Why Love Our Enemies?
We could answer the question asked in the title with a simple and firm response, “Because Jesus commanded us to!” Every inquisitive seeker of truth and wisdom comprehends the importance of the Proverb, “with all of our learning, we get understanding.” Why is loving our enemies so important? What positive effect or benefit comes from it?
Let me share what obedience to this puzzling and difficult to obey command has done for me. Because I am a bold, passionate communicator of all that is in my own heart and I fearlessly stand for what I believe to be important, I have always had critics. I have said in humor, “I may be often wrong, but I’m never in doubt!” Those who disagree may find both my message and style offensive. They not only attack what I believe, but the manner in which I say it.
My fervor, firmness, and passion can come across as anger. In the past some in media labeled me “God’s angry man.” Photographers sent to cover my speaking events would try to find me with an angry expression on my face as though as I was a radical Ayatollah or terrorist, or perhaps Batman’s Joker. The pictures were often found on the front pages of newspapers and magazines, or connected to an article covering the event at which I spoke.
Lightheartedly from the platform I would look at the photographers from the news agencies and tell them, “I want to make your job easier because I know what you are looking for.” I would then begin to make distorted, angry expressions and gestures that would cause them to laugh so hard they could hardly hold their camera still. Nevertheless, the fact was, I was seen as an angry preacher.
The accusations by my enemies that I came across angry were actually correct. I found myself living with anger that bordered on rage because of the lifelessness and indifference that I witnessed in so many churches around the country. I was also angry over the fact that I found it extremely difficult to get churches of the same denomination, and especially those of separate sectarian views, to come together for even the most meaningful cause: winning people to Christ. They too often wanted to know who was going to get the credit, who was going to be in the counseling area, or which church would get the most members and greatest benefit from the evangelistic crusade. I found that very disturbing and in my youth and immaturity would attack what I perceived to be damaging to the cause of Christ and the Christian witness. I was speaking truth because God by no means approves dissension, division, or strife. He actually equates that with immorality and other forms of extreme wickedness, so I felt justified attacking it.
I found myself angry over the fact that people professed to be Christians, but seemed to have no zeal for God. I would tell them that in the New Testament, the Christians were so excited about what they had seen and heard that even those who threatened to arrest them could not stop them. They said in Acts 4, “We can’t help but speak what we’ve seen and heard.” I wondered why we so seldom were able to observe bold Christian witnesses.
My approach was wrong, however, because I did it in anger and with little expression of love and compassion. My critics—those who made it clear they were my enemies—were actually pointing out something that I needed to hear, not just from them and from a few friends, but from God. Rather than being inspirational, I simply attacked in anger. I am sure many Christian friends tried to tell me, but it was actually my enemies who got my attention by blatantly and harshly telling me the truth.
When I recognized the anger, I took it to God and He did a deep and transforming work in my life. I realized I had oftentimes been shouting at my own personal tormentors. Both the critical journalists and God’s Word said those “tormentors” were demons, and they were both right! Strange how the media and critics react when a preacher, politician, or leader makes a reference to the fact of “demons” or the “powers of darkness.” They are normally mocked and ridiculed. The fact is, however, these unseen powers do pull strings and manipulate people as though they are puppets.
God used my critics and my enemies, to lead me to examine my own heart and allow Him to change it to a broken heart for everything that concerns Him. I have become a very compassionate confronter. I have not lost boldness or firmness when making a point and I am passionate about what I believe. It saddens me, however, when my passion comes across as anger or rage. I am seeking to always be on-guard and clear. My enemies taught me that what they saw as anger was in fact a revelation of something God wanted to deal with and make me more teachable. I am no longer carried by anger, but by love and with all my heart I seek to live as soft, yielded clay not only in the hands of God who is seeking to press and shape Christ into my life, but also recognize He will use critics and enemies to help chisel away at rough places in my life. God uses their abrasiveness to help hone my life into a keen cutting edge for God’s kingdom purpose. I have learned to love those I had been previously taught to avoid and those with whom I may disagree. I am learning to speak the truth in love, not just to those who will agree, but to those who very vocally disagree. I am finding open doors because love and communication with others who have a different view can have a transforming effect on both sides.
