Loving Enemies
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Pray
Introduce self
This morning my message, I think, is very simple.
My message will start and end with Jesus Christ. But the message is simple love your enemies
It’s always tempting I think as a preacher to say “our culture is… x”.
The problem with doing that is it places all the responsibility for whatever behaviour x is on some undetermined group of people and I suspect it’s a way to get out of calling Christians out.
So here are basic assumptions about Matt 5 right at the beginning of the chapter we are told Jesus is teaching his disciples and other people are there.
Jesus is teaching his disciples first and foremost and others are listening in.
This as you know and have covered is Jesus showing his dsicples how to best follow him
What can we assume about that? Well we can assume that this teaching must have been relevant to the disicples.
St Peter famously got angry and chopped someone’s ear off. An action which doesn’t scream “love your enemies”.
The teaching was seemingly relevant to at least them and probably the crowd around them.
We also know that St Matthew through the Holy Spirit thought this teaching was important to keep in his gospel!
St John famously said
Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.
All the gospel writers had to make choices about what to include and what not to include about Jesus
This teaching therefore must have been relevant to Matthew’s immediate context...
What do we know about them?
They were Greek speaking Jews who had accepted Jesus Christ seems to be the likely setting in which Matthew is writing.
We suspect that these Christians we being persecuted by other Jews.
Matthew’s gospel which is by far the most Jewish of the gospels seeks to reassure them of their continutation that Jesus is the fulfilment of the Law. But it also encourages those who are experiencing persecution to stand firm in their faith
In other words they are exactly the kind of people you might well expect to include a message about loving your enemies in.
BUT
What about us? The bible is not just written for one people in one time right? Therefore it stands to reason that this passage like all scripture, contains such a deep truth that it is relevant for our own journey with Jesus.
In other words without knowing you particularly well. There will no doubt be some of us here, maybe even most of us who struggle to love our enemies.
There will be some of us who are given to wanting to retaliate when someone wrongs us.
What does Jesus have to say about this then?
Retaliation
Retaliation
The first part of the reading is very much about retaliation. But it’s also trying to make a correction.
Jesus says
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’
The Law and the Old Testament in general when it prescribes a Law nearly always connects the breaking of a law to a punishment.
Eye for eye, tooth for tooth
It would be a bit like having a modern law that said something like
Do not steal, if you steal you will serve up to 12 months in prison.
So just like the laws in the Old Testament they were proportionate to the crime, an eye for an eye.
It’s a guide for how far someone should be punished.
But here’s where the correciton is needed. “eye for an eye, tooth for tooth” is not a bad principle for a judicial system within a nation.
Punishments proportionate for a crime.
However it’s a rubbish way to set personal ethics.
Basically if you apply eye for an eye to a feud between two people or between two households you can enter into an endless bloodfeud.
Jesus then gives four examples of a new way to live.
One not based on retaliation....
But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.
Turn an offer the other cheek.
I’ll be honest I’ve always struggled with this. I’ve heard lots of sermons saying that in the ancient world you would hit a slave this way so if your turned and offered the other cheek they’d have to hit you with their palm...
Therefore treating you as a peer
The reason why I struggle with this… is… well… you’re still getting hit.
I don’t know about you but I generally go through life avoiding being hit… so I’m not in a hurry to offer the other cheek
Why is Jesus saying this then? You get hit on one cheek, you turn and offer the other. What is Jesus saying?
Remember - this was included in a gospel written to a persecuted community.
Written in a culture of retaliation.
Read the book of Acts and you see the early church frequently facing violence. Leaders killed right in front of them.
Jesus’ teaching then is simple. Do not retaliate.
In Acts 7 St Stephen becomes the first person to be killed for believing in Jesus
Now the church could have become this violent retaliatory movement right?
But in Acts 8 we read this
And Saul approved of their killing him.
On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison.
Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.
How definining is that?
Stephen the first martyr - a deacon - somone with a recognised title and everything within this new movement. Is stoned
Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.
No retaliation. The church simply presses on with the task.
