Love your Enemies
The Four Gospels • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 45:11
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· 13 viewsMorning 26 May 24
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“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
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*** START TIMER ***
Sermon on the mount
Sixth & final Anti-Thesis
The False View
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’
The prevailing problem
Pharasees played fast and loose with God’s Word
Love your neighbour “as yourself” ommited
Addition: Hate your enemy (found nowhere in scripture)
The law stated:
You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.
The emphasis is on loving your neighbour as yourself
They had perverted God’s law
Jesus was asked in Luke 10:29 who your neighbour is
Jesus replied with the parable of the Good Samaritan
Four characters listed: Robbers, Priest, Levite, or Samaritan
God’s Law included the stranger, not just the fellow Israelite
You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.
The debate at the time of Jesus, had been over the inclusion of Proselyte’s into the faith and society
The understood the need to accept thosee who had been baptised and circumcised
They though debated whether those moved into the community were to be accepted too
God’s word had been so clear yet they debated its application
Due to the woeful misinterpretation of the Law a wall of seperation between Jew & Gentile had arisen
They affirmed Jews were to be loved, and Gentiles hated
They had not stopped there.
They then seperated good Israelites (scribes & pharasees) and bad Israelites (tax collectors, and any that did not know the law)
Hatred had plenty to feed on
Intolerance was rife
Jesus showed that he came for the purpose of destroying those barriers, so that love (pure, warm, divine and infinite) would flow straight from the heart of God
His love overleaped all the boundaries of race, nationality, party, age, sex etc
Love your Enemies
Love your Enemies
But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
Jesus preached with authority and proclaimed a message which probably had never before been said so succintly, positively and forcefully.
Jesus and the scripture make it clear that your neighbour every human being
Jesus taught the people that one should not even ask “who is my neighbour?”
We should encounter every human being in love
The scriptures not only forbids vengence, it teaches that whenever necessary one should render assistence to their enemy
nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his lawsuit. “If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey going astray, you shall bring it back to him.
Jesus takes the next step from “assist your enemy” to “love your enemy”
Jesus showed in the Beatitudes that we are Peace Makers and so Christians do not pursue a life that creates enemies
Our enemies are those who set themselves against us, without justification
Jesus adds “Pray for those who persecute you”
Jesus outlines how we implament the beatitude he has just shortly before proclaimed....
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
return...
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
Jesus uses the word Agape and Agapao
Love (agape) your neighbour
Show love (agapao) to your enemy
Greek words for Love
Philautia: self love, self-esteem or self-worth
Philia: Brotherly Love, affection, friendship or camaraderie
Eros: Ramantic Love, passion or desire
Storgē: Familial love, generousity or kindness to strangers
Xenia: Hospitality, generousity or kindness to strangers
Agapē: unconditional love, charity or selflessness
We are to Love the individual not what they do, is demonstrated through Jesus...
but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.
Children and Heirs of God
Children and Heirs of God
so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
Salvation is not earned through loving your enemies, but is the behaviour of children who wish to be more like their father
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
Return..
so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
God demonstrates his love
He makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good
He sends rain on the just (righteous) and the unjust (unrighteous)
The example given to us … Jesus said...
But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil.
Why is God so loving towards the ungrateful and evil?
Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?
There is a love of God is not shared by all...
“Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
We can have faith is his everlasting and sovereign loving care, no matter what life throws at us ...
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Don’t be like the Prodigal son’s brother...
“Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.’ But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, but he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.’ ”
Christians bask in the sunshine of God’s love every day
For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
Those who refuse to include their enemies and their persecutors in their love are putting themselves on the same moral and spiritual level with the very people whom they so thoroughly despise
There were three main tax offices
based in Carsarea, Capernaum and Jericho
Tax would be issued on what the traffic would bear
They had the reputation of being extortionists
They were despised as traitors
And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
Gentiles were also disdained
Israelites had previously loved the “sojourners” (Deut 1:19) remembering they had been such in Egpyt
But since their time in Babylon (586 BC), and suffered much at their hands and that of Nebuchadnezzar
Antiochus Epiphanes (170 BC), Greek ruler had pursued to ethnically cleanse the Jews from existance
These experiences had led the people to hate the Gentiles
Now the Roman Empire was their new oppressors
They treated them as “unclean” ...
Then they led Jesus from the house of Caiaphas to the governor’s headquarters. It was early morning. They themselves did not enter the governor’s headquarters, so that they would not be defiled, but could eat the Passover.
Even as “dogs” ...
And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
For a Jew to have dinner with a Gentile was unthinkable ...
So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcision party criticized him, saying,
The Jews had received similar treatment from the Gentiles
Jews, Gentiles, Tax Collectors & Samaritans all formed seperate groups
This is why the Samaritan woman at the well had been so surprised that Jesus had asked her for a drink of water
Hatred was everywhere
Return...
And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
Tax collectors loved tax collectors
Gentiles warmly & friendly greated one another
Jesus makes it clear that acting as the tax collectors and Gentiles, that they themselves were no different
Why should they be rewarded by God?
They are doing nothing that is exceptional, that over flows or is extrodinary
Yet in order to receive a reward the righteous of those who desirred to be Christ’s disciples must “excel” that of the Scribes and Pharaisees ...
For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Heidelberg Catechism: there is nothing wrong with the idea of looking for a reward, provided however that it be understood that the work that is done for the Master must be done spontaneously in the spirit of ...
Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?
And that the reward is not out of merit but of grace.
Next time we will be considering this principal further in Matt 6:1-6
Jesus summarizes ...
You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Perfect: Without spot of blemish, blamesless
Old Testament commands...
“Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them, You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.
You shall be blameless before the Lord your God,
New testament commands...
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.
but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
Jesus does not expect perfectionism!
He later teaches us to pray...
and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
Jesus gave no expectation that these words would not be needed at a time before the day of judgement
Against the concept of perfectionism...
as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one;
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body.
What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.” But sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, produced in me all kinds of covetousness. For apart from the law, sin lies dead. I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin came alive and I died. The very commandment that promised life proved to be death to me. For sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me. So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good. Did that which is good, then, bring death to me? By no means! It was sin, producing death in me through what is good, in order that sin might be shown to be sin, and through the commandment might become sinful beyond measure. For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good.
Return..
You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
“Perfect” means “brought to completion, full-grown, lacking nothing”
Jesus presents that God’s people should not be satisfied with half-way obedience to the law of love
We should strive to imitate the perfection of God, which here specifically is in the Love he shows to all
To be shown equally to all, as the Sun shines and the Rain falls on all equally
Even the love of the most mature believer is and will always be finite, whereas God’s love in infinite
Therefore such finite love can never be anything more than a shadow of his marvelous love
This finite love is, nevertheless, attainable
Because he is our heavenly Father, who will, for that very reason, not withhold this gift from his children
Next time....
Chapter 5: Jesus has spoken of the Righteousness of the Kingdom of Heaven
Chapter 6: Jesus goes on to demand the sincere devotion to the Heart of God, and undivided trust in our Heavenly Father amid all circumstances
If love to God is sincere then to Him we will wurrdender everything, and from him we will expect everything
We must shift our attention from ourselves and others and to “our heavenly father”
Jesus mentions “Your Father who is in Heaven” three times in chapter 5, and in chapter 6 another 12 times in slightly varied ways.
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