Online Christian Messages

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 “16 Rejoice evermore. 17 Pray without ceasing. 18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” KJV

In the past, when I heard this verse, I thought, “Heh, yeah right. I have a hard enough time finding ten minutes at some point in the day to pray and read my Bible. How am I going to be able to pray without ceasing?!” It seemed to me that prayer without ceasing was for super Christians of some sort.

It occurred to me the other day that the Word tells us to pray without ceasing, not as some sort of black-belt Christian technique, but as a matter of survival in this world. The closer that I get to God, the more natural prayer becomes to me. When I narrowly avoid rear-ending someone in bumper-to-bumper traffic, the first words out of my mouth are “Thank you, Lord.” It didn’t used to be that way, and it’s still not always the case, but the neat thing about it is that it’s becoming more and more the way that I view and respond to the world – acknowledging God’s hand in it all.

It’s interesting to read some of the other translations of the Bible for these verses in first Thessalonians 5:

New Living Translation: “16 Always be joyful. 17 Keep on praying . 18 No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.”

Good News Translation: “16 Be joyful always, 17 pray at all times , 18 be thankful in all circumstances. This is what God wants from you in your life in union with Christ Jesus.”

New International Version: “16 Be Joyful always; 17 pray continually ; 18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Each phrases it a little differently, emphasizing another aspect of the truth of this word from God. The Greek word used in verse 17 is adialeiptos , which, according to Strong’s Bible Dictionary, can mean “uninterruptedly, without omission, without ceasing,” but also refers not so much to things not being interrupted, but instead to things that are constantly recurring.

So, 1 Thessalonians 5:17 applies to our daily lives, meaning not so much that we never utter the word, ‘Amen’, but that we are entering and leaving prayer many times throughout the day and that we talk to God on an on-going basis.

It is extremely important that we renew our concept of what it means to pray. Our religious roots sometimes keep God at a distance with litany and liturgy. Ritual prayer has its place, but we need to realize that God is always by our side, always ready to talk with us.

Ephesians 6:18 (NIV) says, “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.” That’s pretty clear. It doesn’t say, “Pray before you eat and on Sundays.” It says on ALL occasions.

When you study scripture, it’s important to look at the verse in context to make sure that you’re not misinterpreting the Word. In this case, the context reveals just how important on-going prayer is for us. The ‘And’ in Ephesians 6:18 refers to the previous verses:

Ephesians 6 (NIV) “10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God , so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests . With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”

On-going prayer is part of the Armor of God! It’s part of God’s plan for us so that we can resist the Devil and the trials of life that would bring us down. The last part of verse 18 that talks about being alert is helpful in understanding why God asks us to pray continually. The Greek word used for ‘alert’ is gregoreuo , which means watchfulness, vigilance, and expectancy. It is the opposite of laxity and indifference.

God wants us to talk to Him on a regular basis so that He can keep us sharp and alert to His will and to protect and guard our hearts .

Psalms 21:11 (NIV) says, “Teach me your way, O Lord; lead me in a straight path.” We can press into God this way, no matter where we are. We can regularly and continually ask God to reveal His wonders to us.

Psalms 143:9,10 (NIV) says, “9 Rescue me from my enemies, O Lord, for I hide myself in you. 10 Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground.”

Psalms 140:13 (NIV) says, “Surely the righteous will give thanks to Thy name; the upright will dwell in Thy presence.”

Dwelling in the presence of the Lord is about immersing ourselves in His goodness, His truth, and His teaching so that we can be equipped to deal with life. Without plugging into God on a regular, on-going basis, we’re going into battle without so much as a pair of socks.

2 Corinthians 10:5 (NIV) says, “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” Here again, when we look at this in context, the Word reveals more about how we can apply this to our lives. We can’t do what verse 5 says unless we are equipped to do so.

