Love or Hate, the Choice is Ours.
Luke 6:27-28 “But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who are abusive to you.
The choice is ours, EVERY MINUTE of EVERY HOUR of EVERY DAY, in wonderful moments of fun and fellowship and in horrible moments of being the victim of bullying and brutality.
Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic from him either. Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back. Luke 6:29-30
It seems more intuitive, more satisfying, more “just”, to give back what you have received.
But Jesus says, “Treat people the same way you want them to treat you.” Luke 6:31… in other words… “In everything, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 7:12
Please note; this does not say to give them what they EVIDENTLY want. Nope, your choice is not to be based on them or what they have done, but on you. Who you are, and what you claim as the primary desire of your HEART. Love or Hate?
If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount. Luke 6:32-34
Even sinners…
For those of us who have turned from our sins, to THE ONE who sent His Son to saves us from our sins, we have now been given a higher calling.
But love your enemies and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil people. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Luke 6:35-36
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged; and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; pardon, and you will be pardoned. Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.” Luke 6:37-38
By my standard of measure it will be measured to me in return. Today is the perfect day for me to be immersed in this training. Today, January 20, 2021 will live in my memory as the boot camp of measuring my standard of measure.
The election is over, the inauguration has taken place, the battle has played out, and unfortunately, we were not all winners. The consequences for the losers have yet to be put into place. In our society, losers are not regarded as friends. In this particularly contentious election we have just come through, whether the looser claims the winner as their enemy or not, the winners seem to have declared that all losers are their enemy and wish to CANCEL them.
What will I, a child of the most high God, choose if I am identified as an enemy? The choice is mine, EVERY MINUTE of EVERY HOUR of EVERY DAY, in wonderful moments of fun and fellowship and in horrible moments of possibly being “canceled” through bullying and/or brutality.
I used to nod my head in agreement every time I’d hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who are abusive to you. “Preach It brother!” “Amen and AMEN!”
Hearing it is easy peasy!
Doing it, for more than a minute, is highly improbable and probably impossible for me.
But this is BOOT CAMP so I will…
Realize my struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Ephesians 6:12
Put on the military grade full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Ephesians 6:13
I will stand firm, having belted my waist with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having strapped on my feet the preparation of the gospel of peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which I will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Ephesians 6:14-17
Then, I will pray at all times in the Spirit, Ephesians 6:18
In other words, I WILL NOT because I CANNOT, do this without my MIGHTY Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
And finally, I will ask and learn, as I sit at Abba’s feet, WHAT is love and HOW do I DO IT.
Love is patient, love is kind, it is not jealous; love does not brag, it is not arrogant. It does not act disgracefully, it does not seek its own benefit; it is not provoked, does not keep an account of a wrong suffered , it does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; it keeps every confidence, it believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8
It’s NOT my brand of love, or the world’s brand of love, or even our enemy’s brand of love. It isn’t friendly love, that has manipulation as it’s goal. It doesn’t require agreement, but may require silence in the aftermath of heated discussion. It turns against holding grudges and offers forgiveness for the wounds, intentionally or unintentionally suffered. It doesn’t GIVE UP in discouragement or GIVE IN to the temptation of vengeance (which is God’s!)
It is SACRIFICIAL LOVE!
In other words, Love never fails! EVEN when I fail to give it!
This is the day the Lord has made for me… maybe He made a similar one for you. Love or hate, (by the way, we all KNOW hate – what it is and how to give it, so I didn’t feel the need to describe the difference), the choice is ours, EVERY MINUTE of EVERY HOUR of EVERY DAY. Each time I have the choice, I KNOW which one I want to choose! I pray it is the one I WILL CHOOSE.
Will you pray with me?
**All Scripture quoted comes from the “Bible Gateway” app and is the NASB version of the Bible unless otherwise noted.