JP24: EASY OR HARD?: HOW TO LOVE LIKE JESUS WHEN YOU DON'T WANT TO

President John F. Kennedy said, "We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard..." No one knew then how much the hard work of space exploration would change our world.

Jesus came to do the hard work of loving all people in a way that can change the world today unless his followers forget that we signed up to love as he did.

In the age of hair-trigger opinions, constant offense, and individual liberties, Jesus reminds his disciples to do the work of hard love.

Avoiding the Trap of Self

Jesus knows that there are obstacles to the type of love that changes the world, and as a loving shepherd, he reveals them here for our eternal good.  

Jesus explains,

But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.

“Woe to you who are full now, for you shall be hungry.

“Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.

“Woe to you, when all people speak well of you, for so their fathers did to the false prophets. (Luke 6:24-26)

Jesus compassionately raises the red flag, warning his followers to measure success with how we meet the needs of others instead of ourselves. According to Jesus, the rich, well-fed, carefree, and universally popular misunderstand the cost of following Christ.

How could these celebrated material and status blessings serve as obstacles to kingdom life?

It's possible when material and status blessings become our pursuit instead of gifts we steward for the good of neighbors near and far.  When the constant press of cultural forces wear patterns of living that serve net worth, full pantry, endless entertainment, and the praise of others.  

Together, these woes crowd out the time and urgency needed to love our neighbors. To this, Jesus says, "Woe"! (Also translated as “how terrible”).

Practice A Peculiar Love

How do we break free from the woes of western materialism? By practicing a peculiar type of love - the kind that Jesus prescribes in the following verses:  

“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.” (Luke 6:27-31)

People who hear are quick to listen to Jesus and practice the hard way of loving complicated humans as a matter of routine.

To those who do us wrong - we are to do good.  Those who curse us - we are to bless. People who take advantage of us - give to them generously.  We do to everyone as we want them to do to us - when we’re at our worst.  According to Jesus, loving sacrifice is the cost of following him, and he establishes no alternative.

This teaching does not mean that we seek out abusive or dangerous situations to show love. Life has enough trouble without us looking for it. Nor does Jesus desire us to remain forever in toxic or hazardous relationships.  Jesus spoke to an audience under Roman authority, and many of his hearers were slaves in Roman households.  Jesus taught his followers to love people who are hard to love and those they didn’t want to love, even if that meant doing so from a distance.  Would you please reach out to someone for help if you are in an abusive situation now?

Move Beyond Moral

Perhaps anticipating pushback, Jesus contrasts hard-fought love with ordinary morality.

“If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:32-36)

According to Jesus, living a comfortable life of ease is not Christlike.  Living and loving as Jesus costs us our pride, dignity, and the resources God has given us to steward.  He calls us to kindness toward “the ungrateful and evil” among us, and this is what distinguishes us as sons and daughters of the “Most High,” not insisting on personal rights, liberties, and preferences.

How can we avoid living a tragic life?  Jesus says we do it by loving people who don't love us, doing good to them, expecting nothing in return.  Leading our lives with uncommon kindness and mercy is the kind of life rewarded for all of eternity, not one filled with self-sufficiency and the praise of men.  By the grace of Jesus, let's be generous, kind, merciful, and loving to everyone, not because loving like Jesus is easy, but because it is hard.

PRAYER:

Dear Lord, thank you for teaching me through your word.  I find myself walled in by the false gods of materialism and praise of people. Please forgive how I place my plans, comfort, and social status before your plans and purposes.  I need your grace today, Jesus, to reorient my life away from myself and onto those around me who aren’t easy to love.  People just like me before you broke my bonds of sin and shame.  Thank you, Jesus.  Amen.

Easy or Hard?: How to Love Like Jesus

1. Avoid the Trap of Self: Measure success with how we meet the needs of others instead of ourselves.

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Jesus, Mark 10:45)

2. Practice a Peculiar Love: Practice the hard way of loving complicated humans as a matter of routine.

“If a man says, “I love God” but hates his brother, he is a liar and the truth is not in him.  For anyone who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.” 1 John 5:20.

3. Move Beyond Moral: Be a thermostat instead of a thermometer.

“If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.” (Jesus, Luke 6:32-36)