Love Your Enemies

LUKE 6:34-36
“And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.
”‭‭Luke‬ ‭6:34-36‬ ‭NKJV‬
‬https://bible.com/bible/114/luk.6.34-36.NKJ

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God is love (1 JOHN 4:8); On the two greatest of all commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets: We believers are commanded “To love your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind, This is the first and greatest commandment; the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself (MATHEW 22:37-40; MARK 12:31).”
Your neighbor is not just the family next door, or those in your street, or village.
All are our neighbours, regardless of street, town, country, or nation, including all our enemies.
The practice of loving one’s enemies is modelled by God Himself; He is kind to the unthankful and the evil, just as He is the righteous; He is the provider of all.
Love is far more than a feeling or an emotion. Furthermore, It is in no way selfish, but rather selfless; it cast out fear and comes from a firm decision to care for others, to make their needs as important as our own.
This decision goes against our natural inclinations to “put me first.”
We can only truly love because God loves us first. “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. We love Him because He first loved us.”
‭‭I John‬ ‭4:18-19‬ ‭NKJV
This Scripture is not telling us to be foolish with our money; indeed, we need be wise. Not everyone begging for money is in desperate need. To lend to someone who is known for not paying back, or maybe planning to purchase something above his or her means that he doesn’t need, would be totally foolish.
Not only will you quickly run out of money, but those borrowers will never learn the true value of money.
Giving and lending must always be by the leading of the Holy Spirit; only He knows one’s true circumstance; to give for any other reason is foolish and may even be undermining the work God is doing in that person.
But to be merciful toward someone in desperate need, and lend knowing you probably won’t get anything back, simply out of love, is being merciful just as your Father is also merciful; and your reward will be great, and you will be Sons (and daughters) of the Most High.
Giving must not be because your reward will be great; indeed your blessings may well be piling up in heaven rather than here on earth. But you can be certain if God has put on your heart to give, He will fund it; His promise is to provide all your needs, and His promises always stand, but that promise does not necessarily extend to all your wants or emotions.
Giving out of one’s emotions is foolish and may undermine God’s work.
Equally, emotional blackmail to extract resources from others is not acceptable, whether from the pulpit or an individual in need.
There is no place for a prosperity gospel in God’s Kingdom; therefore, be mindful of those suggesting when you give, God will give you more back, or even double blessings.
But certainly, giving is not investing in your worldly life of today, but rather into your eternal future. But when that point is drummed into everyone in tbe meeting with promises of blessings in return just before the offering basket goes round, the red flag must come up, and it is time to question the ambitions of the preacher.
It is good to give, but we must be wise.
Always pray into every situation, test the spirits (1 JOHN 4:1), and give only by the leading of the Holy Spirit., for fool and his money are quickly parted.
My beloved, having said that, love is the foundation of God’s way of life. “If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also.”
‭‭I John‬ ‭4:20-21‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
All glory to God forever and ever! Amen.