True Christians

[arunangelo]

Should not true Christians follow Luke 6: 27-36 ?
27"But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. 30Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 31Do to others as you would have them do to you.
32"If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ love those who love them. 33And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ do that. 34And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ lend to ‘sinners,’ expecting to be repaid in full. 35But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

 

[Catholic_Dude]

That is probably the hardest teaching in Scripture, it defies everything our fallen world and “natural senses” tell us.

Christians struggle to keep that commandment.

 

[jcrichton]

Should not true Christians follow Luke 6: 27-36 ?
27"But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. 30Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 31Do to others as you would have them do to you.
32"If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ love those who love them. 33And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ do that. 34And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ lend to ‘sinners,’ expecting to be repaid in full. 35But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

Hi, arunangelo!

…could you be a little more specific?

Maran atha!

Angel

 

[jenelrose]

What does it mean to love your enemies? How do you practically do that? The passage quoted makes three suggestions - doing good for your enemy, praying for them, and blessing them. Is there anything else that you should do? What if the person makes requests of you that seem unreasonable (e.g. not belonging to the same groups as them because they want “space” from you)? Do you need to abide by those requests out of love for the person? What about times when someone needs to be loving confronted about something? How can you show love when it might not feel like you are being loving to the other person?

 

[MarkA16]

What does it mean to love your enemies? How do you practically do that? The passage quoted makes three suggestions - doing good for your enemy, praying for them, and blessing them. Is there anything else that you should do? What if the person makes requests of you that seem unreasonable (e.g. not belonging to the same groups as them because they want “space” from you)? Do you need to abide by those requests out of love for the person? What about times when someone needs to be loving confronted about something? How can you show love when it might not feel like you are being loving to the other person?

WWJD? We should accept any negativity and grow from it. Thank God for everything. He helps us grow from our mistakes and others only if we let ourselves. I love enemies because I see them as a gift from God, and they are no different than I am. As a brother in Christ, I will always be here when they need me. We should also know our limitations, so that we don’t get “used”. When I get attacked, I think of Jesus. What I am suffering does not match with what Jesus has suffered for. I trust in the Lord when I’m attacked, and pray that this will come to pass. When it’s over, you stand up.

That’s my opinion :]

 

[deb1]

What does it mean to love your enemies? How do you practically do that? The passage quoted makes three suggestions - doing good for your enemy, praying for them, and blessing them. Is there anything else that you should do? What if the person makes requests of you that seem unreasonable (e.g. not belonging to the same groups as them because they want “space” from you)? Do you need to abide by those requests out of love for the person? What about times when someone needs to be loving confronted about something? How can you show love when it might not feel like you are being loving to the other person?

The bible is not saying that we need to allow ourselves to remain in abusive situations. Sometimes the most loving course of action is to simply remove oneself from another’s presence. I have met people so negative that being around them was dangerous for my own well being, so I pray for them from a safe distance.

 

[jcrichton]

What does it mean to love your enemies? How do you practically do that? The passage quoted makes three suggestions - doing good for your enemy, praying for them, and blessing them. Is there anything else that you should do? What if the person makes requests of you that seem unreasonable (e.g. not belonging to the same groups as them because they want “space” from you)? Do you need to abide by those requests out of love for the person? What about times when someone needs to be loving confronted about something? How can you show love when it might not feel like you are being loving to the other person?

Hi, jenelrose!

…in the scene you propose several thing must be taken into account:

Is the group a Bible study/prayer one?

If it is, the first recourse should not be abandoning the group. You should set guidelines that both persons should follow (not responding to each other’s posts, when on-line; not responding to each other’s remarks, avoiding proximity or direct vision, and avoiding physical contact, when the encounter is face-to-face.

Is the group a social gathering?

No sweat here: find another hoby!

Is the group family related?

…we can chose our friends… sweat it, suffer it and avoid physical and otherwise contacts.

You can still be loving, respectful, and constructive (prayer and blessings).

