to do, as God instructs believers to do so. Praying for those who mistreat you and turning the other cheek, we are all aware are not so simple nor easy! Do those evil, broken persons not deserve our prayers just as anyone else does? God knows and loves our enemies just as much as He loves us. That right there is difficult for me to swallow.
Be merciful and offer grace just as you would expect and appreciate from others and our Lord. When the shoe is on the other foot, which is more often than we would like to admit, what do you chose to do? As the current, popular Facebook post says, you can’t be “runnin’ around with a mouth full of scripture and a heart full of hate.”
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