As A Believer, We Are Called To A Higher Calling With How We Deal With The People Around Us, There Is Only One We Can Do It.

““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 children 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 own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Matthew‬ ‭5‬:‭43‬-‭48‬ ‭NIV‬‬

We are moving to the close of Matthew 5, with Jesus taking it up a notch regarding how we look at people. This puts pressure on those, including us, who feel they have an enemy. And how we should look at them.

To catch up on this series, here are the previous posts:

““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 children of your Father in heaven.

*Note added on 11/5/2023: Interesting as we hear Jesus talk and he says, “You have heard that it was said…” As I used to read this, I always thought that Jesus was referring to the Old Testament. But He is referring to oral tradition being propagated to the Israelites. The portion that comes from the oral tradition is “hate your enemy.” Jesus references things in the Old Testament by saying, “It is written.”

Did he say, “Pray for those who persecute you?”

I think about this a lot. But then I look at the example of His life. On the cross, while people were cursing Him, He said, “Forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing?”

Paul would write to the Ephesians and us:

‘For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ‘ Ephesians 6:12

Our enemy is not anyone that we see walking around. Let that soak in.

Also, think about this: when we start thinking sideways about another human being, regardless of their lot in life, we look sideways at God. Every human being born from creation until the end of time is created in God’s image. I believe God takes that seriously.

The difficulty level for this is HARD.

It is only possible with the Holy Spirit centered in our hearts.

The definition of persecution, according to Oxford, is “to subject (someone) to hostility and ill-treatment, especially because of their ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation, or their political beliefs.”

We are called to love and pray for those who treat us this way. Is that the way of the culture we find ourselves in today?

It was no different back in the days of Jesus.

The ultimate example of this is Jesus. He laid down His life so we could have eternal life with God. No fighting or fussing, and He calls us to have this same frame of mind.

‘Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. ‘ John 15:13

When we pray for those persecuting us, we leave no room for resentment to set in our hearts.

He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

God loves all of His creation. He does not want one person to go to hell, but He will not force us to worship Him. With that being said, He provides what is called “common” grace. This is for everyone who has been born.

We all can enjoy a beautiful sunrise or sunset. We can all enjoy a beautiful rainbow after a good rain.

We enjoy sweet fruit and nutritious vegetables grown out of the earth.

But it will be those who accept His Son that will enjoy His presence for eternity.

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 own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?

For the believer, it is not enough that we love those who love us. He will reward us for loving those who we struggle to love. This requires submitting our hearts before our loving God.

As Christians, we must go further with those who do not believe. We should not settle for what is acceptable by the world’s standards.

And here is what Jesus calls us to do:

Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

This is only possible with the Holy Spirit in the believer’s heart. This is a lifelong process that we will go through.

‘I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. ‘ Philippians 1:3-6

As we work out our salvation, the Spirit will work with us to the degree that we work with the Spirit. If we resist the prompting of the Spirit, we can forfeit the blessing God has for us.

Heavenly Father, Thank You for Your Word. I pray that You use Your Word to make my heart more Christ-like.

I pray that You shape my thinking and give me the courage to act according to the prompting of Your Spirit in my heart.

I thank You for Your grace, mercy, and forgiveness.

In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray, Amen!! 🙏❤️