Love Your Enemies!

"You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 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. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?" Matthew 5:43-47

Yikes! In the past few weeks I've written about loving our neighbors, loving our community, and even loving ourselves, but this one... this one is a bit more tricky isn't it! As I think about this, I can say that I am thankful that I live in a place and a time where the word 'enemy' has a different meaning. In other countries and in other times, enemy could truly mean someone who wants us dead. Someone who truly hates us and wishes for an opportunity to cause harm. I am truly blessed and fortunate to live in a time and place where enemy is something much milder.

But do I really have enemies? The dictionary defines it as 'one who is antagonistic to another; one who seeks to overthrow, injure, or confound an opponent.' Hmm. I guess for me, the best I can say about having an enemy is that an enemy, I suppose, would be the people that I just don't get along with.

I guess when I think about it, I don't really have that much to say about this. I think it's pretty obvious, and is summed up in Jesus' words that we should love our enemies, or we are no better than pagans and tax collectors. But I guess when I think about people who are my "enemy", I think about my specific behavior about them and towards them. How do I show love to someone whom I really don't care to spend any time with? Well, I can start with my actions and my words. Instead of complaining about that person to whomever will listen, I can catch my gossiping tongue and still it. When I see them coming towards me at the grocery store, instead of dashing down another aisle to avoid them, I can greet them with a smile and ask about their day. Instead of viewing everything that person does with scorn and criticism, I can look for the positive and maybe take the time to compliment them on that one positive thing.

The thing about loving your enemies is that it isn't so much about trying to change them into something they aren't, it's about changing yourself. That can be a hard pill to swallow sometimes. And while there will always be people who we don't particularly like or get along with, as children of God, we do need to find ways to get along. That person may never be your best, closest friend, but when you can take that step and make an effort, God notices that. Loving your enemies is probably the toughest of them all, yet if we're truly to be Christ-like and loving, then we need to be an example in all areas. Loving your enemies starts within, and thankfully, we can ask God for help with that. We can ask him to help change our mindsets and help us to love the impossible person. And even better, we can ask God to bless that person mightily. I don't know about you, but I want to be better than a tax collector and a pagan.