Popular and unpopular thoughts about enemies

Here’s the popular belief about enemies among Christians — that we are supposed to love them.

Here’s the unpopular belief about enemies among Christians — That Jesus actually meant it. No really. We’re not just supposed to believe it, but actually do it.

There’s a difference between what we claim we believe and what we actually do. I’m not sure why that is though. It makes no sense to me. And all it really does is point to a deeper reality — we aren’t really interested in actually loving our enemies. We are only interested in making it look like we’ll consider loving our enemies.

We’d like to have it both ways. But that’s not how it works. That’s like saying I’m going to go West, while I’m driving East. The person in the passenger seat would probably look at me weird, and ask me if I know what direction I’m going? They’d be confused — hearing one thing and seeing another.

Jesus tells us to love our enemies — not just consider it. Not to just believe it. Not to say it and then ignore it. But to actually love our enemies. That requires a few things. First, we need to name who our enemies are. That seems pretty easy for most folks. Ask people to talk about someone or something that they like to complain about, and you have a hard time getting them to stop. People love to complain. It gives a sense of satisfaction. It gives a sense of being superior. It allows for us to dehumanize someone and to scapegoat. It soothes the ego.