“3 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.” Here again, we’re talking about equipping ourselves with the Armor of God. As obvious as it sounds, I think we don’t realize that in order to put on the full Armor of God we have to go to God to get the armor. A soldier in an army is still a soldier if he doesn’t have his equipment, but that doesn’t mean that he’s an effective soldier. In fact, that soldier isn’t long for this world.

We have to take every opportunity we can to spend time with God to put on the Armor of God and develop the Fruits of the Spirit in our lives. Knowing that God is always with you, on your way to work, when you’re working, when you’re playing, in hard times and in easy times, spend time with God:

• Thanking Him.
• Worshipping Him.
• Asking for help.
• Developing spiritual fruits.
• Sharing your feelings with God.

The more that you make a point of remembering to talk to God throughout the day, the more it will become instinctual and a habit. This helps to overcome our fleshly nature, developing our second, true nature.

Remember to spend time just listening to God. When one of God’s children comes calling His name, He is faithful to answer His children. You can hear God’s voice.

Also, remember that prayer is just part of what the verses that we looked at talk about. There’s also a command to worship God and show His love through our actions . Ultimately, it comes back to Psalms 140:13.

Continually dwell in the presence of God, and you’ll find that this immersion in God will change your life !

1 John 3: 18-22 (NIV) “18 Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. 19 This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence 20 whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.”

21 Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God 22 and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him.”

The True Basis for Humility in the Christian Walk

Intro: “The Meaning of Life”

The Main Thing vs. Preoccupation

Self Sabotage

The Day-to-Day Struggle

The Cycle of Obedience, Love, and Joy

Humility Re-Defined

Intro: “The Meaning of Life”

The meaning of life is a pervasive question in human consciousness. Many people spend their lives seeking out the answer, while countless others spend their lives trying to ignore the question. The world has done its best to hypothesize what human existence is all about:

• - Life sucks and then you die.
• - The one with the most toys in the end wins.
• - No fear. (the berserker method to life?)
• - All you need is love.
• - Keep the main thing the main thing.

We as Christians know the meaning of life, but we frequently struggle to bring ourselves into line with that meaning. Even Paul said that he hadn’t yet attained it (Philippians 3:12). When it boils down to it, it’s a question of motivation: what is your motivation? And really, any Christian would be able to tell you, at least from their heads (but perhaps not with conviction from the heart), that the real question is, “WHO is your motivation?”

The Main Thing vs. Preoccupation

Isaiah 40: 3-8 ” .Make a highway for the LORD through the wilderness. Make a straight, smooth road through the desert for our God. Fill the valleys and level the hills. Straighten out the curves and smooth off the rough spots. Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all people will see it together. The LORD has spoken! A voice said, ‘Shout!’ I asked, ‘What should I shout?’ ‘Shout that people are like the grass that dies away. Their beauty fades as quickly as the beauty of flowers in a field. The grass withers, and the flowers fade beneath the breath of the LORD. And so it is with people. The grass withers, and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever.”

This passage is a reminder of what is truly important in life: Who God Is , and What He Has Done for Us . It’s so easy for us to become caught up in the day-to-day tasks of the world. We have to go to work and care for our families and spend time with our friends. We have to make money, and then we have to spend it. This is a lot to do, and we’re busy people, right? So what’s wrong with every day things? We’re expected to occupy until Jesus comes back, aren’t we? That’s in the Bible!

But the Bible doesn’t tell us to become pre occupied until He returns.

Matthew 5:13 says, “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.” This means that we are God’s people called to spread the good news of Jesus’ salvation. If we become consumed with things of this world, and we don’t live the lives that we are called by God to live, then our lives lose their meaning and worth. So that seems pretty cut and dry. Why is it so hard to keep our identity in Christ as our focus in day-to-day life?

Self Sabotage

Many times the day-to-day element that drags us down into the muck of life is our self. The way that some of us deal with the pressures of life is to push back and to try to handle everything ourselves. We can become obsessed with “el numero uno.” We’re ready to walk over anyone who gets in our way. We become incensed when someone cuts us off in traffic. The slightest emotion sends us reeling.

