Supernatural Love

To you who are willing to listen, I say, love your enemies! Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you. If someone slaps you on one cheek, offer the other cheek also. If someone demands your coat, offer your shirt also. Give to anyone who asks; and when things are taken away from you, don’t try to get them back. Do to others as you would like them to do to you. Luke 6:27-31

IT IS PERFECTLY NATURAL to love people who love us. And it comes quite naturally to hate those who are against us, those who hurt or humiliate us. So it is also natural for us to want to water down this command of Christ to love and do good to our enemies to something more manageable, more reasonable. As parents, we can’t stand the idea of our children being taken advantage of, so we’re more likely to teach them how to protect themselves and stand up for themselves than we are to teach them how to pray for those who have hurt them. But what if we did? And before you answer, understand this will mean that you will have to demonstrably love your enemies and audibly bless those who curse you.

What attitudes do your children see and hear from you in regard to neighbors who park on your lawn, bosses who abuse their power, referees who officiate poorly, or church leaders who make undesirable changes? What if you and your kids invited the annoying neighbors over for dinner? What if your kids heard you blessing your boss, thanking the referee, and praying for your church leaders rather than complaining? Is this even possible?

The gospel, with its staggering promises of great reward, offers the resources we need for this Spirit-driven behavior. As we love our enemies, we model God’s own character, which was manifested fully in Jesus. We love as we have been loved. This command to love our enemies is a call to unnatural deeds of kindness, unnatural words of blessing, and unnatural prayers for pardon. It is a command for supernatural love.

Lord, I cannot rely on what comes naturally when it comes to dealing with people who are against me and those who have hurt me or my family. I need supernatural power to love as I have been loved. You are a God who demonstrated love toward us even when we were your enemies. Won’t you fill me with that kind of love and fill ________ with that kind of love so we can love like you do?