Do you love and do good to those who wrong you, judge you, hurt you? is that possible? can Jesus be serious when he says “Love your Enemies…”? Today we explore the what, how and why of Jesus’ call to the practice of “love your enemies…”
If you want a study tool to go along with the podcast, see Lift Notes here:
Life in the Kingdom: Love your enemies
January 19th, 2014 by Kasey Crawford
Today’s Passages: Matthew 5:43-47, Romans 5:6-10
Review
The broad structure of Jesus’ teaching carries the message that:
1) Soaking in our ______________ found in the beatitudes (Matt 5:1-11),
2) transforms us towards a ______________of being salt and light with a radical righteousness (Matthew 5:12-20)
3) that is walked out in our __________ ___________ (Matt 5:21-7:29)
Two things to look for in these teachings on daily living:
- The ___________ _____________of brokenness, which are the recurring results of what happens when God’s will is not done.
- A _______________ ________________ is a specific way that Jesus calls us to act that comes into agreement with God’s will for the situation.
New
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even Gentiles do that? Matthew 5:43-47
Jesus is addressing the vicious cycle people’s love extends to those __________ them or to those whom they __________.
Jesus asserts a transforming practice: Love your enemies with _________________ _______________.
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us….when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son… Romans 5:8,10
When we were God’s ___________…Christ died for us. There is the source of ______________ love!
Agape is an “overflowing love which is purely spontaneous, unmotivated, groundless. Agape does not begin by discriminating between worthy and unworthy people…” MLK
He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. Matthew 5:45
In sum, agape is an ________________ _________________.
Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:45
As we love those who don’t deserve it, we are ______________ the heart of our father in heaven.
Jesus’ call to his followers is to extend the boundaries of love towards those not like you and those you don’t like in order to _________ enemies into friends.
Don’t give enemies what they _____________, _______________them with goodness.
Living as a Disciple in the Kingdom…
What is God saying to you?
What are you going to do about it?
*Answers: identity, destiny, daily lives, vicious cycle, transforming practice, like, like, undeserved, goodness, enemies, enemy, undeserved, goodness, reflecting, turn, deserve, overwhelm
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