“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.” ( Luke 6:32-35)
In the verses above, the Lord taught us what is ordinary and what comes with reward. He entreated us to love our enemies and that comes with a reward in heaven. Loving our enemies is very difficult to do. It demands a decision, intentionality and finally work. The Bible says in the book of James that the one who does the work after hearing the word shall be blessed. Obeying the word of God will lead to us doing some work.
“23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.
25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth [therein], he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. (James 1:23-25KJV)
Is there someone that you have marked as an enemy? The Lord says love that person.
Now let’s see what love looks like;
13 “If I had the gift of being able to speak in other languages without learning them and could speak in every language there is in all of heaven and earth, but didn’t love others, I would only be making noise. 2 If I had the gift of prophecy and knew all about what is going to happen in the future, knew everything about everything, but didn’t love others, what good would it do? Even if I had the gift of faith so that I could speak to a mountain and make it move, I would still be worth nothing at all without love. 3 If I gave everything I have to poor people, and if I were burned alive for preaching the Gospel but didn’t love others, it would be of no value whatever.
4 Love is very patient and kind, never jealous or envious, never boastful or proud, 5 never haughty or selfish or rude. Love does not demand its own way. It is not irritable or touchy. It does not hold grudges and will hardly even notice when others do it wrong.
Woooow, doing this will require something that is above and beyond human strength. 😂😂😂 We cannot do this with might. We must always ask the Holy Spirit to help us to love others or love others through us.
Remember, He said “love“ not “like”. 😊
“…. what credit is that to you?”
Let’s pray
Father, thank you for Your word which is food for our souls.
Please love people through us in Jesus’ name.
🙏
Chara-Joy 🌸 