Loving Enemies Series

Sermon on the Mount - Matthew 5:43-48 (Loving Enemies)

MATTHEW 5:43-48

43 You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

INTRODUCTION

Matthew 5:43–48 continues Jesus' teaching on love and humility, a part of the Sermon on the Mount. After commanding believers not to seek revenge in the face of insults, Jesus expands the idea of love to include one's enemies. Human beings naturally struggle with the idea of submissively accepting persecution. We naturally recoil at expressing active love—in our deeds, not necessarily in our emotions—for those who hate and attack us. However, loving those who love you is easy; God's standards are higher.

COMMENTARY

43 You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'

This statement is slightly different from Jesus' previous comments about teachings from the scribes and Pharisees. Up to now, statements such as "you shall not murder" (Matthew 5:21) and "you shall not commit adultery" (Matthew 5:27) were legitimate commands given by God in the Old Testament. Jesus' intent in using "but I say…" in response was not to reject those teachings but to move them beyond shallow, legalistic, unloving interpretations (Matthew 5:22, 28). Here, however, the teaching Jesus presents includes a detail God never gave the people of Israel.

God never commands hate for other people. Leviticus 19:18 commands love for one's neighbor, but there is no Scripture where Jesus' listeners would have been told to hate their enemies. It is possible that Israel's religious leaders seized on the "neighbor" concept, claiming that those who were not their "neighbors" were not to be loved. Religious leaders might have taught that hatred toward God's wicked enemies was justified and required since God hates evil.

In Jesus' earthly ministry, He clarified that loving one's neighbor was the second-greatest of all God's commandments (Matthew 22:36–39). He also expanded the definition of one's "neighbor" (Luke 10:29) well beyond the cultural norm through the parable of the good Samaritan (Luke 22:36–37). That does not mean this is easy; It is hard to love other people. Jesus, though, will show that loving one's enemies can genuinely be powerful when done as a representative of God.

Once again, Jesus flips the common understanding of righteousness on its head. Jesus' original audience probably wondered how any person could be righteous if a person must love His enemies. That, of course, is part of the point Jesus intends to make (Matthew 5:48). While we ought to strive to meet God's standards, only salvation by grace through faith can bring us into heaven (Titus 3:5).

(44) But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

Jesus' long list of reversals in chapter 5 concludes with this one. His listeners had grown up under partly correct teaching. God's Word does, indeed, command us to love our neighbor as ourselves (Leviticus 19:18). However, it seems that the religious leaders were also teaching that it was permissible—possibly even mandatory—to hate one's enemies (Matthew 5:43). Jesus again declares that God's intent for the righteousness of His people goes beyond selfishness and legalism. It implies something much more complex and more like God Himself.

Instead of only acting in love towards neighbors, Jesus tells His disciples to love their enemies and even to pray for those who persecute them. Though few people live this out in a meaningful way, the idea is deeply ingrained in western culture. Many modern people have heard this teaching, or variations on it, all our lives. That makes it easy to forget the radical claim, especially for those who live with daily threats from dire enemies, as did the first-century Israelites.

On the one hand, becoming part of the Roman empire brought benefits. Rome typically did not destroy those they conquered—instead, they allowed relative freedom with conditions. Israel continued to function as Israel in many ways, and they experienced a form of peace under Roman rule. That said, Rome ruled over conquered nations absolutely and severely. Dissent beyond the established limits was savagely punished. Crucifixions were common and brutal. Roman soldiers enjoyed privileges and took liberties with Jewish citizens under their thumb. The Roman tax burden left many people in near poverty. The Jewish people understandably viewed Rome as their enemy.