Too many times I have watched in church settings and denominational gatherings the greatest animosity and fierce arguments manifesting openly because each side sees themselves as guardians of the truth. This is the example much of the world is observing in churches, denominations, and certainly in Congress and among political candidates. They appear to be on a “seek and destroy” mission, rather than a mission to “seek and find” the necessary answers. Until the church sets the proper example, I don’t think we should be surprised that we don’t see meaningful dialogue among national leaders and political parties. Presently I am witnessing very positive progress on the part of church leaders and the faith community as displayed clearly in the “Under God INDIVISIBLE” conference. See for yourself!
I am now finding myself a mediator between diverse groups and an inspiration for unity among leaders to find common ground to effectively address and correct our commonly recognized problems. God’s transforming power is released when we speak the truth in love, even to those who are considered to be enemies and critics. While holding fast to truth and our convictions, we must not be guilty of violating the great commandments to love God and our neighbors.
When correction is necessary for others (enemies, families, friends), what makes it work? First of all I suggest you recognize this fact: the greatest teacher cannot teach someone with the stubbornness of a mule, but a great student can learn from the worst teacher and devastatingly painful experiences. God’s purpose is to shape us in His image and not only reveal Himself to us, but through us so that others may see Him glorified in our lives. When we allow Him to shape us, we can learn through truth spoken in love or from harsh critics we consider enemies. Over the last 20 years, I have watched with joy many former critics become close friends and supporters.
The New Testament church limited their ability to learn from the greatest teachers because they had divided foolishly saying, “I am of Paul” or “I am of Peter.” The apostle Paul made it clear when you pledge your allegiance to anyone including great spiritual leaders rather than to God you will lack understanding. You become like little children unable to comprehend. This is the case with too many believers today. We must also remember when the truth is spoken in love, it does sometimes come across as a strong and necessary rebuke. Don’t mistake a person speaking with authority as lacking love. Paul rebuked Simon Peter to his face just as Jesus did, and then he shared it in writing not only with the church, but in the Bible for the whole world to read.
What can we possibly learn from this? Speaking the truth in love is of utmost importance, but of even greater priority is understanding that the student yielded and committed to God’s purpose is always more important than the teacher. All creation speaks clearly to those with eyes to see and ears to hear!
An effective tactic of satan is to get us to see those who can prove to be our best friends as an enemy. The real key to the transforming effect of truth is determined by the one receiving it. I have been corrected by people who delivered the truth to me in a totally inappropriate, unloving manner. Why did I learn from it? Because I love my enemy, if that’s what they are perceived to be, and allow what is said to be examined and applied by the Holy Spirit for Kingdom purpose. For those of us seeking to teach others, let it always be in love with redemptive purpose. We can all discern actions by asking are they intended to redeem the individual or to damage or even destroy them. If you want to measure the bottom line intent of any truth or correction spoken, was it delivered with redemptive purpose in mind or destructive? If it was intended to destroy the individual rather than the works of the devil, it will prove non-redemptive and ineffective.
I am seeking to speak the truth in love, but I also want to be willing to learn, accept and apply truth delivered from any source, however inappropriate it may seem to me. May God help us each to yield our lives to the power and pressure of God’s shaping hands whether from His fingers or filtered through them.
This article was written by James Robison
5 comments:
I am in full agreement with the content and spirit of this message, yet I remain perplexed as to how to deal with a religion or sect that has declared destruction for all that do not believe in their god. No tolerance allowed. I think there is a difference between our enemies and evil. Jesus stood against evil. How do we, with confidence, distinguish between? I would appreciate your insight.
Bro. Don,
Your question is very valid and I trust this will help you.
The only religion or sect who has declared destruction for all who do not believe in their god is the antichrist religion headed up by Satan. He is the real enemy. He has wanted to be like God since his fall from the heavens and by deception he has influenced many into thinking he is God. The religions and sects we see who have a destructive agenda are only a visible image of Satan’s work and influence behind the scene.
Jesus exposed Satan’s religion and his mission in John 10, “The thief comes to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.” Paul wrote in II Corinthians 11, “For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.”
In Revelation 13 we find Satan’s agenda exposed again by the Spirit of God, “And he (the dragon, which is Satan, Rev 20) had power to give life unto the image of the beast (apostate religions under Satan’s deception), that the image of the beast should both speak (false teachings), and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed (the thief comes to steal, and to kill, and to destroy…because Jesus would not worship Satan and accept his kingdoms, he caused the Jews to have Jesus killed and every Christian in history, Mathew 4). And he (Satan, the dragon, through false religions and false ministers) causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand (the mark in the right hand is the acceptance and fellowship of false teachings by deception), or in their foreheads (those who are deceived will their mind over to false antichrist teachings): Jesus said “wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction and many walk that way.”
