“But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them, expecting nothing in return. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.”
— Luke 6:35
Do not just love—phileo—but love with the agape love by which God loves you. This is a present tense command. Do it now, not later. Love them because I, the Messiah, love you, even though you were My enemies. Love the people who intentionally set out to cause you harm.
Do more than that. Let your agape love—the love with which I (Jesus) love you and have put in you—cause you to do good to your enemies. Don’t stop at the idea of good the world has. Do the good that comes from God’s character—absolute good that seeks what is the best for that person—even though the person is intent on harming you.
To the extent of giving to the enemy what he asks from you, do that good. Go further; make your intent not to expect the loan of what they borrowed to be returned. Lend with this intention and don’t despair when it’s not returned. Lend with God’s mindset of loving by doing what’s best. Jesus did not come to earth so we could borrow salvation from Him. He came so that we might have salvation. Jesus gives salvation to us with no conditions other than we believe in Him as the Son of God who takes away the sins of the world. Our gift from Him is unconditional. We don’t have to return it. We can’t die a crucifixion to give life back to Jesus. We can’t make anything live by our death. We can’t make Jesus alive because He did that for Himself three days after His death. Additionally, we can’t make anything come back to life because we are mortal and powerless over death and the grave. So, lend with the goodness that comes from God and with His love not intending to get back that which you give.
Do we need a reward or any kind of notice for loving and doing good? On this earth, our fame, if we get any, will fade with our deaths. Our reward in heaven will be based on our intent. The reward we should seek is from God in heaven. He looks at our hearts and rewards us for the love, love, and good we’ve given. Our greatest reward, as people who believe in Jesus, is to be children of God and heirs of heaven with Jesus. This inheritance cost us nothing. That is our ultimate reward and hope.
Remember, we once were ungrateful enemies of God, yet He still loved us, did good for us, and gave to us sacrificially. So, take what you’ve been given by God and use it to love your enemies, do good to them, and give them what they need. All these—love, goodness, and gifts—come from God. He expects and hopes you will channel what He is giving you even to the people who intend to harm you.
God was kind to the ungrateful and wicked. He is gracious and benevolent to them when they don’t deserve it, even to giving salvation and eternal life with Him in heaven. So, you be kind and show God’s gracious love to your enemies so they may one day believe in Jesus and receive God’s grace, too.
“But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44).
But to those of you who will listen, I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone takes your cloak, do not withhold your tunic as well. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what is yours, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you. (Luke 6:27-31)
