Love my enemies? Really !!?
That’s a hard one, isn’t it?
Luke 6:27 says, “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you.”
I have several thoughts to share with you about this verse, but, frankly, the first difficulty I have is the word ‘enemy’. I don’t consciously have any enemies. What does that word mean to me, here, today?
If I lived in a war-torn country, I would clearly know who the enemy was. But I don’t live in such a place. I admit that there are people that have views that are very much different than mine, so I don’t like being around them. But does that make them an enemy? Somehow, that seems too strong a word.
What about you? What do YOU call an enemy? Is there someone you just don’t like!? Is there someone who really rubs you the wrong way? Is there someone that you consciously try to avoid being around?
Whether you think the word ‘enemy’ is appropriate for those people, or if you think that is overstating it — nevertheless, Jesus tells us to love them. (You know my theme is: do a kindness for them.)
Give that some thought, and then I’ll continue with some additional ideas in my next posting.
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