And that no man might buy or sell (the Word of God is freely given, “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost, Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare, Isaiah 55) save he that had the mark (the mark of the beast is deceptive unbelief of the Revelation of Jesus Christ and substituted by false teachings), or the name of the beast (the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, the name of something always reveals its character and nature) or the number of his name (the number always reveals its power and significance). Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man (not Jesus Christ); and his number is Six hundred threescore and six. (666)
Notice, the serpent in the Garden, (the most subtle of any beast which God made, Gen. 3), who was used by Satan to deceive Eve, was created on the 6th day, the same same day the first Adam was created. The number 6 always represents man, while the number 7 always represents God’s perfection and completion. The 666 number gives us the revelation that Satan and his ministers never did and cannot take man into the 7th day of rest (the second Adam who was made a quickening Spirit, I Corinthians 15), the Holy Spirit, the new birth, which is the Revelation of Jesus Christ. They always stop short by influencing man to fall short of the grace and truth by Jesus Christ and be lead astray by false teachings which lead to death. Satan started this deception in the heavens, brought it to the earth, and has worked his scheme down through the history of mankind.
Jesus Christ loves the sinner, but hates the sin because of the destructive nature of sin and deception. “The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverted mouth, I hate, Proverbs 8.”
Fear of God motivates us to be strong and persevere in the faith. In the face of terrible persecutions many of our ancestors in the faith refused to deny the faith. They feared God more than they feared the loss of their lives or the pain, suffering, and torture of persecution. We are faced with a generation of people who, to their detriment, have absolutely no fear of God and, as a result, will face disastrous consequences. The balance has to be restored. Sentimental Christianity has to give way to an understanding that God is a God of love but is also a God of wrath, fury and terror. The Biblical accounts of God’s wrath are not out of date, antiquated fairy stories and His wrath has not exactly dissipated over time. On the contrary all evidence seems to point to the fact that sin has an accumulating effect and the terrible plagues and judgments in the book of Revelation are the accumulation of God’s wrath over the history of mankind. It is time to take God seriously! In Luke 18 Jesus started a parable …In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. The connection is obvious. Where God is not regarded, human rights are disregarded. This speaks directly to every modern judicial system. A society that thinks low of God cannot think high of man. Justice begins with the fear of God.
James,
Your candid comments and transparency is an example all can learn from. May the Lord Jesus bless you with all spiritual blessings. The Spirit of God
Matthew 5 consists of the Sermon on the mount and the beauty of this message given by Jesus is that this message is the revelation of the same message he gave to Moses on Mt. Sinai in the form of the 10 commandments. As you read chapter 5, you will see Jesus continually referring to the law and the unveiling of divine love. In Matthew 5:17-18 Jesus says, “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” Jesus was explaining and manifesting the revelation of the 10 commandments and teaching us likewise by the Beatitudes.
His teaching of the Beatitudes explains that the fulfillment of the law was in the nature of the Spirit manifesting the Word in us by the new birth. Jesus said “my words are spirit and they are life” and the words he was revealing was the hidden manna contained within his revelation of the 10 commandments. The hidden manna of Matthew 5 reveals the Spirit of Christ and exposes the spirit of antichrist, which is pride, haughtiness, and disobedience. In every message and revelation of Jesus Christ, he explains the nature of the Holy Spirit and unveils the nature and spirit of the antichrist, Satan. The antichrist spirit causes death by the disobedience of the law through pride, but the Holy Spirit is the fulfillment of the law by divine love. Love is the law fulfilled, said Jesus.
If the world recognized who was teaching the Beatitudes and loved him with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength the first commandment would be fulfilled. If the world understood the poor in spirit, they that mourn, the meek, they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers, they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, and bearing false witness, the revelation of love would be manifested and the law fulfilled.
If the world understood the salt of the earth, the light of the world, and the good works of Christ, divine love would be manifested and the law fulfilled. Idolatry would not exist, adultery would never be a thought and covetousness, killing, stealing, dishonor and taking the Lord’s name in vain could not be conceived if the love revealed in the Beatitudes was manifested in our lives.
