Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Love your Enemies, Pray for those who Persecute You

Matthew 5:44, "But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;"

I am very bad at in person saying to a stranger that they need to hear about Jesus, the only name under heaven by which we must be saved from sin that would without Him condemn us to eternal hell and a life without hope. An evangelist once said that to find out whether you should witness to a person, "Check and see if they're breathing." The different authorities who might disapprove should not deter me. Jesus said all authority is given to Him in Heaven and on Earth, Therefore Go.

And I think that if I loved all those lost enemies of God, I wouldn't stay silent when they pass me in the store or are sitting in my office. I would go out on purpose to preach the life-offering words to my neighbors. But apparently my heart, commanded to love, is failing its mission.

When I pray for a person on a regular basis, I have discovered that I become attached, because of the reflection and the investment, and getting a glimpse of God's heart for them. So I guess praying for the unsaved people I know and for the people groups I feel God wants me to "go" to, is not such an illogical idea.

  1. Pray for the unsaved.
  2. Start loving the unsaved.
  3. Meet the unsaved.
  4. Be bold to share the good news that Jesus died for their sins and rose from the dead to offer them salvation and eternal life.
  5. Give God all the glory.

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