I have a question for you.
Do you have any enemies?
Someone who really doesn’t like you?
Someone who seems determined to make your life more difficult?
I’m not talking about people who ignore you or don’t include you in their activities.
I’m talking about people who don’t like you.
It might be at work.
At school.
In your neighborhood.
Even in your own family.
They’ve made it clear they do not like you.
They gossip about you.
They question your motives.
They try to damage your reputation.
Maybe they’ve even tried to hurt your career or your relationships.
Let’s be honest …
After a while, they don’t just feel like your enemies … they become your enemies.
WHAT SHOULD YOU DO?
And if you want to walk the “narrow path” — the path that pleases God —
How should you respond to people like that?
What should you say?
What should you do?
Should you ignore them?
Fight back?
Set the record straight?
THE NARROW PATH
Jesus knows exactly how people treat one another, and here’s what he said:
(Clint looks at the camera while the verse appears on screen as he recites the verse.)
You have heard that it was said
“You shall love your neighbor
and hate your enemy.”
Matthew 5:43 (ESV)
That seems pretty clear, and I kind of like it.
But Jesus didn’t stop there. He continued.
“But I say to you, Love your enemies
and pray for those who persecute you …
Matthew 5:44 (ESV)
That’s not my natural response to my enemies.
But that is what Jesus said I should do if I want to walk on the narrow path that pleases God.
Loving your enemies doesn’t mean approving of what they do.
It means choosing to treat them the way God has treated you — with mercy and grace.
APPLICATION — THIS WEEK
This coming week choose to walk the narrow path each day.
Ask the Lord to bring one person to your mind.
Just one.
Then:
Pray for that person every day for the next week.
Ask God to bless them.
Ask God to work in their life.
And ask God to help you love them the way He loves them.
A BLESSING
Before I go, I’d like to share a blessing with you from God’s Word.
“May the Lord bless and protect you; may the Lord’s face radiate with joy because of you; may he be gracious to you, show you his favor, and give you his peace.”
Numbers 6:24-26 (The Living Bible)
Until next time … choose to walk the narrow path … and love even the people who don’t love you.