The reality is that we, the people that try to control things ourselves, are in control of nothing – least of all, ourselves.

Philippians 2:1-7 says, “Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and sympathetic? [Basically, If you consider yourself a Christian.] Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one heart and purpose. Don’t be selfish; don’t live to make a good impression on others. Be humble , thinking of others as better than yourself. Don’t think only about your own affairs, but be interested in others, too, and what they are doing. Your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not demand and cling to his rights as God. He made himself nothing; he took the humble position of a slave and appeared in human form.”

Humble? That word is almost meaningless in the world today. Where we do see supposed “humility,” it’s frequently false and pretentious. On television, how many times do we see some rich guy saying, “Welcome to my humble abode,” and he lives in a huge mansion or a place with really expensive things? Humility in today’s society, from the world’s viewpoint, is a farce, and is generally something we don’t like to encounter. It’s as though the world sees a humble person as someone who deserves to be walked all over because he is basically asking for it as a humble person, isn’t he? But according to God’s rules, and the rules of His Kingdom, the least is the greatest and the last is first. The hostility in society towards humility is the reason why we’re supposed to turn the other cheek. We are supposed to embody spiritual things that countermand the natural.

Because pride and a lack of self-control are pretty much part of being human, each and every one of us probably feels convicted by this message to a certain extent. But guess what? We don’t have to feel condemned by Philippians 2. In fact, we’re supposed to feel liberated by that scripture. Philippians chapter 2 continues in verses 12 and 13, “.put into action God’s saving work in your lives, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him. ” You have divine help to humble yourself to God’s will! The Bible says that you can do all things through Christ, and the verse in Philippians 2 says that God is there to help you. You can be humble if you hold on to God.

The Day-to-Day Struggle

The Bible warns against allowing our minds and concerns to be overwhelmed by the things of the day-to-day part of life. Matthew 6:25, 33, 34 says, “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?. seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

How amazing is it that God’s Word, written so long ago, understands that our day-to-day trials of 2000-whatever can pull us away from God? That’s because those trials are constants that span all of time. As such, they are some of the most difficult challenges for us to overcome in Christ. At their most basic level, the daily trials are the building blocks of the fallen world that we live in . That’s why we need to battle them all day, every day.

Philippians 4:6-8 says, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”

We need to go to God for help in letting our worries die, knowing that God is faithful. After that, we need to just trust Him, and not dwell on what could happen if things don’t go our way.

The Cycle of Obedience, Love, and Joy

When you do run to God for help in doing what you know you should, a miraculous thing happens. You tap into a cycle of obedience, love and joy. When you come to God for help, out of love, God helps you to live as you should. When you live according to His will, you please Him. When you please Him, He pours His joy into your heart. When you feel your Father’s joy, your heart desires to please Him more , and so you go to God again, thanking Him for what He has done and seeking more help in doing His will.

Again, this cycle isn’t just a phenomenon from God in the good times. You can have more abundant joy from God by being obedient in the hard times.

1 Thessalonians 5:16 says, ” Rejoice always; pray without ceasing ; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” This is key. God’s will for you is unceasing. He has a plan for your entire life (Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.”), not just for yesterday when things were great – not just for when you were a kid. God’s plan for you (His faithfulness) is eternal (yesterday, today and forever). His love, forgiveness and guidance are always there for you, but you have to seek that every day – in the hard times in the good.

Humility Re-Defined

The closest thing to humility in the secular world is found in a servant, like a butler. But a true servant is someone who does exactly what they’re expected to do without question because of who they are, and because of their relationship with their “master.” Have you heard of bondservants? Bondservants are not paid employees. They work for their masters of their own accord. True humility comes from a willing heart. Without a willing heart, it’s just an act, and God sees this false motivation. False humility is worthless.

