[Jesus said] “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.”

Devotion based on Luke 6:27,28

“Good fences make good neighbors.” So the saying goes. But what happens when the neighbor yells at your son over the fence, “You’re the worst person I’ve ever met!” Or what about when you’re playing a yard game with friends, and she starts walking around her backyard, pounding pots and pans just to annoy you? Or what about when she slams the door in your face when you calmly walk over to her house to ask if you can talk?

Many of us have a neighbor, a co-worker, or a classmate who has wronged us in one way or another. Who is your person? Now listen to Jesus’ words in our Bible reading today: “Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who mistreat you.” Really? Can Jesus be serious? In a world that is increasingly divided and promotes a take-care-of-yourself attitude, is Jesus’ command to “love your enemies” reasonable?

Not according to our reason. But his ways are above our ways. His reason is above our reason. And thank God it is because Jesus’ love for us is not “reasonable.” When his enemies pounded nails through his hands, he prayed, “Father, forgive them.” When cultural divides dictated, “Don’t associate with those ‘sinners,’ “Jesus went out of his way to show love to those he should have avoided. And when it comes to us, the Bible tells us, “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

And just like that, his command, “Love your enemies,” doesn’t seem so unreasonable. Motivated by his love for us, we too, can pray for those who hurt us, bless those who curse us, and do good to that person who hates us. Motivated by his love, we can love our enemies.

Prayer:

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All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. ™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.