“You have heard the law that says, ‘love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:43-45a NLT)
Jesus asks a very revealing question a few verses after the ones above. In verse 47 He asks: “If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that.” There are differing views as to how Galatians 5:22 should be translated. My sense is that rather than love being a fruit among the others, I believe the fruit of love is being described as “joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”
Love is an all-encompassing virtue. The Lord Jesus doesn’t pick and choose whom He will love, He loves all of us the same, both saved and unsaved. How is that? He tells us in John 15:9: “I have loved you even as the Father has loved Me.” We like to decide for ourselves who we will love and those from whom we will withhold our love, but there’s no reward in that (Matthew 5:46).
Loving like Jesus begins, as I mentioned in yesterday’s post, in our homes. By extension that can and should include our workplaces, schools, neighborhoods, churches, grocery stores, and any place else the Lord leads us in the course of our day. A few days ago I went to the grocery and an elderly little person, I’m not sure if it was a man or a woman, but they asked me if I could help them: “Any amount will help” they said to me.
So, I dug into my pocket and gave them everything I had, which on that day was $4.00. There have been other days I’ve had more, but the point is, I could help, so I did. Did that express love? The little person seemed very appreciative, but in reality, that gesture cost me nothing. I’m not rolling in money, but I could have given them more had I had more, but the point is not the amount of money I gave, but the spirit in which I gave what I had.
Loving always involves giving – not necessarily in dollars and cents, but from the heart and with an attitude that what we give is as unto the Lord. In retrospect I wish when I handed the money to them, I’d asked them their name and prayed for them – that would have cost me! How so? I would have given more than money; I’d have given them the most valuable commodity known to man – my time!
John Wesley made a revealing statement when he wrote: “Worst of all my foes, I fear the enemy within.” It’s often difficult to discern what love will look like in any given situation. There’s a young man at my church who often goes around looking like he’s lost his last friend. I rarely see him smiling and my sense is, he doesn’t feel very loved.
One Sunday we had a brief conversation, but then I put my arm around his shoulder and asked if I could pray for him. He said I could, so I prayed for him like I would liked to have had someone pray for me when I felt hopeless and alone. When I said “Amen!” it was like someone plugged him in. He smiled, not a fake, pretend smile, but a genuine, heart felt smile.
God showed up in those precious moments because I heard God’s voice, and I responded in faith. It was a win-win, because I felt the Lord’s approval, but I also sensed I’d loved this young man in a real and genuine way. And all it cost was about five minutes of my time. A very small price to pay for such a rich dividend of joy in a young man’s life.
May we continually be mindful of the needs of those around us, not so enmeshed in our own lives we miss an opportunity to love someone who is hurting and/or feeling very unloved.
Food for thought.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 