Tag Archives: God's healing

Unknown's avatar

We Should Love WHO?

Featured by

“We Should Love WHO?”

Luke 6:27-38 (6:35) – February 23, 2025

Throughout history, we can trace many battles between enemies. I don’t mean outright war, like between armies with guns and tanks and bombs, but I mean enemies, nevertheless. Serious sports rivalries can turn ugly, causing fistfights and even rioting. Factions and strife in a town can even cause a cohesive neighborhood to break up. And in recent times, political differences can cause serious rifts between former friends. Deep tension even makes family members stop speaking to each other, sometimes for years.

What is this corrosive feeling between enemies? Some say envy, others say fear, others say hatred, plain and simple. Which brings us to the Gospel reading for today. What does Jesus say about enemies?

            First, we need to back up, and remind ourselves of what came just before. Or rather, what we heard last week. Just a reminder that Luke chapter 6 contains much of the same information that Jesus preached in Matthew, chapters 5, 6 and 7. Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount—leading off with the Beatitudes—is summarized in about one third of the space, right here. In Dr. Luke’s Sermon on the Plain.

            I do not want you to take my word for it! Let us listen to the words of our Lord Jesus, again, the words I am highlighting for us from the Sermon on the Plain. “27 “But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, and pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If anyone hits you on one cheek, let him hit the other one too; if someone takes your coat, let him have your shirt as well. 30 Give to everyone who asks you for something, and when someone takes what is yours, do not ask for it back. 31 Do for others just what you want them to do for you.”

            Loving our families? Yes, certainly. Loving our acquaintances? Well, that seems possible. But, loving our enemies? Those who are mean to us, or hurt us? Humanly impossible!

            How on earth does anyone expect us to love our enemies? “Are these words we really want to hear, to really listen to, and perhaps change our lives around? Well, no, let’s be honest. [Especially in today’s political climate] we live in a world that nurses grudges, that licks wounds, that lives to get even. Talk about swimming against the tide. These words of Jesus here in the Gospel of Luke sound like a discordant note out of tune in the symphony of our lives. Love your enemies? Come on!” [1]

            How does Jesus expect anyone to even come close to loving their enemies?

Jesus’ own country of Israel was under occupation. Just imagine occupied France or the Netherlands during World War II under Nazi occupation, and you are on the right track. The hated Romans were Israel’s overlords, and the whole country had to pay Roman taxes. Essentially, paying tribute to Caesar and his armies. The Roman soldiers threw their weight around, and it was backed up by the threat of force of arms. In other words, Roman garrisons were stationed in towns throughout Israel, keeping the populace in line and making certain there was order in Rome’s occupied territory. 

Somehow, I doubt whether the Rabbi Jesus scored many points with either the Jewish leaders or the Jewish people by preaching about loving their enemies.

Let’s take a closer look at what our Lord Jesus actually said. He repeats the same charge, the same command, four times. Jesus says, and I quote, “Love your enemies. do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, and pray for those who mistreat you.” In other words, love those who hate you. Love those who curse you. Love those who abuse you.

In Scripture, where there is repetition, pay attention! The speaker is making a huge point! And, repeating it four times, with slight variations – Jesus underlines His point, right here!

Jesus actually provides more context. Love, do good, bless, pray for. In these four specific but related ways Jesus tells us how to put this command into practice! Jesus is NOT telling us just to roll over, or play dead, or sit and take whatever enemies deal out. No! Jesus “doesn’t tell us to be the doormat of anyone and everyone. What He tells us is, don’t become them. Don’t harbor the kind of corrosive hate that allows abuse and cursing to happen.” [2]

            I would like to remind everyone that this Gospel reading from Luke this morning features the Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” In the United Nations Building in New York there is a large mosaic by Norman Rockwell that depicts people of all ages, of different genders, and many nationalities; embedded within the tiles are those same words, the words of the Golden Rule. Yes, they are the words of our Lord Jesus! We need to recognize that they are also words from other faiths, other traditions, and other cultures. [3] 

            We can see how we might begin to love our enemies, by treating them the way we want to be treated ourselves. Please, notice the variations in what Jesus says. “Do good” means encounter, to get close enough to impact our enemy’s life, in some way. As we encounter in love, we are treating our enemies as we ourselves wish to be treated.  

            When we “bless” our enemies, that can be at arm’s length. Perhaps it is not so safe to come nose to nose with our enemies. When enemies are cursing us, sometimes it might be very prudent to step back. However, we can still bless them, with all sincerity! Blessings can come from a distance, and be just as effective, too.

We can “pray” while our enemy or abuser is at work or some distance away. And, we always need to act with prudence and wisdom. It is so important that we “pray for God’s healing and God’s love to transform the abuser. Leave behind the inclination to return the hurt as you have been hurt. [That inclination] doesn’t help with healing. It doesn’t make right what has been a horrible wrong. Let it go and love. Love from a distance. Or better yet, pray that God’s love can do what your love is incapable of at the moment.” [4]

And if all else fails – if we just cannot, cannot love enemies by our frail, human selves – we can pray that God will step in and love our enemies with us, through us, and even – despite us.

Please God, help us all to love our enemies, as Jesus commands.  If you need help? Ask Jesus. He will help us to love everyone, and help us as we follow Him.

Alleluia, amen.

@chaplaineliza

(Suggestion: visit me at my other blogs: matterofprayer: A Year of Everyday Prayers. #PursuePEACE – and  A Year of Being Kind . Thanks!

(Many thanks to the website www.umcdiscipleship.org for their preaching notes for Epiphany 7! I am very grateful to this wonderful website for several significant ideas for this sermon.)

