I know a few people I don't like very much. I can't call them enemies. We Christians do, however, have enemies. I believe when the Lord instructs us to love our enemies, He is not telling us to do something that is impossible. I have a problem with it, and I am trying to work it out with prayer and searching the scriptures. "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." Matthew 5:43-48 How do I get to the place where I am obedient in this? The Lord says, in John 16:33, "I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” "In Me" are the key words here, I believe, as far as "How do I overcome the world, Lord?" goes. We have to be in Him, by faith. Flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 15:50). The fact that I am uncomfortable in the way I feel about certain folks gives me hope that the Holy Spirit is working in me. I'm one of those Thomases that needs confirmation, and the Lord has been gracious to me all my life, to give it, from time to time. The just shall live by faith is Old as well as New Testament, and I believe that's where I need to be. I'm wondering if other folks have a problem with loving your enemies.
Honestly, my first question is, who was Jesus referring to when he mentioned enemies. Who is my enemy? Besides The enemy himself which is the devil. And that's certainly not the enemy we should love is it?
SEEKING I can't even imagine you would have any enemies! Being my own worst enemy, I should love myself more. ;D But seriously... I also have a hard time with those who seem to persecute me or curse me. I think it has to do with wanting justice and not finding it always exists here the way I want the way I think things should go? Things always turn out for the best when I turn them over to Him. It is the process from holding on to turning over that is the most difficult, but praying for Him to guide me in it gives result. I end up not liking myself very much when I am holding something against another person because it gives them the power to control my thoughts, actions or emotions instead of God. If the Spirit of God is in control of a persons heart and mind, they would not be persecuting to begin with-- it means they need prayer to either find Him, (however He manages that, maybe through the way I respond to them even) or be convinced of their sin and repent of it if they already know Him and are doing their own thing. It all sounds simple and never is.
When the passage is read in its entire context, it seems that the point is to not be like the Pharisees, who taught to hate your enemy Jesus to teaching to treat all equally, as He does.
I can sympathize. I don't like everybody I meet. I think if everybody that calls themself a Christian were completely honest they would admit there are some people they just don't like, including other Christians. Some people have personalities that others just don't like. They do and say things that others just don't like. I know not everybody here, however, is completely honest in this regard. There are several folks here that, though I wouldn't go as far as to say they hate me, I can guarantee are not exactly fond of me, either. However, if asked, they would say they don't dislike me. It doesn't look "Christian," apparently, to admit you don't like somebody. I say that's being dishonest, though. I think it's actually more "un-Christian" to lie than it is to dislike somebody, by the way. If somebody doesn't like me and can admit it, though it's not exactly thrilling to know, I can at least respect the fact they're honest enough to admit so. I think too many Christians also confuse dislike with hate. I don't think they're the same thing. I think it's totally possible to dislike somebody and not out and out hate them. Seeking raises a good question. Who are our enemies? People that have actively done, or even merely wanted to do, serious harm to us...or can it also be somebody we simply just don't like involving less serious issues? As far as "loving our enemies," I don't now how in the natural that even can be done. I would say it would have to be a supernatural occurrence where God Himself would have to empower us to do so.
I seriously doubt we are to love and pray for Satan. To do so is pointless. Satan is a reprobate and will be cast into hell. God would not have us pray for the salvation of a being that has been eternally damned, as scripture indicates is his condition.
I'm pretty certain Jesus was talking about people and not other metaphysical beings (though I have no evidence for this). As for "loving your enemies", you'll notice he didn't say "like" them. He didn't say "your enemies are your friends". He simply said... - love them - bless them - do good to them - pray for them They may still be your enemies at the end of the day, but if you do those things you've basically established who's the aggressor party. If you hate your enemies (and carry out actions consistent with that hatred), then they have every reason to *be* your enemy. I've used this illustration before, but one more time: Love != like / friendship / camaraderie / warm fuzzies. Love is recognition and subservience to necessity. Changing a child's massive, steaming, stomach flu fueled diaper is an act of love, not like.
I can say I used to have trouble loving my enemies, But then I realized that it didn't matter if they liked me or not. I knew I didn't give anyone any reason not to like me, so it was their personal problem not mine. If I'm going to worry about anything I promise it won't be about who don't like me. The Bible says to love thy enemies,not that you have to like them. I just pray for them and give it to God. Prayer is what gets me through each day,and I know in my heart that the Lord hears my every word. I guess the point to my story is, I wouldn't waist precious time worrying about your enemies, just give it to the Lord and talk to Him about it and it will all workout. Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good,to them that love God,to them who are the called according to His purpose .
Thanks, everyone. Your different insights are appreciated. At the end of the day, if in faith we obey Christ's commands, and we are still taken as sheep to the slaughter, we still have eternity with Him, and no worldly price can be put on the words, "Well done my good and faithful servant."