I

don’t know if I have any ene­mies. As a Chicago Cubs fan, the

closest thing to an enemy that I can think of is a St. Louis

Cardinals fan. But, then, my best friend is a Cardinals fan, so I’m

sure that’s not the kind of “enemy” Jesus is talking about. We

might not like each other’s baseball teams, but we don’t curse

each other or wish any harm on one another.

The

world is filled with examples of enemies, though. Our Internet feed

is bursting with people who speak out against each other and may wish

harm on others. There are probably even people in my life who

disagree with me to the point that they wouldn’t mind if something

bad happened to me. If I’m honest, I can think of a few people that

I don’t particularly like either. Some people are harder to love

than others.

Jesus’

words here are challenging. He doesn’t just tell us to put up with

our enemies. He tells us to love

them. Love isn’t just a feeling; it is an action. He calls us to

actively love those who hate and mistreat us. These are hard commands

to follow.

But

if we are to have the kind of faith that Jesus calls us to, then

action is needed. So we must actively love our enemies and pray for

those who mistreat us. We put the lives of those people in the hands

of Jesus, and we let go of grudges, hatred, and all the evil that may

have been done to us. We also ask others to do the same for us.

Loving

our friends is easy. Loving our enemies is a real step of faith.