Scripture reading: Malachi 2:16, Luke 6:27-35
The selection of Scripture readings is not intended to be oxymoronic or sarcastic. “For I hate divorce … love your enemies.” Read on, and you will understand why the two readings were selected.
In Luke 6 we have, if ever there was one, a definition of love. Love is one of the most difficult, if not the most difficult, words in our language to define. It has no equal or synonym because it’s expression is in actions more than it is intellectual. Intellectually speaking, love cannot be defined because it comes from the heart, yet it is not an emotion. Love is a decision; no, love is a process of many decisions that combine into one or many acts of kindness toward others, each beginning with suppression of self and putting others first.
Even in this paragraph, you can see how difficult it is to put a face on love. It is almost as if we do not know what it is, but we know it when we see it.
Let’s turn our attention away from the topic for a moment and read Matthew 26:17-30 (clickable link) and John 13:1-17 (clickable link). For the sake of space, I have not inserted the verses here, but you should stop and read them now by clicking on the links. In Matthew 26:17-30, we have the account of the Last Supper, and in John 13:1-17 we have the account of Jesus washing the disciples’ feet.
Yes, these are pretty images of love in action. But that is not why they are pulled in here. When Jesus broke bread, prayed over the meal, and washed the disciples’ feet, He was serving a toxic person. Who?
Judas. Being fully divine, Jesus knew that Judas would betray Him. We can sometimes spot toxic people, or at least we can identify them, even if it is after we have been hurt by them or become entangled with them. What do we do? How are we to treat toxic people? The temptation is simply to throw them away. Is that the best response?
That’s not what Jesus did. Why did Jesus do what He did? Well, we cannot say Jesus served Judas to change him, because it did not work. Perhaps his heart was divinely hardened (like Pharoah) because the betrayal was part of the path to the cross. Whether that was the case, we are not told. Nevertheless, Judas was unmoved by the love Jesus expressed.
Did Jesus do what He did because He was obligated? After all, He could only die on the cross for our sins if He was sinless, and lashing out at Judas would have thrust His sinless nature into serious question.
Or did Jesus do what He did because that is what God the Father expected of Him? We know that each one of us must give God an account of our lives. (Romans 14:12) Jesus was no exception. In fact, we could argue that it would have been divine betrayal for Jesus to break from the trinity and treat Judas the same way he treated Jesus.
If we must all give an account to God and we have a picture in Luke 6 of how we are to love and treat one another, then how we treat a toxic person is not dictated by how they treat us or how we think they should change. Rather, it is dictated by what God expects of us.
Phil Gerard, pastor of Midway Bible Church near Greenville, South Carolina, tells the story of an agnostic farmer who placed a classified ad in the newspaper mocking God for giving such a bountiful harvest to the just and unjust. The Christians wanted to respond, so they placed an ad which simply said, “Sometimes God doesn’t settle His accounts in this lifetime.”
Why does God hate divorce? Why does God want us to love our enemies? Why does God want us to follow specific protocol when we are thrust into situations that create imposition rather than provide us with anything beneficial? The answer is simple, “God doesn’t always settle His accounts in this lifetime.”
Divorce is much like hating our enemies, which is much like counting every step to make sure we do not go one inch over a mile, which is much like grudgingly giving our second best coat and not a stitch of clothing more. In each case, we foreclose on the plans God had for the situation. It may be in some cases that God has plans to use us in the middle of the situation or at least use our expressions of kindness. His plan is often to give the other person (the enemy) many, many opportunities to change course and turn to God. Why God does this is that He is full of mercy, compassion and grace, which all work together to make it extremely difficult to watch a person seal their eternal destiny in hell.
God does not rush to judge a person and foreclose on the many opportunities He would have otherwise given them to change course. But that is what divorce does, and that is what we do when we mistreat our enemies, grudgingly respond to oppression or imposition, or withhold kindness to those in need. Our actions put an abrupt halt to what God was doing to bring about some higher purpose.
You may say in response, “That’s all well and good, but Jesus was divine. I am only human and do not have the resources or perfection to do what Jesus did.” You would be right. However, even in Jesus’ divinity, He was fully dependent on God the Father. (Matthew 4:11, John 14:10) In everything Jesus did, He had the full power of God the Father at His disposal, along with all of God’s resources.
We are not capable of loving our enemies or treating the toxic people in our lives with kindness. However, when we allow ourselves to be controlled by God, He provides us with the resources we need to do the impossible.
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