LOVE YOUR ENEMIES BIBLE VERSE NKJV FULL

You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. Whether it was family members, close friends, or complete strangers who hurt you, I pray these Bible Verses about loving your enemies will guide you through the pain and challenge you to find forgiveness and compassion in your heart.īut to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. But with God’s help, we can rise above and show God’s grace to our so-called enemy. And do unto others as you would have them do to you.īecause the truth is, we can’t control people’s actions or how they treat us. Instead, the best way to handle the situation is to hold fast to the golden rule laid out in Jesus’ words in Matthew 7:12. But what would that accomplish? It certainly doesn’t show the love of Christ I have inside of my heart. My anger boils up and I want to lash out. And each time it happens, I immediately revert to worldly thoughts. I’ve been mistreated by someone I trusted many times in my life. In my personal experience, this aspect of Christianity is the hardest to follow. Simply put, we are called to have forgiveness, compassion, and love for everyone we meet.

LOVE YOUR ENEMIES BIBLE VERSE NKJV FULL

But God’s Word is full of scriptures about how followers of Jesus should act in spite of the pain we feel. Despite what we do on His great green earth, the sun still shines, the rain still falls, and He is constantly providing for and working toward our salvation.When someone hurts us it’s human nature to hold onto anger and bitterness.

God shows us His love in this very manner. God wants us to do this so that we may resemble Him-be in His image-because this is the way He is.

Lastly, we can pray for them and for their welfare, asking God to change their hearts so a two-way love can exist. We can also do good for our enemies, not merely restrain ourselves from retaliation. We can bless, meaning giving good words for bad.

He also specifies three ways a Christian can combat these actions. Spitefully using and persecuting means continually at war with, harassing, always being on another's case. Hatred implies an active, passionate feeling against another. Cursing indicates verbally denigrating others and working to destroy their reputation gossiping. In this section Christ lists three ways people show their ill-feelings toward others. Only those who have the mind of Christ can do this. It motivates us to do good rather than react in kind to what caused our negative feelings toward the other. With this love, our concern for another's good overcomes any feelings of offense, resentment, and retaliation. This love does not merely involve feeling, but also the will. Some have described this love as an unconquerable goodwill, an invincible benevolence. Both the hater and the hated are miserable to some degree, and the misery will not cease until the hatred dissolves. This command seems unreasonable and absurd, but only because of our carnality. Jesus does not mean that we resolve to like everyone, but that we act in goodwill toward those we do not like as well as those we do. These verses contain perhaps the most startling, sublime statement Christ made. (46) For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? (47) And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? (48) Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect. (43) 'You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' (44) But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, (45) that you may be sons of your Father in heaven for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

Love your enemies bible verse nkjv