You
have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your
enemy.' I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you…[1]
…if
your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to
drink…[2]
The instruction concerning enemies must
have sounded as strange to the ears of people in the first century as it does
to us today. More than a few have endeavoured to demonstrate the impracticality
this command. Some with time on their hands might seek solace
in the eternally long poem of Alexander Pope, from which I have extracted a very
short quotation:
To
what base Ends, and by what abject Ways,
Are Mortals urg’d thro’ Sacred Lust of praise!
Ah ne’er so dire a Thirst of Glory boast,
Nor in the Critick let the Man be lost!
Good-Nature and Good-Sense must ever join;
To err is Humane; to Forgive, Divine.[3]
It would be against God’s nature to burden
believers with impossible demands. “No
testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and
he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he
will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it.”[4]
Some of the difficulty connected to loving and treating enemies well, maybe
that we do not look at the whole situation. To love your enemies is not natural;
in what way could human nature be changed to make it natural to love enemies?
To a somewhat similar question Jesus responded, “The things that are impossible
with people are possible with God.”[5]
If I with God’s help were able to elevate my spiritual nature and follow its
course would that circumvent my human nature? The short quotation from Romans
above has been taken out of context so that it aligns with Jesus’ statement.
The full context follows:
Bless
those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who
rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be
haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are.
Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the
sight of all. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably
with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of
God; for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the
Lord." No, "if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are
thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning
coals on their heads." Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with
good.[6]
“…you will heap
burning coals on their heads.” This is a much debated phrase; some commentators
suggest “divine punishment” is meant. Some look to an Egyptian ritual in which
a person showed his repentance by carrying a pan of burning charcoal on his
head. Some point out the source of Paul’s quotation as, “If your enemies are
hungry, give them bread to eat; and if they are thirsty, give them water to
drink; for you will heap coals of fire on their heads, and the LORD will reward
you.”[7]
An explanation put forward by a very few commentators suggests, “A deed of
benevolence (giving live coals to those in need)”
This might well be an occasion to invoke, “Occam’s Razor”
- “Entities should not be multiplied unnecessarily.” Or, in its modern concise
form “keep it simple”. The general theme of the paragraph is kindness and love,
and the victory of doing good. It would
be inconsistent to require believers to love
their enemies, and as an incentive to do so, point out that their love will
bring pain upon those enemies. Paul earlier quoted God saying, “Vengeance is mine, and retribution…”[8]
I can’t reconcile the notions of loving your enemies and doing good to them, so
that they will be worse off because you did. I don’t know if heaping coals on your
enemies’ heads can be satisfied by the explanation of providing live coals for
them to use, but, at least it fits the context a whole lot better than being
gleeful over their increased suffering.
There is perhaps
another idea which may fit into the context of Paul’s writing. We need to focus
on ourselves and the command for us to love our enemies. Two things we must
notice; one is that the injunction of Jesus does not include anything about the
impact on our enemies. Secondly, the passage quoted by Paul from Proverbs includes,
“and the LORD will reward you.” From the context which is more likely to be
rewarded, kindness, or causing pain? The concluding sentence of Paul’s
instruction is, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
Taking it as the summary of the paragraph, it is the principle that must govern
our behaviour. It is a principle, a guideline for living. Overcoming evil with
good, doesn’t suggest satisfaction at another’s suffering. What I get from
Paul’s writing is that I am to focus on positives, I am to love, and I am not
to be distracted by vengeance. God has claimed vengeance, and the right to
judge and punish. In exercising love and kindness I glorify God, and show grace
and love in my life. I honour God by not taking upon myself that which he has
claimed as his right. The burning coals to me expresses that God is doing his
job and allowing me to do mine. The assurance that God will do whatever is
necessary, if accepted, permits me to get on with what I have to do –and that is
to love.
Corrupt governments,
child murderers and molesters, terrorist organizations, civil wars, and the
like. People who commit such despicable heinous acts give up the right to be
called human, they are worse than ravenous animals. It would seem that no
individual could love such evil people, but for some it is easier to be
magnanimous to cruel and bloodthirsty terrorists than to their next-door
neighbour. As the adage says, “hate the sin, but love the sinner”; that may just
be a copout. My first observation would be that I’m not sure the creeps I’ve
listed would have been the kind of enemies that believers in the first century
were told to love. I would think their enemies would likely have been a cranky
neighbour or a domineering boss. An enemy might also have been someone to whom
they owed money, or, someone guilty of slandering them, or a neighbour whose livestock
trampled their gardens. I’m inclined to believe that the murderous people and
groups listed fall within God’s bailiwick. That God is the avenger is
comforting to any who witness injustice.
My second observation
is that the love we are to show our enemies, is God’s love. God’s love goes
beyond friendship or affection and may not even include familiarity or
friendship. We are to love our enemies because God has loved us. We did not,
and do not, deserve God’s love. We are to love our enemies even when they don’t
want, deserve, or appreciate our love. As children of God we must have his
nature, and his nature is love. Believers are people through whom the love of
God is extended to any and all. It may be reasonable to withhold affection or
friendship from someone who is mean or miserable, but you cannot withhold love.
Believers recognize the awfulness of being separated from God in eternity. When
God’s love is channeled through believers, hope is offered to the hopeless. “Owe
nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has
fulfilled the law.”[9]
Love demands that we put aside animosity and hostility. God’s love is channeled
through us to those who have insulted, persecuted, or just annoyed us. Love
cannot be institutionalized or programed. It is hosted in individual hearts
–from which it flows to others.
To love in God’s way
believers have to relinquish the desire to control situations beyond their
scope. A clear line of distinction must be maintained between what I am
expected to do, and that which is within the purview of God. This I believe is
the first step in being able to love enemies. I can fret and stew about the
heinous acts of Mugabe, or the malevolent creep that murdered the five year old
girl, but in the end I am the one that becomes embittered and frustrated. On
the other hand, accepting those situations will be handled by God, leaves me
free of the burden of setting things right. And yes, God is able and will see
that justice is done; of that I am sure. One final thought; we must love our
enemies, and not make enemies of the ones we love. With the institutionalizing
and programming of personal responsibilities, it becomes possible to “love”
people, as part of a Church program. We feel pious about what we do for the
Church, while at the same time failing to meet family and personal obligations.
The parable of the young ladies and oil for their lamps[10]
suggests that you can’t give away what you don’t have, or that which is crucial
to your spiritual survival. The same applies to family; it is wrong to provide
spiritual nurturing to others, at the expense of your family. The home is more
important than the Church, and godly parenting more critical than Sunday school
programs.
…the LORD is in His holy temple. Let all the
earth be silent before Him.[11]
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