So, now we have a new definition of Humility . Humility is:

• Yes, putting others before ourselves
• Loving others more than ourselves
• Not living to make an impression on other people
• Keeping our eyes on the Kingdom of Heaven
• Not worrying about the day-to-day things in life
• Having an attitude like Christ’s attitude
• Rejoicing, praying, and giving thanks – always
• Do all of this with a right heart

Given Life Ministries

February 23, 2006

Matthew 7:1 “Do not judge and criticize and condemn others, so that you may not be judged and criticized and condemned yourselves.” (Amplified Bible)

You may be more familiar with the translation, “Judge not, lest ye be judged.” It’s funny- that phrase is even common in the secular world. It’s thrown out there like a catch phrase or a wise, old adage that is easily dismissed. But Friends, it’s Biblical, and it’s a valuable truth that we need to internalize.

We are far too judgmental in our society.

It’s tough not to get defensive when we hear that. Our hearts ache a bit, and say, “Yeah, yeah, I don’t want to hear that.” That’s because judging others comes so naturally to us. It really can make us feel better about ourselves by distracting us temporarily from our own short comings. Albert Camus wrote about this phenomenon in his existentialist book, The Fall. The main character went around judging people to elevate himself as a person (hiding himself from his introspection). When we imagine ourselves turning our noses up at a person because of how they dress, or considering someone to be sub-human because of his or her beliefs, it seems absurd. Of course that’s wrong. But in our day-to-day lives, when we really start to watch for a spirit of judgment or condemnation in our actions, words, and most importantly, our thoughts, we begin to realize very quickly that judging others can present a real problem.

Love and Judgment

You can’t really love someone if you’re judging him or her. What does Jesus say is the second greatest commandment? “.Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matt. 22:39 NLT) There’s no stipulation to that. It doesn’t say to love your neighbor as yourself UNLESS ___________ [you fill in the blank]. God loves everyone equally. He loves the racist, hateful man as much as your favorite pastor. God loves gay people.

Now, God doesn’t love racism, hate, or homosexuality. On Judgment Day, if those people’s sins aren’t atoned for by having accepted the free gift of Christ’s salvation, then He will judge them, and God will allow them to be condemned for their sin.

Do you see yourself mentioned anywhere in the previous paragraph? No, except that you too will stand before God to be judged some day.

Matthew 7:1 “Do not judge and criticize and condemn others, so that you may not be judged and criticized and condemned yourselves.” (Amplified Bible)

Do you see yourself mentioned in that scripture? Yes!

This message may have a bit of a condescending tone to it. I apologize for that, but this is a message that fights against what everything else in the world teaches us. We are prodded to be judgmental at every turn. Take a hard look at the following, and see if you don’t find a judgmental spirit being fostered there:

• American Idol and many other reality-T.V. shows (I.E. Real World, Fear Factor, etc.)
• Movie magazines (I.E. Premiere, Entertainment Weekly, etc.)
• Gossip based magazines (I.E. People Magazine, and others.)
• Fashion magazines
• Advertisements for clothing, automobiles, and other possessions
• Secular rap music
• The list could go on and on…

I’m not saying that all of these things revolve around a judgmental spirit, but it certainly rears its ugly head frequently. Be very careful about how often you expose yourself to those types of media.

Even beyond the media, be wary of hanging around people who are very judgmental. Gossip is the Siamese twin of a judgmental spirit. If you value the blessings of God, and want to have a close relationship with God, avoid gossip like the plague! You should literally remove yourself from any gossiping conversation the minute it starts up. Say, “Hey, I don’t want to talk about people when they’re not here. Let’s talk about something else.” Obviously, you shouldn’t expect the people that you’re with to just shrug and change the subject, but that’s a good thing. It will give you a chance to share your faith. You’ll also notice that those same people will respect and trust you more in the long run because they’ll realize that you’re the real deal – you’re not being hypocritical about loving unconditionally. Or they might say, “Get lost, then!” But hey, Christians suffer. Praise God that you were able to stand up for your faith!