Kingdom lifestyle right? It’s just different.
Turn and offer the other cheek
And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
The same point made again basically
But what’s worth saying before we move on is that you do have to be careful how you apply these verses.
Much like other parts of Matt 5 this is not quite as simple as simply I read, I do
Like the section on Adultery there aren’t really any stories of people ripping out their eyes because they’ve lusted in their heart
I think Jesus’ point by giving the examples of turn the other cheek, give your shirt to someone who sues you, go the extra mile, give to one who asks.
is to encourage the church to not retaliate to violence, to not grumble when things are enforced on us, to go beyond what is asked of us.
But not relentlessly, because some of this would frankly be impossible. How many miles can you walk? How much can you give away. You can’t keep giving money to the same person and how practical would that even be? Would that even benefit them?
Lets not get bogged down in that and accept the spirit of Jesus’ teaching which is do not retaliate, and go beyond what is asked of you. That’s how christian’s live
Love your enemies
Love your enemies
So far so good but then Jesus. He takes it further.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’
You have head it said...
heard is the key word for that...
Because what is important is that there is nowhere in the Old Testament that says hate your enemy
Clearly there were people going around teaching love your neighbour, hate your enemy.
What Jesus goes on to say is not reinterpretting the Old Testament but actually trying to take them back to the Word
For example
If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat,
and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink,
That doesn’t sound like hate your enemy.
so Jesus continues
Matthew 5:44–45 (NIV)
But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.
It’s almost an oxymoron
An enemy by definiton is someone who is not loved
How does on even begin to love your enemies.
The anglican church in Baghdad, St George’s they have gone around the homes of members of their church to find blood everywhere, believers slaughtered. Chidlren dead.
I’ve worked with victims of Christian persecution I’ve asked can you forgive them and they’ve said no.
It’s not easy. Could you forgive?
But look again at verses 44 and 45
Matthew 5:44–45 (NIV)
But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.
Children of your Father in heaven.
They’re not really attacking you as the Christian. They’re attacking God.
If this part of Matthew 5 teaches us anything it is to raise our gaze beyond the tit for tat personal ethics that men and women are obsessed with creating...
But to look to our Father in Heaven
An attack on a Christian for being a Christian is an attack on the Son of God
What did Christ say to St Paul at his conversion
And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”
Why are you persecuting me
Not why are you persecuting the Chrisitans.
Jesus takes it personally
Jesus and persecution
Jesus and persecution
If we are going to understrand this command to love our enemies really we need to think well how does Jesus respond to his enemies?
If when Christians are being beheaded in Iraq it’s not really them that’s being attacked it’s God himself.
How does God respond when he’s attacked
How does God act in the face of his enemies?
You know that when the first humans fell, humanity chose to make God our enemy.
By our desire to live our way we chose sin over God
But look at the story of God and his people
Look at the Old Testament it’s full of accounts of God seeking to give the best to his people. People who time and time again turn away from him, reject him or even forget about him all together.
Look at the incarnation of Jesus. God knowing that our sinfulness, our out and out opposition to God was destroying us. He comes down in the person of Jesus.
Jesus came down amongst his enemies. He even made friends with some of them.
Even when people tried to kill him he stuck around on his plan for our good.
And of course they did eventually hang him on a cross and killed him
What was his prayer on the cross?
Luke 23:34 (ESV)
And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”
Jesus’ example of facing violent persectuion is the most inspirirational and revolutionary way of being the world has ever seen.
Countless Christians at thier murders have been moved by his example to pray for their enemies
Not least Stephen the first martyr.
And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
How then shall we live
How then shall we live
How then shall we live
Hopefully none of us will face violent persecution
However, I can’t promise you that
The cost of following Jesus is high
But what would it look like if we remembered how Jesus came and lived with his enemies? That on the cross he prayed for his enemies?
How would that filter out into other parts of our lives? If that’s how he lived when nails were drove through his hands, he prayed for them/ how can we live when someone just mildly annoys us?
Lets pray...
