In our exploration of what it means to “love what God loves, and hate what He hates”, we began with Jesus’ words to “Love your enemies” – words that seem to make “hate” in any form, illegitimate.
These words are in the Sermon on the Mount, and in Part 1, we saw that Jesus’ purpose in it was not to establish a code of conduct, but rather describe the kind of righteousness necessary for entrance into the Kingdom. This righteousness does not come through trying harder, but is part of a lifelong journey of transformation by the Holy Spirit as we walk with God and become like Him. Turning the Sermon on The Mount into a “to-do list” misses Jesus’ point and embraces the very performance-based approach He repudiates.
With this in mind, let’s turn to the question of loving our enemies. Jesus says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.'” (Matthew 5:43). As indicated by the all-caps, only the “love your neighbor” part is from Scripture. “Hate your neighbor” was man’s addition. As in the preceding examples, He is addressing an existing standard that reflects the hardness of people’s hearts. In answering that standard, Jesus rejects man’s addition, telling us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. But the sentence does not end there. The reason for this requirement is critical, and is the point of Jesus’ words – “so that you may be sons of your Father ” (Matthew 5:45 ). Used in this way, “son of” means “having the characteristics of”. If we love those who are hostile toward us, we look like our Father. If we only love those who love us, we are no different than the tax collectors and Gentiles, two groups who were considered categorically unrighteous.
Thus, “loving your enemy” is another example in Jesus’ description of the “greater righteousness” required for entrance into the Kingdom, a righteousness which looks like the Father’s. This is confirmed in 5:48, where Jesus says, “Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” This verse concludes not only the discussion of loving your enemies, but the entire discussion of the kind of righteousness required for entrance into the Kingdom. To enter the Kingdom, your righteousness must equal God’s.
Two things to remember.
- As the story unfolds, we discover that this can only be accomplished through Christ’s righteousness imputed to us, not our efforts.
- As we walk with God, we are transformed into His likeness, and actually begin to manifest these characteristics.
But doesn’t this leave us at the same place we started? Isn’t the net effect the same, regardless of whether it is accomplished through my own efforts or transformation? How can we “love our enemies” and “hate those who God hates”?
To help us understand this, let’s consider Luke’s account. In 5:36, he ends with, “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful,” which is another way of saying, “Manifest the Father’s attributes, so that you look like Him.” In this case, the attribute is mercy. If we look like God, we will manifest mercy.
But mercy is not His defining attribute. It exists in balance with His other attributes like justice and holiness. To look like Him, we can’t just manifest one of His attributes (mercy), we must manifest them all – remember, we are to “be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.” So, while at times mercy will be dominant, at other times, the emphasis will be on God’s truth, or justice, or holiness.
Which brings us to a critical recognition. When we begin to manifest these attributes, it will not be through the application of standards, rules, or principles. To know whether we should reflect His mercy or justice at a particular moment, we are going to have to be walking with Him, sensing His heart.
So we discover that, in fact, Jesus words do not conflict David’s in Psalm 139. Jesus is saying, “you need to look like your Father”; David is saying, “Yahweh, I want to be aligned with You”. The heart and effect is the same.
How comfortable are you with the ambiguity found in walking with God?
Next Article – Won’t They Know We Are Christians By Our Love?
This week The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed 1st ammendment rights by not allowing law suits against Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, KS.
Westboro, and its pastor, have a very aggressive campaign protesting homosexuality, and a few other sins. A thorough review of Leviticus reveals God’s position toward homosexuality, which is also echoed by Paul in the New Testament.
The Westboro community clearly hates what God hates. My concern becomes: How does one interact with Muslims, druids, homosexuals, and people who do not listen to Johnny Cash?
Dan,
You and I have discussed this in person, so I know you are playing something of a devil’s advocate with this post, and that the reason you raise this is because you are concerned that someone may take what I am saying as a validation for the kind of attitude being expressed by the group you reference from Westboro. So let me address those concerns.
First, a thorough review of Leviticus reveals God’s position about a lot of things. It is a very selective and limited perspective that chooses to emphasize homosexuality to the exclusion of a multitude of other issues including slander, holding a grudge, cross-breeding cattle, or wearing poly-cotton garments (all in chapter 19). And it is true, that Paul does list homosexuality in more than one list in the New Testament, but again, to pick homosexuality out of that list is highly selective and indefensible. The lists also include things like strife, malice, gossip, insolence, being without understanding, without mercy, and being disobedient to parents. In none of these places does the point Paul is making support the kind of behavior and attitude being evidenced by the Westboro group.
And as for that group, the clearly DO NOT hate what God hates. I can’t think of anyone who misses the point more. That should be clear from what we have already covered in our discussion so far.
As for how to relate to groups like you list, the point of this series of articles is to come to a better understanding of that very question. But I can tell you right now that the key is going to be walking with God, learning His heart, and allowing that to transform us.
Thanks for posting Garth! This series has me thinking of another discussion I’ve had concerning one of God’s name, Jealous, which we find in Exodus 34:14. This had me examining my own concept of jealousy and how it’s used in scripture. I believe it shows how God is jealous for the purity of the covenant relationship and we should be the same. Just as we’re called to love what he loves and hate what he hates.