Matthew 5:44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; 45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
This passage of scripture is often misconstrued to mean that the same warm, fuzzy feelings we get when interacting with family and friends, should also be exhibited and experienced when dealing with one's enemies. This is not what the passage is saying, for it goes on to explain how love towards one's enemies should be displayed, in that we should first pray for them, treat them with respect and dignity, and we should not be biased against them in our services to them. In other words, if a waitress at a restaurant suddenly realizes that her enemy with his family just entered the premises, she should not deliberately avoid serving him, nor should she do so with an attitude of scorn, ridicule or contempt.
Christ set the example for us in matters pertaining to our adversaries, by providing them with all the necessary incentives for reconciliation, even though on many occasions He was despised, and his enemies became offended. Judas who was actively plotting against Christ sat at the table for the last supper, and Jesus, true to His mission to save as many as would be saved, included Judas in His service of foot washing, and also ate and drank with him who had already covenanted with the priests for His arrest. But the highlight of Jesus' kindness towards Judas came when he hailed Jesus as "Master" and kissed him. Let's read:
Matthew 26:48 Now he that betrayed him gave them a sign, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he: hold him fast. 49 And forthwith he came to Jesus, and said, Hail, master; and kissed him. 50 And Jesus said unto him, Friend, wherefore art thou come? Then came they, and laid hands on Jesus and took him.
Human nature naturally recoils from this brazen kind of hypocrisy, yet Jesus continued to the end to treat Judas with respect. With this shining example of loving one's enemies before our faces, it becomes obvious that we have a long way to go in the process of uniform kindness to friends and foes alike. In our day the news and social media often take delight in stirring up old grudges and quarrels, and great satisfaction is often displayed when one's adversaries are publicly rebuffed and humiliated.
These attitudes and dispositions are to be entirely uprooted from the Christian's heart if we are to enjoy fellowship and communion with The Most High, for God takes no delight in the death or chagrin of His adversaries, and therefore we also, as His disciples, should be willing to deny the urge to be vengeful or antagonistic to those who may not be favorably inclined towards us.
We therefore end with a passage of scripture that calls us to partake of the Spirit of Christ by deliberately refusing to indulge our thirst for revenge and alienation to those who do us wrong. Let's read:
Proverbs 24:17 Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbleth: 18 Lest the Lord see it, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him.
May God send us His Holy Spirit today so that we can let go of those old grudges and wrongs that keep festering in our minds, for if we are willing, we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. God bless!