Luke 6:28
Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.
This may be one of those verses that is very hard for most of us to follow. Yes, we know God tells us to do this and in our mind we know it is right, but quite often our sinful human self fights against it. The only way we can have this Godly type of love is through the Spirit of God. It is not humanly possible but it is Divinely possible. We can only have unconditional Godly love when the Holy Spirit dwells in us and we submit to His leading. It is only through God's power that we can begin to love our enemy; to not retaliate against those who use us.
While on the cross, Jesus prayed for the murderer beside Him. As Stephen was being stoned, he prayed for those around him. Joseph forgave his brothers even though they sold him into slavery. Esau welcomed back his brother Jacob, even though Jacob had stolen his birthright. These are just a few examples of those who were able to pray for, bless and love their enemies.
We may never face the physical persecutions that many Christians have in the past (and some face even today), yet we often have people in our lives who mistreat us or hate us. Abiding by this scripture gives us a chance to show them the love of Jesus and be a witness to them. We need to ask God to help us submit to Him so that His love can flow through us.
As we go through our day, let us be led by the Holy Spirit and pray for those who are against or who hurt us along the way.
No comments:
Post a Comment