Luke 6:27-35

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. ³⁵ But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.

Matthew 5:43-48

⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor^[a] and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵ that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. ⁴⁶ If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? ⁴⁷ And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? ⁴⁸ Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Romans 12:17-21

¹⁷ Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. ¹⁸ If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. ¹⁹ Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”^[a] says the Lord.²⁰ On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
    if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”^[b]

²¹ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

A friend asked me what I pray for my enemies. Before I answer, I will tell a story. Years ago, I worked in a Christian environment. To my dismay, it wasn’t long before an enemy presented herself. Her behavior was a chunk of my transformation in Christ for the 10 years I worked there. It was tense and uncomfortable a lot. Sometimes friendly and straightforward. But all the time, I never knew which way the wind blew, and it was hard. I was disillusioned because she was a Christian, and she initiated every negative fly-ball. This kept me on edge with a silent narrative in my head about her that was easily triggered.

Then, one day, the Spirit interrupted my mental broadcast on my commute home. He reminded me that He loved her as much as He loved me. As that weighty truth landed, I understood His point exactly; the disillusionment vanished, and my pride lost its position. I had a responsibility to Christ. He cared about how I responded to her in my heart, thoughts, and office space.

He gave me an assignment, and it was not easy. No one in the workplace knew of my struggle. I tried the best I knew how not to have any regrets. And as far as I know, she never knew the challenge she was to me. As a result, when I look back on that decade, to God’s glory, I know I handled it and grew in my love for the Lord and her. And my biblical knowledge increased on the enemy topic.

Back to the person who asked me what I pray for my enemies, I immediately thought of this particular past work situation.
At first glance, Jesus’ biblical commands seem impossible. By His design, that is how dependence on the Holy Spirit develops. It is good to know that Christians have God’s divine power to lead a godly life (2 Peter 1:3).

Plus, Christians and unbelievers are prideful. Many times, we live for ourselves. We can live like the world in this area, walking in darkness and justifying ourselves. Obstacles abound in carrying out biblical mandates. Often, we don’t care to try.

But again, we have the power to live a godly life. With the Holy Spirit and a myriad of resources(the Bible, our local church, other Christians, Biblical books, podcasts, and more), we have no excuses.
We should approach the earlier passages with a spirit of obedience. Jesus is good, right, and just in all His ways. Jesus expects His followers to act toward enemies as He teaches us.
Most of our problems come with our rebellion against what Jesus asks. We are good at developing alternate plans, rationalizations, and reasons to ignore uncomfortable commands. The commands in this passage require a dying to self on the front end. If you don’t, you will add an enemy to the situation, yourself.
5 Ways To Do What Jesus asks:

Loving our enemies is all about us. It is we who need straightening out. If you don’t believe that, you will remain in conflict, not only with the enemy but also with yourself and with God. But once you free yourself from sin’s hold, the other person is no longer the enemy. You will look at them as the way Jesus is helping you to become more of Him. The weight and burden will be gone.

WHAT DOES THIS ACHIEVE?

• You get the power of the Holy Spirit as your assistant. He never expects you to act on your will, ability, or desire. He looks to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him( 2 Chronicles 16:9).

• Your obedience advances His Kingdom. Luke 6:35 does not speak of earning one’s salvation. It implies that if you choose the biblical way to relate to your enemies, you are being like Jesus.

• You learn how to bless your enemy. In Luke 6:31, it is assumed that we want to bless our enemies because we would like to be treated this way. Jesus implies that sometimes we are the enemy. His demands are high but for our good and His glory.
• Matthew 5:48 says that we become more like Him when we act as He desires. He is the perfect example.

WHY DOES GOD COMMAND ALL THIS?

• The whole Bible is about the redemption and salvation of all men. Behavior like this is counter to human nature. What would happen if we decided to behave as Jesus tells us? How would our Christian behavior affect the world, our families, and our workplace?
• There is a high probability that our enemy, Christian or not, will see Christ in us, and God will get the glory(Matthew 5:16). What is the outcome of this example? Possible reconciliation. Indeed, there is forgiveness in your heart(the offended one) and possible salvation in Christ Jesus for the enemy.
• A life well lived in demanding situations with our enemies is a good witness. If nothing else, it gives your enemies a good impression of Christianity.
• So my friend asked, “How do I pray?” Suppose any of God’s children decide to take God at His Word and follow these instructions. In that case, you will be praying for yourself and your enemy throughout the process, and those prayers will come from our Counselor, the promised Holy Spirit. I know this because if you decide to follow Jesus in obedience, He will teach you how to pray and behave. And many prayers can be prayed from right out of the Bible. Praying God’s word is effective! As a child of God, you can’t read these requirements for your obedience without being impacted. You must know that whether you are mistreated for persecution or just another believer being mean-spirited toward you, God wants you to leave revenge with Him. Your assignment is to pray, and then go in obedience to your enemy and begin your assignment.

Maybe your enemies are hundreds of miles away. Have forgiven them? Your requirement is to do all these passages outlined and leave the result in God’s care. Everyone is not interested in redemption. Whether your enemy is interested in redemption or not, be sure you are interested in redemption.

Let’s be sure we desire to please God and not just get revenge or keep the offense alive. Situations of injustice make enemies. Situations with enemies make Christians act Christian. To act Christ-like we must focus on Christ, remember His suffering, how He acted before His enemies, and how little he talked before His enemies.
Praying, giving, loving, and blessing are all required of Christ’s followers toward enemies. It is how we become most like Jesus and how our enemies know we are Christians. I believe Jesus spends so much time teaching about this because it is one of the most profound ways to lay down our lives and to show His love to others. It is life changing for everyone in your situation.

©Valerie Rumfelt

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