Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.

Sunday, September 3, 2017

Introduction

Of all the things that Jesus said, what is hardest for you? Take answers. For many people, it’s “love your enemies.” That’s hard—do you agree? It’s hard on a personal level. Think of someone who is making your life miserable—is it hard to love them? And it’s hard on a societal level. How are we supposed to love the members of Isis, or North Korea’s Kim Jong Un whose missile launches ought to make you nervous?   Of all the things Jesus said, this may be the hardest—but He said it, and we need to take it seriously.

This is the final message in our Summer Bible Series in the gospel of Luke—and what a way to finish! We’re going to read just 10 verses from Luke 6. In these verses, Jesus lays out His ethic of love—love everyone always. It’s radical, it’s crazy, it’s hard—and it’s what Christians do because it is what God has done for us. Here’s a big idea I want you to take home.

Don’t react to people; respond to God. (let’s say it)

When we react to people, we usually react in kind. Tit for tat. Eye for an eye. Yell at me, I yell at you. Hit me, I hit you back. Hurt me, I hurt you back. But as we’ll see, Jesus is going to tell us that our behavior is not to be conditioned by how others treat us, but by the character of God. Rather than reacting to people, we respond to God. We look to our Father; we look at how He treats us and respond. Like Father, like child.

Here’s the passage.

Luke 6:27–36

27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.

32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full