The Gospel Lesson for this Week

Luke 6:27 "But I say to you that listen, ‘Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you…’ “

This is a well-known passage that has its parallel in Matthew 5:44. This quote is from the past Sunday’s gospel lesson as suggested by The New Revised Common Lectionary (NRCL).  The verse is part of the larger Sermon on the Plain as Luke records it.  I am certainly not going to take issue with this directive.  But I have a question as it pertains to my own living out of this command.

That question is, “Who is my enemy?”  I am not trying to be at all facetious.  Who is my enemy?  I don’t have (that I know anything about) anyone in my life who is crying for my blood.  I guess there would be people of other nations that would view me as an enemy because of my own nationality.  They might regard all Americans as “enemy.”  By the same token there might be people who would regard me as enemy on racial grounds: I am white and therefore I am enemy.

But, closer to home, is someone with whom I disagree strongly an enemy?  Is someone who has hurt my feelings an enemy?  Am I to regard people who have hurt me or my family as enemy?  They may not be on my Christmas card list, but are they my enemy?

Sadly, I can think of people whom I would not welcome into my home.  They are people with whom I would be loathe to share a meal – or even a conversation.  They are people who have caused me emotional trauma, sometimes deep injury.  The great grace of my life would be never to see these folks again.  But, are they enemies?

I know of people who have committed acts of unspeakable violence or deep-rooted evil.  They did not direct their activity toward me personally.  But their wickedness touches entire communities.  Is someone like The Unabomber my enemy?

I don’t know.

Maybe I don’t have true enemies.

That doesn’t make any difference.

There are, as I confess, people toward whom I do not feel very friendly.  Jesus tells me to love them.  Love doesn’t mean that I invite them to Thanksgiving dinner.  Love doesn’t mean that I must relate to them as pals.  But love does mean that Jesus directs me to relate to others – all others – as children of God.  Jesus has sacrificed for them no more or no less than he has sacrificed for me.

I suppose part of it is that enemies aren’t labels.  For good or ill, they are people with whom The Prince of Peace has directed me to be at peace.

He didn’t say it was easy.

He said, “Do it.”