Pray For Your
Enemy
“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”
(Matthew 5:44)
In the church, we all are
supposed to know that the response to bad treatment
is – prayer! We’re supposed to PRAY for the person
who maliciously harms us. But the question is: how
do we do it? WHAT do we pray for in relation to
them? Unfortunately, most do NOT ONLY pray, but
also seethe in “righteous” indignation at the hurt
received. We’ve heard about a LOT of failures in
that area - many have prayed, but the anger has
remained!
We know that forgiveness is a
necessary element in our response. When Jesus was
on the cross, He said the words, “Father,
forgive them, for they do not know what they do”
(Luke 23:34). You might think, “Well,
He’s GOD and I’m only a human being – He can
forgive, but I can’t!”
And that’s true. But Scripture teaches that it’s “Not
by might nor by power, but by My Spirit”
(Zechariah 4:6) – it isn’t your strength that can
forgive. The Lord can take our helplessness and do
what is impossible for you and me alone.
Through Him, we CAN release the anger, the hatred
that is felt about the person who did the harm.
Stephen was not God, neither was he an apostle; he
was just an ordinary man, but by the Lord in Him, he
did something amazing. As the angry mob was
throwing stones at him and Stephen knew he was about
to die, he shouted words that should be ours, as
well: “Lord, do not
charge them with this sin”
(Acts 7:60).
To be hit with just one rock is
an unpleasant experience, and many stones were
thrown. Stephen’s bones were being broken and his
enemies were shouting unforgivable insults.
Emotionally and physically – it hurt! But he called
out to the Lord, and knew God’s forgiveness for his
attackers, as the last breath went out of his
shattered body.
Today’s Scripture says that we
are incredibly to “DO good”
to those who hate us. Jesus supplied specific
examples of HOW to “do good”
in relation to them. He said, “Whoever
slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him
also. If anyone wants to sue you and take away your
tunic, let him have your cloak also. And whoever
compels you to go one mile, go with him two”
(Matthew 5:39-41). Incredibly, don’t retaliate.
Instead – help them!
It seems that we are intended
to always do “nice” things and pray “nice” prayers
for the one who slaps, sues, or otherwise treats us
badly. And that’s the truth, except that “nice”
from God’s vantage point, is not necessarily our way
of looking at things. His aim is that our enemy
will have a changed life and won’t slap people
anymore. Stephen saw his attackers’ need, and God
has many ways to reach sinners like them, and you
and me.
One way to reach your enemies
is by unexpectedly being kind in return for evil.
But note this is not some kind of “formula” we
slavishly follow in all situations. There are
characters out there who will GLADLY slap your other
cheek, and then sue for damages if you disappoint
them by not fighting back. And especially note that
you accomplish NOTHING by passively responding in
your OWN STRENGTH. Your enemy needs to see the
Spirit of God in you. Your personal gentleness is
not the point.
For the past year and a half,
I’ve been teaching Psalms on Thursday mornings in a
convalescent home, and this is my fourth lengthy
excursion through that Book. Since they are elderly
and have lost much in life, I try to be “gentle” in
the areas of Psalms where “difficult” words are
used. For instance, we’ve quickly passed by words
full of vengeance, like “Happy
shall be he who takes and dashes your little ones
against the rock” (Psalm 137:9), addressed to
Babylon in response to what they did to Israel’s
people.
David called for retaliation
often, with statements such as this: “Let
burning coals fall upon them; let them be cast into
the fire, into deep pits, that they rise not up
again” (Psalm 140:10). But David also saw
that HE might be the one at fault and uttered words
like: “Set a guard, O Lord,
over MY mouth; keep watch over the door of MY lips…”
(Psalm 141:4), and he was open to correction: “Let
the righteous strike me; it shall be a kindness. And
let him reprove me; it shall be as excellent oil;
let my head not refuse it” (Psalm 141:5). We
must remember that WE are sinners, too, and we also
are in need of God’s forgiveness.
The key to understanding the
“negative” expressions of vengeance and retaliatory
actions expressed in Psalms, is to recognize that
all of the 150 Chapters in the Book of Psalms are,
in fact – prayers! David and the other Psalmists
had certain choices in relation to what was done to
them. 1) They could go to the person who did them
harm and retaliate in kind. 2) They could simply
forgive that other person as though nothing had
happened. 3) They could respond to evil with
kindness as in today’s Scripture, or 4) they could
go to God in prayer (also in that Scripture), and
that part is needed by you and me.
When someone is your enemy,
when they gossip about you or steal what is
rightfully yours, the first place you should go is
to God! And that is what Psalms is all about.
Psalm 140 starts out, “Deliver
me, O Lord, from evil men…” Psalm 141 begins,
“Lord, I cry out to you…”
Psalm 142 does much the same – the Psalms are a cry
to God!
Instead of yelling at someone
(like your spouse or child), or plotting vengeance,
or nursing a grudge that gradually eats you alive –
Look to God! Go to HIM for direction in what must
be done. If you are obsessed with getting that
other person back and don’t want to think like that,
but can’t stop, go to the Lord and ask HIM for
help. “Vengeance is Mine,
I will repay,” says the Lord (Romans 12:19)
and He is very good at what he does. Trust Him!
God will bring justice to your life and your enemy’s
life, as well!
When David prayed, “In
Your mercy cut off my enemies, and destroy all those
who afflict my soul” (Psalm 143:12), he was
effectively saying: “Stop
them, Lord, from doing more harm!” Remember,
the person who harms you and seemingly gets away
with it; will do it again, if not to you, then to
someone else. By taking them to the Lord and
insisting on justice, you are protecting us all from
the type of injustice that was done to you. Let’s
pray:
Father, I bring You the cry of
my heart. Something happened to me that I cannot
stand. I bring that situation and the ones who hurt
me – to You. Not only forgive them for what they
did, but forgive me, too – heal my resentful heart.
In Jesus Name. Amen.