[1] https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/worship-planning/where-you-are-far-horizons/seventh-sunday-after-the-epiphany-year-c-lectionary-planning-notes/seventh-sunday-after-the-epiphany-year-c-preaching-notes

[2] Ibid.

[3] https://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/worship/weekly-worship/monthly/2025-february/sunday-23-february-2025-seventh-sunday-after-epiphany-year-c

[4] https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/worship-planning/where-you-are-far-horizons/seventh-sunday-after-the-epiphany-year-c-lectionary-planning-notes/seventh-sunday-after-the-epiphany-year-c-preaching-notes

Unknown's avatar

See as Jesus Sees

by

“See as Jesus Sees”

Mark 6:53-56 – July 18, 2021

            Have you ever had a really busy day? Or, even worse, a really busy week? I know I have. Sometimes, so much can crowd into an already full schedule that I might feel overwhelmed!

            That’s how busy it was for the Rabbi Jesus, all too often. The Gospel of Mark particularly points this out. Mark always tells his readers what Jesus did, where He went, and what happened next. “And immediately—” is one of Mark’s favorite connecting phrases. Jesus immediately went somewhere else, did something, or spoke to someone—”and, immediately!”

            Any busy person knows that you can not continue at this breakneck speed forever. Or, for even a long time. All of us need to take breaks, periodically! Time to slow down, and rest.

            That was what I suspect Jesus and His disciples had plans to do. Listen to what Mark reports: “31 Jesus said to them, “Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. 32 And they went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves.”

            Perhaps our Lord Jesus was better at self-care, periodic resting, and at pacing Himself. But, the hurry-hurry, rush-rush disciples are another matter! “The time soon comes to get away, to refresh the body and soul. As with us, so too did the apostles need a quiet time and place to renew their spirits and their relationship with Jesus.” [1] Time to take stock, step back, and size up a continuing situation, perhaps.

            And then, in the middle of Jesus and the disciples going to a deserted, out-of-the-way place to rest, what happens? “33 Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them.” Imagine, Jesus and His disciples plan a brief time away to recharge and renew, and all of a sudden, they are surprised by all of these unexpected (and possibly, unwelcome!) visitors! 

            But, just a minute. I am looking at this situation from a 21st century point of view. How would the people of 1st century Palestine see Jesus and the disciples, in a deserted place?

            One of my commentators, Larry Broding, gave me some useful insight into this: “For moderns, scenic visas and vacant areas for relief represent relaxation. But, the contemporaries of Jesus saw “deserted” places as the home of evil and danger. Moderns seek personal space. Jews in the times of Jesus had no such concept. They banded together in a few Palestinian cities (like Jerusalem) or in small hamlets (50-150 population) for survival. Moderns seek privacy. Ancients sought social connection to the extent that personal identity almost solely depended upon one’s place in family (and, hence, society).” [2]

            Mark tells us in verse 34 “34 As Jesus went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.”

It did not matter to Jesus whether He was dealing with 1st century Jews or 21st century Americans. He still understood (and understands, right now!) how people operate. He saw with compassion how much they needed His touch, His presence, His healing.

            I wonder – can you see others with the eyes of Jesus? Can you reach out with caring and kindness, in the way Jesus did? Sure, we all can request a touch from our Lord Jesus. It’s so wonderful to receive His caring, His presence, and His blessing! However, we are not to simply receive, and say, “Gimme, gimme, gimme!” Such a selfish, self-centered point of view!

            No, our Lord Jesus means for us to respond, after we have received. He makes a point of it! Just as He taught His disciples repeatedly, nothing pleases God more than for God’s children to respond to others with caring, with kindness, and with compassion.

            Except—sometimes you and I are stretched too thin. Sometimes we are too burdened with our personal troubles and concerns. Sometimes it all seems like we might be on that never-ending merry-go-round, except it is not at all a good time on that carnival ride. Jesus understands when life gets tough and feels too heavy. That is all right.

            As commentator Janet Hunt says, “Perhaps we are simply too wounded, some of us.  Or just too uncertain about what is next. So more and more I am reminded that there is nowhere else to begin but to at least try to see myself and those among whom I live and serve, with the very eyes of Jesus which with deep compassion recognize what I otherwise too often fail to see.” [3]

            Yes, Jesus is there for us, just as much as He was there for the crowd that so unexpectedly came upon Him and His disciples. Jesus shows caring, kindness and compassion to us, just as much as He did in first-century Palestine. He acts as a gentle Shepherd to His sheep who are wandering in the wilderness with no one to guide them, especially in this brave new world, post-pandemic.  

            Can you see the world through the eyes of Jesus? He calls all of us to be kind, gentle, caring and compassionate to others. And yes, we can also lean on our gentle Shepherd for ourselves, the one who brings rest and restoration, comfort and protection, whose goodness and mercy will follow us all the days of our lives.                  

            Do you see with the compassionate eyes of Jesus? God willing, we all can.

[1] “Times of Refreshment,” Ordinary 16B, Larry Broding’s Word-Sunday.Com: A Catholic Resource for This Sunday’s Gospel

[2] Ibid.

[3] https://dancingwiththeword.com/seeing-with-the-eyes-of-jesus-like-sheep-without-a-shepherd/

@chaplaineliza

(Suggestion: visit me at my other blogs: matterofprayer: A Year of Everyday Prayers. #PursuePEACE – and  A Year of Being Kind . Thanks!

(Thanks to Illustrated Ministries for their lesson for the 8th Sunday after Pentecost from Mark 6, from their 2020 Summer Children’s series.)