Love Your Enemies: Strength in the Hardest Command
- meetgodattheedgeof
- Sep 4
- 2 min read
Luke 6:35
“Love your enemies! Do good to them. Lend to them without expecting to be repaid. Then your reward from heaven will be very great, and you will truly be acting as children of the Most High, for he is kind to those who are unthankful and wicked.”
Giving is a great thing, but there is so much that goes with it. We need to be careful. As we see in this verse, Jesus is instructing us to love your enemies and give freely. It was a wild concept back then and still is today. It's just not wired into us to show kindness when someone is rude or mean—we need rewiring.
I’ll be the first to admit it, I want to fire back with my own rude comment. But let’s be honest—that never makes anything better or makes me a winner. I see it in kids too: You hit me, and I'm going to hit you back. But every once in a while, we meet someone who truly understands that God’s love is the answer. That is beautiful to witness. That person’s heart is right with the Lord, and that is what God judges—your heart.
What does your heart say about your giving? Last time you gave, was it given away freely? Jesus tells us to love your enemies, which means giving and helping even those who may not deserve it in our eyes.
Imagine an enemy or someone you don’t really care for. Now think about how God’s love is big enough to love you completely and that other person completely. That’s amazing love! With that understanding and outlook, how can you help them? Is it a neighbor whose yard could use help? A brother at church whose wardrobe needs refreshing? Or maybe a family member who betrayed you, but now you can look past it with God’s grace?
When we choose to love your enemies, lives change—ours included. Imagine if all of us reached out to someone this week with kindness and compassion. The ripple effect would be powerful.
Amen.
Luke 6:32–34
[32] “If you love only those who love you, why should you get credit for that? Even sinners love those who love them! [33] And if you do good only to those who do good to you, why should you get credit? Even sinners do that much! [34] And if you lend money only to those who can repay you, why should you get credit? Even sinners will lend to other sinners for a full return.”
