Every one of us have difficult people in our lives, right? Within the last decade, we have witnessed horrible things… politics dividing families (some of these families have not recovered), relationships strained, and a spirit of hatred that Satan released. People are angry, frustrated, and some are unglued. Our once quiet life has been invaded by division, chaos, and conflict. I’ll be perfectly honest… I HATE these things. I want unity with everyone but that’s not always the case. I’m fairly certain you are nodding your head in agreement, right?
But here’s the thing… surrendering to Christ means that I surrender to all of it. I surrender to the difficult, not just the things I like or the things that are easy or the things that are comfortable. The Christian life is hard. But when we said YES to Jesus, we said YES to all of it. And our passage here in Matthew 5:46-48 is probably one of the hardest things we are mandated to do. Let’s examine what Jesus said in His famous Sermon on the Mt… “If you love only those who love you, what reward is there for that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that. But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.”
Here’s what I get from this. We, as followers of Jesus are to be different. Loving those who are hard to love is not something most people would consider. But we are to do it. Being kind to those who sow unkindness is unthinkable in the world, but Jesus tells us that we are do exactly that. This is hard. This goes against everything inside us and against our fleshly nature. But this is how Jesus lived and this is how we are to live.
Jesus said that we are to be perfect. What does it mean to be perfect? Obviously, we are human and perfection is not possible in this earthly body. Let’s examine four ways we can be perfect like our Father…
In character! We are to exemplify our Father by being compassionate, loving, forgiving, humble, and gentle. Our character should match our Father’s character.
In holiness! We are to set ourselves apart from the world’s sinful values and live within God’s standards. We should keep sin out while letting truth in.
In maturity! Maturity means that I have graduated from milk to solid food. I am always growing my faith and striving to live God’s way not my way.
In love! This one goes right along with Jesus’ message in Matthew 5. Jesus hung out with the sinners, the dejected, and the people with sordid pasts. He spent time with those who questioned His authority. His love extended to EVERYONE, not just those easy to love.
So, let’s take this message further. What has divided your family, a relationship, or a community? Or should I say… Who has divided it? I want you to look beyond what they’ve done and look into their heart. See them like Jesus sees them. And then find a way to bridge the gap. Apologize even if you don’t think you did anything wrong. Text them or call them. Speak loving words to them. Go out of your way today to love or to be kind to someone that is not easy to reach. I’m doing that today. Will you follow me?