The revelation of the Beatitudes strips us of our carnal pride imputed to us through the flesh by Satan. Ezekiel wrote about Lucifer, “Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor. So I threw you to the earth; I made a spectacle of you before kings. Solomon wrote “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall and only by pride cometh contention: but with the well advised is wisdom.” The Beatitudes exposes the antichrist spirit of pride, contention, self righteousness, a haughty spirit and imputes to us the wisdom and understanding of the Spirit of revelation by Jesus Christ.
As children of our Father, we are to love our enemies. That is, the same Word and Holy Spirit we manifest with those we are comfortable with is the same Word and Holy Spirit we manifest to our enemies, for God is no respecter of persons. Each of us are to be disciples of Jesus Christ and we are edified by each other and that no man think of himself higher than another-for there is one master and we are all brothers.
Jesus fulfilled the law, not as the Pharisees through self righteousness, religious prejudice, and denominational proselyting, but by demonstrating the unlimited power of the Spirit to whosoever will as contained in the Beatitudes. The Sermon on the mount defines I Corinthians 13 as Paul writes about the nature of charity. For if you love them which love you, what reward have you? do not even the publicans the same? And if you salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be you therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
As James states in his commentary “May God help us each to yield our lives to the power and pressure of God’s shaping hands whether from His fingers or filtered through them.”
Bro. James,
The more I read and re-read your commentary, the more inspirational it becomes. I can see that the Spirit of God deals with you on a very deep level. May the Lord continue to bless you.
The power and authority that comes with truly loving our enemies is revealed in the ministry of Jesus. In Luke 4, as he begins his ministry he says, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.”
This is the most divinely profound message ever given and the demonstration of this message has no comparison. This message contains both an uncompromising position to sin and an unlimited display of love. On the one hand if he would have just focused on the poor, the brokenhearted, the captives, the blind, and the bruised he could have very easily become critical and angry over the carnal condition he was looking at where the people were concerned. If Jesus or any of us remain focused on the aforementioned elements of the spiritual state of mankind and how they ended up that way, anger, frustration, criticism, and ridicule will continually surface in our hearts. The scripture is very clear and uncompromising where sin is concerned…the letter kills…
However, Jesus balanced his message with divine love when he exposed the problem and provided the solution…preach the Good News to the poor, heal the brokenhearted, deliverance to the captives, recovering of sight to the blind, and bring liberty to the bruised. The divine love is manifested in the words Good News, heal, deliverance, recovering of sight, and liberty…the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life…
Jesus Christ, our High Priest can be touched with the feeling of our infirmities because he sees the problem, the root cause of the problem and he knows the solution to every problem. By knowing and possessing the solution, it releases the love of God to address every crisis. If we were driving down the street and in the path of our vehicle a cripple person was laying on the road we wouldn’t get out and with anger and hostility start yelling at the man or woman to get up and get out of the way…No…we have the solution. We would approach the person and gently pick them up and provide whatever assistance they would need.
On the other hand, if we were driving down the street and saw someone in the road and could see a car or truck bearing down on them without their knowledge, we would start yelling for them to get out of the way of oncoming danger.
This is the message of Jesus Christ. He did something the carnal Pharisees did not and could not do…he gently healed, delivered, and brought liberty to the people and without compromise preached against sin, deception, self-righteousness, hypocrisy, and the false teachings that caused the people to end up the way they did. Satan had influenced the Jewish people by the false teachings of the Pharisees and doctors of the law. Their legalism and carnal traditions had blinded and imprisoned the people of that day to such a degree that the burden of sin and attempt to find righteousness through the law was too grievous to bare. Jesus called them blind leaders of the blind, hypocrites, and told them they were of their father the devil. He was uncompromising in his preaching. The Good News always exposes the Bad News.
Satan had used the religious leaders to blind the people by a false gospel and Jesus touched their eyes by divine love and gave them sight. The religious elders had burdened the people with carnal commandments. Jesus destroyed the yoke of bondage and gave them light.
The true Gospel of Jesus Christ will always demonstrate a balance of the Word and Spirit. His Word is a two-edged sword that cuts and protects and reveals the evil intent of our hearts and cleanses us from all unrighteousness. It takes a strong hand of faith to hold that Sword and while remaining true to the Word without compromise, have the faith to demonstrate the healing touch of the Gospel.
This scripture sums up the Gospel of Jesus Christ; “For when we brought you the Good News, it was not only with words but also with power, for the Holy Spirit gave you full assurance that what we said was true. And you know of our concern for you from the way we lived when we were with you.”
(I Thessalonians 1.)