If you work around non-believers that gossip all the time despite your protests – PRAY. Ask for the Lord to guard your heart against the spirit of judgment. Pray for your coworkers. Jesus loves them, and they’re caught in a net that only God can rescue them from. Pray for their freedom, and do so with passion.

The Spirit of Judgment is Spiritual Poison

We have to realize that God isn’t just telling us to be nice when he tells us not to judge people. He’s telling us this because that sort of callous heart is a harsh slavery that He wants us to be free from. Moreover, He wants to take the burden of judgment away from us so that we can have a more abundant life. Think of it this way: Judgment is God’s job. When we judge someone, we’re taking on God’s job. God is an omnipotent being of infinite power. You’re just you. Do you really think that you can handle doing the job of an omnipotent God? You can’t. You weren’t designed to handle it.

Instead, God wants us to be pure and innocent inside. Think of a child that is unafraid of a cranky old man or a disfigured person. It’s as if the child is blind to the condition that might make other, older people steer clear. God wants us to be that innocent, so that even if we notice that a person is mentally challenged, gay, hyper-religious, ugly, insecure, obnoxious, or whatever, we love them anyway. We don’t have to like them. This scripture about not judging others isn’t saying that we have to be buddies with everyone. The Bible says that we are to love them and that we are not to judge them.

We are robbed of God’s peace when we’re caught up in a judgmental spirit. When God can fellowship with us closely, we get His peace that surpasses understanding, and life is SO GOOD. When we allow ourselves to start judging someone; when we stop operating in God’s love, we force God out of that close fellowship by hardening our hearts. That’s why we’ll notice that things aren’t quite right in our spiritual lives. Our peace is gone!

Help! I’m Already Trapped in Judgment.

Because judging people violates God’s second commandment for our lives, it is sin . As such, it tarnishes our spirits, and makes us less effective conduits for His work. We stop functioning as God would like us to, and our spirits sense that we’re just spinning our wheels in the muck of sin. That can lead to all sorts of spiritual and physical distress. If you find yourself in this situation, just do yourself a favor and earnestly repent. You’ll be miserable until you do.

One tricky thing about the sin of judging others – This is definitely one of those sins where God may convict you of sin and require you to confess your sin and ask for the forgiveness of the person who you were judging. Tough stuff, but unconfessed sin will fester inside of you until you’re more miserable than you’ve ever been. Once again, do yourself a favor – Get it over with, do it sincerely, and get back to God. When you’re back in fellowship with God, you’ll find that the sting of the sin and confession is gone, once again replaced with His peace.

So, if you’re stuck in the habit of judging others, if that is currently part of your attitude, start asking God to help you change that attitude. Make a conscious effort to remove yourself from things that will only encourage that wrong behavior. Ask God to give you more of His love to spread to everyone around you. Expect the Devil to make things extra hard for you when you’re trying to turn things around. Try reciting the scriptures in this message, and praise God during the hard times. Your time in worship will allow the Holy Spirit to break the hardened layers of judgment from your heart until it’s as soft as Jesus’ heart.

It is God’s desire for people to be active in their faith.

People who are spiritually idle risk the atrophy of their spirits, and leave themselves open to spiritual attack. Worst of all, spiritually inactive believers leave their Father’s work undone.

Daniel 11:32 says, "By smooth words he will turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the covenant, but the people who know their God will display strength and take action.” (NAS) This scripture is about people under the rule of an evil Persian king, but it applies to us as subjects on the earth. We have a choice. Be passively ruled by a worldly king (Satan), or resist the Prince of Darkness, and fight as children of God. To do nothing when given this choice is to remain under Satan’s slavery.

In His Word, God is constantly calling on us to act upon His Word. Matthew 7:26-27 says, "Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell–and great was its fall.” (NAS) Ever heard the saying, “Waiting gives the Devil time”? I’m not sure where that phrase gets its origin, but it’s Biblically true:

Proverbs 14:23 “In all labor there is profit, But idle chatter leads only to poverty.”
 

