Bless Your Enemies
The message was given on Wed., Sept. 22, 2004
(I owe most of this message to Pastor Bill Ligon who has authored several books on Blessings and how to impart them.)
I. Matt. 5:43-45, "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour. and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; 15 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust."
A. The Jewish Rabbis used to teach that, if you are to love thy neighbor as the scripture says, then you should hate your enemies. But that was their idea and not taught in scripture.
B. The first part of Verse 44 is probably one of the hardest verses of scripture to live up to. It says: "But I say unto you, Love your enemies".
1. It's hard enough to love ALL people, let alone an enemy. But Jesus commands that we love ALL people including our enemies.
a. To love someone who has done or said something that hurt us goes against human nature.
b. Galatians 2:20 says, "I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless, I live. What that means is our human nature, or old sin nature, has died but we are living and growing in the knowledge of Jesus Christ.”
c. As we grow in Jesus we learn that He not only forgave His enemies but He prayed for them as He was dying on the Cross.
d. He set an example for us to follow.
e. Stephen learned this. He was the first martyr who died for his faith in Jesus. As he was being stoned he prayed for his persecutors. The Bible says he prayed out loud, "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge."
C. When Jesus said "But I say unto you, Love your enemies" He was saying it out of experience
as a Man Who had suffered at the hands of people who He loved and forgave.
a. After seeing the Passion of the Christ, can you imagine going through the whipping as Jesus did and not feeling a little hostility towards the man with the whip?
E. THERE ARE SEVERAL KINDS OF LOVE IN THE GREEK LANGUAGE.
1. Eros, the kind that arises from passion and is what the world understands best.
2. Storge love, this is the kind of natural affection between parents and their children.
3. Phileo, is brotherly love. The kind of love that is a deep affection between two people.
4. Then there is Agape love. This is the kind of love that was demonstrated by our Lord when He went to the Cross. It's the God kind of love.
e. When Jesus said Love your enemies" the word used is "agape".
f. Agape love deliberately chooses to love someone regardless of their shortcomings, sins, or offenses.
1. It chooses to love even if the only thing received in turn is hate.
g. Agape love doesn't mean the approval or condoning of the sin, or in the case of someone who has offended us, it doesn't mean that we approve their offense.
h. Agape love separates the sinner from the sin and sees them made in the image of God.
E. FORGIVENESS: So if we should love our enemies, it also follows to reason we forgive them for the offense they have done to hurt us.
1. That's easier said than done. It's very easy to say, "Okay, I forgive you" and walk away.
2. Have you ever forgiven someone but down deep in your heart the hurt was still there?
3. You have forgiven and maybe for a time it's forgotten but you see that person, you hear from them again or just the mention of their name, and the old hurt comes back.
4. You may say, "But I prayed for them, I told them all was forgiven and forgotten. They were convinced but why does it still haunt me? 10 years have gone by and it still comes back to me."
a. The reason it keeps coming back is that we haven't allowed ourselves to release it.
b. To release it we have to give it over to the Lord.
c. The problem is, our spirit man is willing to release it but our soul, our mind, the part that keeps count of all the hurts, hasn't let go of it.
d. It's the "selfish" part of us that is still hanging on.
F. HOW DO YOU RELEASE IT TO THE LORD AND CONVINCE YOUR "SELF"?
1. There is a way that I practically guarantee will convince your "self" that you have completely forgiven, forgotten, and are expressing Agape love towards the person.
2. It's spelled out for us in scripture but most of us have overlooked it.
3. Matt. 5:43-45, “Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you"
4. Jesus gives us 4 things to do.
a. "Love your enemies". b. "Bless them". c. "Do good to them" d. Pray for them.
5. We all know that we're supposed to love our enemies. So with some work, we can do it.
a. "Do good to them". Most of us don't have a hard time with this one.
b. Pray for them. This is another one that we can do pretty easily.
c. Which leaves "bless them". This is the one thing that is overlooked.
G. HOW DO WE BLESS THEM?
1. It doesn't mean to give a “Pentecostal handshake” (putting money in their hand).
2. In verse 44 the Greek word for bless is "eulego".
a. Eulego means "to speak well of someone". (Eulogy)
b. The main thing to realize is that it means to "speak" it out.
c. Why does God want us to speak it out loud?
d. What did we do when we were saved?
