Love for Enemies

October 11, 2020 Background Scripture: Luke 6:27 – 36 Lesson Passage: Luke 6:27 – 36 I once thought that a person’s love should be reserved for special situations and special people. But that was because of my concept of the word “love” as it is typically used in English. In English, the word love is often connected with emotions and feelings. There are four Greek words that tend to be translated in English as “love”. Three of those words are found in the bible. Our text uses the word agape in its Greek form. The Greek definition of agape describes acts of benevolence that are motivated by someone’s need with the one meeting the need finding joy in doing so. This is the love God extends to mankind through the offer of salvation. God delights in meeting our need for salvation. God sent Jesus to do for us what we could not do for ourselves. Jesus did not come as some obscure bystander observing humanity. Jesus was born into the human family. Jesus was very forthright in his engagement with people from all walks of society. He taught all who would hear him concerning the things of God. Jesus’ teachings were radical in the first century. Jesus pulled no punches when it came to pointing out hypocrisy and superficial people. He also stated clearly what was required for a person to be righteous before God. He told his followers that their righteousness had to exceed the righteousness of the religious leaders in Israel. He talked about loving people who were normally counted as bad: users, robbers, and bullies included. Love must not be limited to those who express love in return. Love should not exchange favors. But rather, love should seek opportunities where payback is not likely or is impossible. Jesus admonished his listeners—especially his followers—to exhibit God-like character by doing good for those who do not deserve it. This is not so difficult when one recognizes and accepts that we do not deserve God’s blessings. Why did Jesus’ teachings appear to be so radical? For one reason, his teachings defied “common sense”. “Common sense” suggests that a person should be kind to kind people and set limits so that mean people don’t abuse or misuse them. “Common sense” suggests that life is filled with give-and-take and compromises with like-minded people. Jesus taught that the character of a God-fearing person must exceed these expected norms in society. God-fearing people must be kind to mean people. God-fearing people must relax their limits even when they know they’re being used by bad people. This is a far cry from the playground mentality of “if somebody hit you, hit them back”. Just when they thought they knew how to handle both good and bad people, Jesus gave them new requirements. Is there no wonder some of Jesus’ followers decided to leave and follow him on more? This is radical teaching! And what about those people who seem bent on destroying others whenever an opportunity presents itself? Jesus said a God-fearing person should love them. This is the agape love. God-fearing persons should fulfill the needs of their enemies—and delight in doing so! This mindset can only come from God. I can meet the needs of someone who clearly hates me. But, to delight in meeting their needs requires a regenerated spirit and the mind of Christ. God readily provides both to all who sincerely call upon Him for salvation. With God’s help, it is possible to show love for one’s enemies. Robert C. Hudson September 23, 2020