"If you love those who
love you, what credit is that to you?” Luke 6:32
Westboro. ISIS.
Those names represent everything we hate: Bigotry. Extremism.
Self-righteousness. We feel justified in hating them; it’s hard not to. But
they give us a great opportunity to practice what Jesus taught about loving our
enemies. Compared to them, even the most annoying people in our lives seem
loveable. Love does not mean we condone their actions. But it means that we
desire God’s best in their lives, and are willing to help that happen. Uncommon
love means we love people who don’t deserve it, who may never love us back.
Jesus wants us to love Westboro. ISIS. Political
opposites. Even ex-spouses.
So
why does Jesus require such a difficult thing? The answer is simple: because we
can’t do it alone. No way can we love a black-hooded executioner beheading a
missionary. It’s not in us, and that’s what Jesus wants us to recognize. It is
supernatural to love people like that; our human love won’t stretch that far.
We don’t even want it to. But when Jesus’ followers show that kind of love, the
world takes notice. It’s unnatural. It’s unearned. It’s uncommon.
Anyone can love the
lovers, but who loves the haters? We do.
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