DIGGING DEEP NO. 920 – February 1, 2022 LOVE YOUR ENEMIES JUST LIKE YOUR FATHER GOD MATTHEW 5:44

You have heard in the past it was said, “love your neighbor and hate your enemies”. By the way, this was a cultural stance and never the command of God. God is an equal opportunity giver. His love and mercies are for all people. Often, we make statements like” I will forgive but I will not forget” or I will never have anything to do with that person again after I have been maltreated. In Matthew 5:45, as part of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says this about God the Father: “He makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust”. As always, context is the key to understanding scripture. In the verses immediately prior to verse 45, Jesus notes a popular sentiment and then gives a countercultural command: “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” verses 43–44. Then, in the first half of verse 45, Jesus gives the rationale behind the command: “That you may be children of your Father in heaven.

 To be a “child” of someone literally, a “son” did not necessarily mean that a person was literally a member of the family; rather, a “son” was someone who acted like another person or thing. Paul called Timothy his son. Not because he was not literally biological but because he acted like him. 1 Corinthians 4:17, 1 Tim 1:18. For instance, James and John were called “sons of thunder” Mark 3:17 probably because of their potentially hot tempers; they had “thunderous personalities” or perhaps “thunderous tempers.” The scripture brings out this meaning of Matthew 5:45 “Then you will be acting like your Father in heaven.” To the extent that a person exhibits a certain characteristic of God, to that extent, he will be considered a child of God. Similarly, when someone exhibits certain characteristics of the devil, scriptures say” they act like their father” John 8:44-45.

So, how does God love His enemies?

There are several ways, but in Matthew 5:45 Jesus gives two practical examples. “He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” In that agrarian society, good weather was all-important. There are righteous farmers who would be considered God’s friends and unrighteous farmers who would be considered God’s enemies. Regardless of the farmer’s disposition toward God, God gives sunshine and rain to all the farmers in equal portions. When God gives good sunshine and good rain to an evil farmer, it’s an example of God loving His enemies. God makes no distinction between the evil and the righteous in this instance—He gives good gifts to both.

God’s love for His enemies is seen in Ephesians 2:4 as part of a passage contrasting the condition of believers before they came to Christ and their state after responding to His call. In order to understand what it means that God is rich in love and mercy towards His enemies, we need to consider the context of the passage:
He made us alive with Christ:
Ephesians 2:1-7“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in love and mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ by grace you have been saved. Salvation is God’s gift to all mankind. John 1:12. and raised us up with Him and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages He might show the immeasurable riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus”

In this passage, Paul first describes humanity’s deplorable condition in rebellion against God’s rich mercy. We were not only sinful, but we were “dead” in our sins. In other words, because of the sin nature that controls us, we were doomed to an eternity without God and without life Romans 6:23. We deserved God’s wrath, and we could do nothing to save ourselves. Then comes the “but,” and the focus of the passage shifts to God’s love, mercy, grace, and kindness.
The phrase rich in mercy is a counterbalance to the description of humanity being rich in sin. Only a God rich in love and mercy would conceive a plan to save and redeem such wicked creatures. Mercy is compassion or forgiveness extended to someone who deserves punishment or harm. Mercy is undeserved pardon. This is what He gave us while we were still His enemies. Mercy is the only explanation for Christ’s great sacrifice on our behalf 2 Corinthians 5:21.

People can show mercy to one another on a limited, human basis. But our offenses against God were so heinous, so unforgivable, that His forgiveness shows Him to be more than merciful. He is rich in mercy. A God rich in mercy demonstrates His own love for us in this; While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” Romans 5:8. Before we cared or knew Him, God had already extended mercy toward us.1 Peter 1:3 counters any tendency to believe that our salvation is due to some merit within ourselves: “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy, He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
God’s loving mercies continue after salvation as He offers His redeemed children forgiveness when we sin 1 John 1:9. Because He is rich in love, His mercies never end. They are “new every morning” Lamentations 3:23.

In conclusion tonight,

What are some of the ways you plan to show love to your enemies just like your Father in heaven? He makes His sun shine on the just and the unjust. His forgiveness is extended to us daily and His mercies never end. The command to be “Be ye imitators of your heavenly Father” still stands. Ephesians 5:1-2