Proverbs 19:15 “Laziness casts one into a deep sleep, And an idle person will suffer hunger.”

God calls us to be active in our faith, but He doesn’t force us to do anything that we don’t want to. It’s our decision. We can pursue our faith everyday, operate in the gifts that God gives us, and live in the freedom that Christ paid for on the cross. Or, we can stuff our relationship with God into a shoebox in our closet, and take it out whenever we feel like taking a stroll down our spiritual memory lane. To grow as Christians, and to do God’s will, we have to be active.

Philippians 2:12 says, “So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling.” It does not say, “Sit back and let your salvation come to you, taking it easy.”

1 Chronicles 28:10 says, "Consider now, for the LORD has chosen you to build a house for the sanctuary; be courageous and act."

This is one reason why we frequently hear people tell us about the importance of a daily walk with God. Keeping in touch with God keeps our faith fresh and our commitment renewed. It’s also true that as we do indeed have a relationship with God, our communication with Him is important to keep our relationship from becoming a distant, shallow relationship. We should always strive for a deeper relationship with Him.

When we do act, we receive the fullness of his blessings for our lives. Our faith doesn’t grow dusty, and God’s will gets accomplished through his people who are following his command to “be courageous and act.”

One of the nooks of our hearts where sin likes to hide is in our emotional responses to negative stimuli. Our enemies have an uncanny knack for pushing our buttons and will do so on occasion just to set us off.

With God’s help, we can disconnect these emotional buttons so that our enemies can try to push them all day long, and the only reaction that they’ll get out of us is one of love.

This is the subject of Matthew 5, “44.love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.” (NAS). This is a neat concept, because it’s one of the most unnatural ideas that the Word asks us to put into action. Nowhere else in nature does an organism say to itself, “Hm, this thing wants to devour me. I wonder what I can do to show it that I love it?” It actually sounds silly, but it’s hugely powerful.

If you don’t love your enemy – if you don’t turn the other cheek, and you react in anger – you sin. What does that mean? It distances you from God, your source for joy, love and self-control. This sets you up for a downward spiral of sin made up of anger, hatred and bad decisions.

Matthew 5:38-42 “38 You have heard that it was said, `AN EYE FOR AN EYE, AND A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH.’ 39 “But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. 40 “If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat also. 41 “Whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two. 42 “Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.” (NAS)

If you do love your enemy, no matter how difficult they try to make it for you, you steal the victory. On top of that, you’re planting seeds in the heart of your enemy that God will try to germinate.

It’s important to realize that God wants a relationship with your enemy as badly as He desires a relationship with you.

You’re like a servant delivering a message from your master. The recipient will sometimes accept the message gladly, and offer you some refreshment when you arrive at his door. Other times, the recipient might tear up the message and spit in your face. It’s your duty to be a good ambassador for your master and to uphold His name. You can’t afford to dirty God’s name and reputation by spitting back and starting a fight. Your master doesn’t approve of that kind of behavior. In fact, He wants you to wish the bad recipient a good day, and to thank him for his time.

In nature, the closest example of this behavior is in that of animals that have shells, like snails, turtles, and even the armadillo. When an attacker comes, they go into their shell and let the enemy do their worst. That’s NOT what God asks us to do.

God asks us to love our enemy and to pray for those who persecute us. This isn’t a platitude. God really wants us to intercede for those who attack us. When you think about it, you’re getting a window into this person’s heart, and you’ll know better how to pray for your enemy than any other person walking down the street.

Use spiritual guerilla warfare – take any weapon that the enemy tosses your way, and use it as prayer material. Don’t just ask that God would give Joe Meanie a nice day. If Joe Meanie is reacting out of stress and dumps an unfair load of work on you and in so many words, dares you to complain, pray that his stress would be reduced, and ask the Lord for help in making Joe’s life easier. Moreover, do everything within your power to get this unfair load done and then ask for more. Matthew 5:41 “Whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two” (NAS).