Isn’t it amazing how reading just a few Bible verses can
wreck you? They can take your whole view on something and turn it upside down
in seconds. I’ve been working my way through the book of Matthew lately and
today in one of my classes we were told to do a devotional assignment, it
didn’t matter what you read or how much just that you read something in the
bible and then wrote down your thoughts on the passage. So naturally I chose to
do the devotion on the next part in Matthew that I was going to read anyway.
Now usually when I read the Bible I tend to speed through
passages I know really well because I think I know them and I want to get to a
part that I’m not too familiar with. But do you know that sometimes God can
teach you more with a story you’ve read a million times than with one you’ve
never even laid eyes on? God threw me for a loop today as I read Matthew
5:43-48 it’s the passage in Matthew where Jesus is talking about loving your
enemies. Now if you’ve been reading my blog for a while you’ll know that I’m
doing something called the Love Challenge 2013 and I’m currently seeking after
God and asking Him to teach me about love. And let me tell you, He’s already
started the teaching.
I have always looked at this passage as simply love your
enemies, nothing more and nothing less. But as I took a closer look at it today
I began to see something different in this passage. Firstly it’s not only
talking about loving your enemies but also blessing them, doing good to them
and praying for them. Love is an all around thing, you can’t just say “I love
you.” You have to act on it and follow through. You see love is a choice and it
is shown not with words but by actions. You don’t just tell your boyfriend or
girlfriend you love them, you do things for them to show it. You spend time
with them, give them gifts, hold the door open for them, give them your
attention and advice along with many other things. We are suppose to act this
way with our enemies as well. We are called to care about those who are against us,
who spit curses at us, throw us the finger, and cut us off on the road. We
should pray for those who hate us, who’ve hurt us physically and emotionally,
who’ve abused us and stolen from us. Jesus didn’t just say love enemies who’ve
lied to you but don’t love that guy who took your life savings or stole your
I-phone He said love your enemies that means all of them. Romans 3:23 says,
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” We’ve all done wrong,
the bible doesn’t say one sin is worse than another. But we are also told that
God forgives all sins, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to
forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John
1:9) If we are to become more like
Christ we must be able to forgive anyone of all things and love everyone just
as God loves everyone.
God’s love is so great for everyone that He sent His son to
die in order to was away all of our sins and allow us into His family. Once we’ve
accepted Christ into our lives we start the process of becoming more like Him.
This doesn’t just mean becoming nicer and always following the rules, but it
really means that God wants to make us into His son. Jesus loved everyone, He
came in order to give the hope of salvation to all the world. God’s heart is for
people and as we get closer to God our hearts should begin to match His as
well. This means we should have a heart for everyone. Jesus illustrates this
in Mark 12:31 where He says, “Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no
commandment greater than these.” We are
told to love everyone, the good and the bad, just like God does. Going back to
my original passage in Matthew if you go on to read after Jesus tells us to
love our enemies He says something else that I always took just to apply to
enemies as well. Matthew 5:46-48 says, “For if you love those who love you,
what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47
And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not
even the tax collectors do so? 48 Therefore you shall be perfect,
just as your Father in heaven is perfect.” Even lost people greet their friends
and love others, we see it all the time, the good people. So what are we doing
to stand out from the crowd? What are we doing to show that our God is real and
that He loves everyone? Well Jesus just told us, love your enemies, but not
just that love your neighbor. Now neighbor doesn’t just refer to the guy living
next to you or the family who lives down the street from you but it means
everyone. Why? Because God does, and we are God’s light to the world. How else
will people see that we are different if we treat them like they treat everyone
else? If we chew out the store clerk because they got our order wrong or if we
cut people off on the road because we’re in a hurry and their just moving too
slow we are acting just like the world. “Therefore you shall be perfect, just
as your Father in heaven is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48) We need to follow Jesus’ example
and treat everyone the way we’d treat our best friend or our parents.
More Verses to Consider:
John 3:16
Romans 5:8
Ephesians 2:4-5
1 John 4:7-8
Job 34:19
Matthew 6:14-15
Acts 3:19
Ephesians 1:7
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