But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you, Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you. Luke 6:27-28 KJV
Jesus speaks here, addressing those 'who hear'. This message is not for the world; it is not for churchgoers or highly moral people; it is for all who will heed the words of Jesus and take specific action to live by what is commanded. Am I one who just has ears but does not hear? Have I made up my mind on what the Bible says, with no desire to obey?
In fact, have I sorted out the One with authority to speak into my life and determine its course? If the wrong authority speaks into and through my life, then there is really nothing God-like that my life can produce. Life is all about choices, and today's extract pins down the need to decide how I am to react to people who will come my way on this journey of life.
And you can bet this is beyond just the sense of hearing. People with the sense are able to perceive words or sounds generated, but the challenge here is to determine the appropriate course of action based on what is heard. He who has an ear, let him hear is a universal message to the seven churches in Revelation, and the message is not the usual, the normal or the expected.
Just like the passage before us, Jesus isn't calling me to what is normal. If you want normal, be content with the ordinary and the usual. Dealing with men the way they deal with you is the usual and the expected. Hating those who hate you and dealing tit for tat to people who treat you badly is the way of the world. There is nothing unusual about that, until you decide to do the very opposite.
As long as you are not willing to rock the boat of the world's standards, you are fine. As soon as you decide to align with what today's extract teaches, you are in trouble. And no wonder Jesus warns ahead of time, so you don't feel abandoned. And I am not asked to react based on the other person's view or response to me.
Nowhere does Jesus command me to love so that I can be loved in return. In fact, the other person's perspective isn't the basis of my own actions. I am not asked to wait until the other person does the good thing; I must just do the good, in line with what I have been commanded. Then and only then can I lay claim to the blessings my obedience is assured of.
And my heart is the inner witness of lips that speak of what I have stored up in my heart. Loving my enemies isn't first a physical act, but a spiritual one. The fallen human heart is not able to comprehend this instruction, which is why today's extract, as stated above, is for those who choose to hear. And it is not passive, where I do not have to say or do anything, and people will know my honest and noble intentions. By God's standard, it doesn't work like this. Love them; bless them; do good and pray for them.
How can anyone do these unless s/he has had an encounter with the One who speaks here, and can provide the required strength to live in line with His commands? You can call a conference where these things are discussed and encouraged; you can use all the best grammar to fashion out a code of conduct; yet nothing will happen, because you won't get these things done by compulsion, negotiation or deception, but by total dependence on the power of the Holy Spirit. This is truly for those who hear. Am I one of such people? Are you? His time of favour is here.
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