Dealing With Love
Dealing With Love
Bro Micah See | 3 August 2025 | Matthew 5 : 43 – 48
Matthew 5:43–48 (NKJV)
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”
Jesus calls us to a kind of love that goes beyond what feels natural. Loving those who love us is easy, but true Christian love shines when we love those who dislike us, oppose us, or even hurt us. A powerful picture of this was seen in World War 1, when British and German soldiers declared a brief Christmas truce, stepped out of the trenches, and played football together. For one day, enemies became human to one another. Jesus wants us to live this way not for one day, but as a way of life.
The first question is: Who is your enemy?
We often think of enemies as those who frustrate or hurt us, disagree with us, or represent groups we dislike. In Jesus’ time, the Jews considered enemies to be political oppressors like the Romans, moral outcasts like tax collectors and Samaritans, and anyone who wronged them personally.
The command to “love your neighbour” comes from Leviticus 19:18, but “hate your enemy” was an addition by the Jews, not by God. The problem with hating enemies is that it is based on shallow impressions and assumes people can never change.
Yet the Bible is full of stories of change: the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25–37) shows that the one you see as an enemy could be the one who shows true compassion. Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1–10) was a despised tax collector, yet transformed after meeting Jesus. Paul of Tarsus, once a persecutor of Christians, became one of the greatest apostles. In reality, the Bible tells us that our only true enemies are sin and the devil (1 John 3:8). Many we see as enemies are actually people in need of God’s mercy.
The second lesson is about God’s love for the unjust.
Jesus reminds us that God is impartial: He sends rain and sunshine on the righteous and the unrighteous alike (Matthew 5:45). God’s love is not convenient or conditional. He loved us while we were still sinners (Romans 5:6–10). He runs to meet prodigals like the Father in Luke 15:20, is patient and not willing that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9), forgives entire nations that repent as He did with Nineveh (Jonah 4:1–11), and gave His only Son so we could live (John 3:16). If God can love the unjust, we are called to reflect the same love—even to those we think least deserve it.
The third lesson is about loving your enemy in practice.
To love our enemies, we need a new mindset: stop seeing them only as enemies, understand their brokenness, and respond with good instead of evil. Romans 12:17–21 teaches us to overcome evil with good, not be overcome by it.
A real-life example is Daryl Davis, a black American musician who befriended members of the KKK, people who literally hated his skin colour. By talking, listening, and showing patience, he helped over 200 members leave the Klan. He often said, “When two enemies are talking, they are not fighting.”
Jesus demonstrated this loving heart when He called Judas “friend” even in betrayal (Matthew 26:50), and reminded us that He came for the spiritually sick, not the healthy (Mark 2:17). In truth, most of our “enemies” are not evil people but souls sick with sin. To love them, we need open hearts and the courage to repay evil with good, trusting God to change hearts.
In conclusion, loving our enemies is one of the hardest things Jesus asks us to do, but it is also the clearest reflection of our Father in heaven. When we love beyond comfort, we break the cycle of hatred, open doors for healing, and show the world a love that transforms.
Romans 12:21 reminds us: “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” This is the love that turns enemies into neighbours, and neighbours into family in Christ.
