27 “But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.
These are some of the most difficult words to put into practice, and yet when they are carried out they have a profound impact. No one likes to be at the receiving end of hate. It can take the form of people invoking their god’s power in order to harm you, or it can be in the form of treatment that is undeserved. Either way, we don’t like it. It is very unpleasant. We have to keep our mouths shut and not retaliate. But even when we don’t lash out physically, the Lord wants us to not even lash out in our minds. We must not sit and stew about the injustice of the treatment. We must be active in our response. We must love them and bless them instead. It is not enough to just not hate or not curse. Jesus calls us to love and bless. He calls us to actively pursue His attitude and actions in our lives. That is why He calls us to pray for those who mistreat us. It is not enough to simply not react to our enemies. We must love them, do good to them, bless them and pray for them. We need to be very active in reflecting God to them. God is calling us to step up in our game. We have been sitting on the proverbial bench far too long, expecting others to do the hard work of righteous living. God is calling us to live right, before God and before others. I think of the Muslim world today. They are desperate to see Jesus’ love in action. They want an alternative to the mindless killing and emptiness. Jesus offers that fulfillment, but they need to see it lived out in the lives of Jesus-followers who are willing to be open and share their lives with them. I think of those here in the United States who, because of their immoral choices, have abandoned truth and day by day write their own standards. And of course their standards slip deeper and deeper into hopelessness and nonsensical thinking. The stimulus package is a good example of this nonsensical thinking. Even before it was signed by the President, he was doubting its effectiveness, and yet he signed it knowing it would not work. We must do something that works: love, doing good, blessing and praying. That would be a real stimulus package.
The Arnold Journey 