Love Your Enemies
Month 4: The Teacher (Part 1) · Loving Others
Today's Scripture
Read together: Matthew 5:43-45
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 sons 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.
Memory Verse
“In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”— Matthew 5:16 (BSB)
📖 Bible-in-a-Year (optional)
Today's reading: 1 Chronicles 18-21
Reading the whole Bible in a year — do this when you have extra time. (Around Day 110 of 365 — David's victories, and his costly mistake of counting the army.)The Heart of It
People had been taught, "Love your neighbor and hate your enemy." It felt natural. Love the ones who love you, and forget the ones who don't. Then Jesus said the most surprising thing on the whole mountain. "Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you." Not just put up with them. Not just stay away from them. Love them. Bless them. Pray for them. This is the part of Jesus' teaching that is almost impossible to copy. And that is exactly the point. This kind of love doesn't come from us. It can only come from God.
Why would Jesus ask such a hard thing? Look at the reason He gives. He says it is "that you may be sons of your Father in heaven." God "makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust." In other words, God is kind even to people who ignore Him. He gives sunshine and rain to everyone. So when we love our enemies, we start to look like our Father. We are not pretending the wrong didn't happen. We are refusing to let someone else's hate decide who we become. And we have the perfect example. Jesus hung on the cross and prayed, "Father, forgive them" (). The One who told us to love our enemies died loving His.
Around the Table
Even if someone is mean to us, Jesus says we can still be kind and pray for them. That's what God is like!
Let's do it: Pray one short "bless them" prayer for someone who was unkind this week.
Anyone can love their friends. But Jesus calls us to love even people who are unkind. That is what makes us look like our Father.
Let's talk: Who is someone hard to be kind to? What's one good thing you could do for them, or pray for them?
Loving your enemies isn't natural. It's supernatural. It is proof that the Father's life is in us. He sends sun and rain even on those who reject Him.
Let's go deeper: Loving an enemy doesn't mean pretending no wrong happened. So what does it look like, in your words, your actions, and your prayers?
💬 Conversation Starter
What is harder? Forgiving someone who says sorry, or being kind to someone who isn't sorry yet? Why do you think Jesus asks us to do the harder one?
🛡️ Defending the Faith
Many religions teach "love your friends." Jesus did something no one else did. He commanded us to love our enemies. And then He lived it. He prayed for the very people who killed Him, right from the cross. That bold, self-giving love is one of the marks that sets Him apart from every other teacher ().
For Dad · Go Deeper
"Love your enemies" is impossible to fake and impossible to manufacture. That is precisely why it is such powerful evidence of a changed heart. Notice the doctrine of salvation hiding in the text. This love flows from being a child of the Father, and it reflects His grace toward all people, with sun and rain on just and unjust alike. God's kindness genuinely reaches everyone (; ). His love is wide, and He invites every person to respond. As a father, the place your kids will most test this teaching is sibling conflict and playground hurts. Don't merely referee. Disciple. Help them pray for the one who wronged them, and let them watch you refuse bitterness toward people who have hurt you. A home where enemies are prayed for is a home where the Father's likeness is unmistakable.
Draws on: Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship.
Let's Pray Together
"Father, You are kind even to people who ignore You. Make us like You. Help us love the ones who are unkind to us. Help us bless them and pray for them. Jesus loved even the people who hurt Him. Help us love like that. In Jesus' name, amen."
Anyone can love a friend. But loving an enemy makes me look like my Father.