3. Romans 10:9-10 says, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved, 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”
a. Verse 10 says, "For with the heart (spirit) man believeth." (To repent means to change your mind).
b. Before we were saved our minds told us, "You're not a sinner. You're OK. Everybody sins. There are a lot of people who are worse than you. etc."
c. But then we came to a point in life when we realize we don't have all the answers. We cried out to God. That opened the door to receive what the Holy Spirit has been trying to tell us all along.
d. He was saying, "All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. You ARE a sinner and are going to hell unless you change your mind, or repent."
e. Our hearts received that, we changed our minds and confessed, "Yes, I am a sinner. Lord, save me".
f. What happened?
g. Man is a three-fold being. Spirit, soul, and body.
h. Our heart believed it, our mouth declared it and our soul received it.
i. God heard it, the devil heard it and our "selfish" soul heard & received it.
j. We made a life-changing declaration, spoken from the spirit with the tongue, heard and received by the soul.
k. That's why some people can say the sinner's prayer and their lives never change. The spirit was willing, the body or tongue obeyed the spirit but the soul wasn't convinced.
H. SO IF WE WANT TO FORGIVE SOMEONE OUR SOUL NEEDS TO COME INTO AGREEMENT. ONE WAY IS TO SPEAK A BLESSING OVER THE PERSON.
I. WHAT BLESSING DO WE SPEAK?
1. A model blessing is in Numbers 6:24-26: "The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: 25 The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: 26 The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace."
2. Use the same blessing except insert the person's name in place of "thee".
3. When you speak that blessing over someone in forgiveness, you are releasing that person to the Lord and you will also pull up those roots of bitterness towards them.
I. The Blessing is a command of God.
a. In Numbers 6 God Aaron this message: From the Amplified: “This is the way you shall bless the Israelites. Say to them, 24 The Lord bless you and watch, guard, and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face to shine upon and enlighten you and be gracious (kind, merciful, and giving favor) to you; 26 The Lord lift up His [approving] countenance upon you and give you peace (tranquility of heart and life continually).”
b. Notice God didn't say, "Pray this prayer". He didn't say to prepare a sacrifice. He said to speak these words over them.
c. In verse 27 God says I will bless them.
d. God wants to bless His people and He did it through His priests speaking Words that God had given them.
J. It has carried over into the New Testament.
a. 1 Peter 2:9, “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.”
b. Rev. 1:6 says Jesus has "made us kings and priests unto God and His Father".
c. We are a kingdom of priests. Jesus is the King. Myles Munro says when a King commands something it is called a decree and it becomes the law of the kingdom. It cannot be changed.
h. When we speak the blessing over people we are acting in the authority of the King of the Universe and declaring God's decree from Heaven. When we speak the blessing, God acts on our words and does the blessing.
II. Some may question our authority to do this.
1. In Genesis 1:26 (Amplified) God says, "Let Us [Father. Son, and Holy Spirit] make mankind in Our image, after Our likeness, and let them have complete authority over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the [tame] beasts, and over all of the earth, and over everything that creeps upon the earth"
a. God gave man dominion over the earth. (Genesis 1:26)
b. Man lost that dominion to the devil. (1 Timothy 2:14)
c. Jesus bought back man's dominion. (Matt. 28:18-20) NLT: "I have been given complete authority in heaven and on earth. 19 Therefore, go (Here He delegated the same authority to all Believers) and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age."
(Also in Mark 16:15-18.)
d. God has restored dominion over the earth to Born-Again Believers through Jesus.
e. We have been given authority to carry out His will, which is to establish His Kingdom on earth.
f. Now, God can do anything but He will not act on earth without someone using the authority given to them through Jesus Christ.
g. If God intervened on earth without authority He would be breaking His law.
h. God needs a people who will act on their authority. He needs intercessors on earth.
i. What is an intercessor?
j. Someone who intercedes. What does intercede mean?
k. According to Webster: to plead or petition on behalf of someone in difficulty or trouble.
1. Is this world in trouble? God's will is for His Kingdom to be on earth just as it is in Heaven.
m. How do we exercise our authority?
n. In prayer and by speaking out the blessing as God commanded the priests to do in Numbers 6:24-26
o. We intercede on earth. Jesus, our Intercessor in Heaven, then takes those petitions before the Father.
I. "Oh, but speaking blessing was back in the Old Testament. That's not for today."
a. Then what are you going to do with Romans 11:29?