Above all you should pray as St. Francis: that you love not be love; that you are patient, understanding, long suffering, gentle, supportive…

…have you noticed that when two people argue it becomes a battle of wit: who can yell the longest and loudest… both people lose (self-respect, peace, happiness, sight of the cause and solution…); the one person that truly wins is the one that walks away from the issue or that refuses to continue to escalate the chaos.

If you love your enemy you can disarm him/her, in the least; if you love your enemy you can win him/her over to Christ, in perfect union with God.

Maran atha!

Angel

 

[jenelrose]

Is the group a Bible study/prayer one?

Yes it is.

If it is, the first recourse should not be abandoning the group. You should set guidelines that both persons should follow (not responding to each other’s posts, when on-line; not responding to each other’s remarks, avoiding proximity or direct vision, and avoiding physical contact, when the encounter is face-to-face.

Interestingly this is what I have been suggesting since the conflict began. The response I received was that by requesting a set of guidelines that all of those involved would follow that I’m (1) holding a grudge, (2) being unforgiving, and (3) not trusting that people can act in a Christian manner. My perspective has been that people can act in a Christian manner but sometimes having guidelines and structure can make doing so easier in difficult situations.

Above all you should pray as St. Francis: that you love not be love; that you are patient, understanding, long suffering, gentle, supportive…

Good advice. St. Francis has always been a saint that I have admired.

…have you noticed that when two people argue it becomes a battle of wit: who can yell the longest and loudest… both people lose (self-respect, peace, happiness, sight of the cause and solution…); the one person that truly wins is the one that walks away from the issue or that refuses to continue to escalate the chaos.

**this is what I think is so challenging. It’s so easy for a relatively small disagreement or conflict to become a battle of wit- sometimes to the point of losing sight of what the original disagreement was over (often I have found being the result of poor or miscommunication).

I guess what I’m trying to discern is what to do. There is unChristrian like behavior occurring. I have tried to ignore it, hoping it would stop. It didn’t. I tried walking away though in many ways that made things worse. I’m discerning if I’m being called to directly address the issues (through example). In the short term walking away probably would be best, though it would be a “fake peace”. In the long term I feel that addressing them directly would be best though the conflict would probably escalate first before getting better.**

If you love your enemy you can disarm him/her, in the least; if you love your enemy you can win him/her over to Christ, in perfect union with God.
**I couldn’t say it better myself.

Thank you for your response. Definitely food for thought!

God Bless,

Jenelrose**

 

[jcrichton]

Interestingly this is what I have been suggesting since the conflict began. The response I received was that by requesting a set of guidelines that all of those involved would follow that I’m (1) holding a grudge, (2) being unforgiving, and (3) not trusting that people can act in a Christian manner. My perspective has been that people can act in a Christian manner but sometimes having guidelines and structure can make doing so easier in difficult situations.

Hi, Jenelrose!

…then, other than leaving, you could apply the rules to yourself… if attacked, in any manner, ignore the attack; pray that the Holy Spirit enlightens their hearts, minds and spirits… as Jesus said:

But I say to you, Love your enemies: do good to them that hate you: and pray for them that persecute and calumniate you: (St. Matthew 5:44–DRV)

I guess what I’m trying to discern is what to do. There is unChristrian like behavior occurring. I have tried to ignore it, hoping it would stop. It didn’t. I tried walking away though in many ways that made things worse. I’m discerning if I’m being called to directly address the issues (through example). In the short term walking away probably would be best, though it would be a “fake peace”. In the long term I feel that addressing them directly would be best though the conflict would probably escalate first before getting better.

If you are not interested in “winning” the argument… redirect the issue through a blanket statement to dissolve all disputes and begin anew from that moment on… if none would follow your lead… stay the course! Sometimes we can preach louder through humble service to the Lord than through loads and loads of actual preaching or quoting Scriptures (specially if some of the problem is caused by the scholarly…).

Maran atha!

Angel