One of the verses I use is 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 mistreat you." As with most of the "classic" verses, we've heard this before, and we usually just let it go in one spiritual ear and out the other. However, like all scripture, it deserves a closer look.
And our first thought is: "Man, the Bible is inconvenient!" This is not what we want to do, this is not "natural" for humans. We are born with a "sin nature" that makes us want to lash out at all those who do us wrong, who offend our sense of justice, who do and say bad things to us. It's the way we are made! But, we are Christians, and we are called to do things that go against our nature - righteousness (doing the right thing even when you don't want to) is an effort, or everyone would do it. And I think God uses that to strengthen us spiritually. So, we are Christians, and we must love (not necessarily associate or be pals with, but love), and do good, and bless and pray. And certainly the pray is easy enough, and a good place to start. [Pray that God will help you carry out this commandment in relation to whomever.]
So, there's that part of it, but also in doing so we are demonstrating what being a Christian is like. Whether we like it or not, we are witnesses to everyone around us. If they know we say we are Christian, then our every word and deed will be parsed and checked to see if we live up to what we say - do we put our money where our mouth is? If so, if we show this love, we stand a much greater chance of cultivating an interest in being a Christian - planting a seed - than if we don't. Even those who don't know us respond to the spirit within us, and know that something is different in our lives. By loving those who wrong us, we show what the Kingdom of God is worth.
Then, there is the idea that it is the best way to deal with such people - nothing irritates people who want to be mean and hurt others more than to see that it's not working. Paul quoting Proverbs 25 says it best: "Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, 'Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,' says the Lord. 'But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.' Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. (Romans 12:17-21) You show yourself to be morally better, you make them look bad in front of others and who knows, you may win a friend out of it in the end.
We should note, as well, that God does indeed say, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay." Getting revenge for anything done to us is not our responsibility. We are to focus on doing good, and let God deal with the rest. Why? Because we are human, and the temptation to let our revenge get out of hand will be too much for many to handle. ("Eye for an eye" is the Old Testament way of keeping revenge from going too far.) And God's revenge is there - He does not let people get away with messing with His children. Certainly there will be payment in eternity, but sometimes even in this world. Your grandfather once had bad things said about him in court by a cousin, but did not seek revenge. Before the year was out, the cousin was dead, and his family dispersed. I cannot prove that that is God's vengeance (and he does not say much about it, either), but I always think that it could be. That idea should give us pause, at least.
Finally, and absolutely most importantly, we should obey Jesus in this because it is what is best for us. God does not want us to get trapped in a world of anger, rage, hurting people because they hurt us, a perpetual cycle. That's not the life He has planned for us. Treating our enemies in a godly way is always more about us than it is about them. It keeps us pure, it does not rob us of our joy, and it will thwart the evil that only seeks to create more evil. Practice this, and in doing so live a full and fruitful life (God promises in Proverbs 25:22 to reward us for being this way), which is what we want for you, more than all else, to have.
Love,
Dad
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