1. Romans ll:29 from the Amplified Bible: "For Gods gifts and His call are irrevocable. [He never withdraws them when once they are given, and He does not change His mind about those to whom He gives His grace or to whom He sends His call.]
2. Num 23:19: God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent (or change His mind.)
II. DESIGNING A BLESSING WITH SCRIPTURE
1. You can use Numbers 6:24-26 to speak a blessing over anyone. You can use it as it reads or you can combine scripture with the verses to design a blessing for a particular situation.
a. Let's say someone is going through a hard time and you want to speak a blessing over them.
b. 1 Peter 5:10, “But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.”
c. Taking that scripture and combining it with the blessing scriptures would be something like this: "May the God of all grace, who has called you unto His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, bless you and keep you strong during this time of testing. May He cause His face to shine upon you, and give you grace to bear up under the attacks from the enemy and make you to know that the battle is not yours but God's. May He lift up His countenance upon you and give you His perfect peace followed by victory in this trial."
3. Romans 15:5-7, "Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus: 6 That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.
a. This could go something like this: "May the God of patience and consolation bless you by keeping you like-minded with other believers. May He cause His face to shine upon you that you, with one mind and one mouth, may glorify God. May the Lord give you grace to receive one another as Christ also received us. May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ lift His countenance upon you, and give you the peace and oneness of spirit that will glorify God and cause the world to believe that God sent His son into the world".
4. For someone who is going through fear you could take several verses:
a. 2 Tim. 1:7, "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear: but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
b. 1 John 4:18, "There is no fear in love: but perfect love casteth out fear"
c. Philippians 4:6, "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God."
d. We combine those verses with Numbers 6:24-26, "May the Lord God of Hosts bless you and keep you from the torment of fears. May He cause His face to shine upon you with power, love, and a sound mind, and give you grace to cast out fear through perfect love. May He lift up His countenance upon you with freedom as you tell him every detail of your need in earnest and thankful prayer, and give you peace in knowing that he will never leave nor forsake you."
The model scripture (also known as the Aaronic Blessing) is Numbers 6:24-26:
24 “The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: 25 The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: 26 The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.”
When you have forgiven someone of an offense (either spoken or in deed) but the hurt keeps returning to you, it could be that you have not totally released forgiveness to them. Matthew 5:43-45 tells us to love, bless, do good and pray for our enemies. The above blessing spoken over them will help release you from any unforgiveness. Insert the person's name in place of "thee". )
A FEW EXAMPLES OF COMBINING SCRIPTURES TO DESIGN A BLESSING FOR SOMEONE GOING THROUGH A TRIAL:
SCRIPTURE: 1 Peter 5:10, “But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered awhile, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.”
Taking that scripture and combining it with Numbers 6;24-26 it would go something like this:
"May the God of all grace, who has called you unto His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, bless you and keep you strong during this time of testing. May He cause His face to shine upon you, and give you grace to bear up under the attacks from the enemy and make you to know that the battle is not yours but God's. May He lift up His countenance upon you and give you His perfect peace followed by victory in this trial."
A BLESSING FOR UNITY:
SCRIPTURE: Romans 15:5-7: “Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus: 6 That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 'Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.”
That could go something like this:
"May the God of patience and consolation bless you by keeping you like-minded with other believers. May He cause His face to shine upon you that you, with one mind and one mouth, may glorify God. May the Lord give you grace to receive one another as Christ also received us. May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ lift up His countenance upon you, and give you the peace and oneness of spirit that will glorify God and cause the world to believe that God sent His son into the world".
FOR SOMEONE DEALING WITH FEAR IN THEIR LIVES, SEVERAL VERSES COULD BE USED:
a. 2 Tim. 1:7: “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
b. 1 John 4:18: “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.”
c. Philippians 4:6: “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God."
We combine those verses with Numbers 6:24-26,
"May the Lord God of Hosts bless you and keep you from the torment of fears. May He cause His face to shine upon you with power, love, and a sound mind, and give you grace to cast out fear through perfect love. May He lift up His countenance upon you with freedom as you tell him every detail of your need in earnest and thankful prayer, and give you peace in knowing that he will never leave nor forsake you."
In conclusion: Forgiving and forgetting a person for something they have done or said against you is so important to the Christian that Jesus has said we will be forgiven just as we forgive others. Let that soak into your spirit until you can’t wait to bless the next person who has wronged you and you have totally forgiven everyone from the past.
May God bless you as you do.
