What Are You Waiting For?

(Read Matthew 5)

One of my closest friends since moving to our new home happens to have the same great taste in football teams as I do. Without mentioning any cities or mascots, I’ll just say, “Go Big Blue.” One important principle that many Jesus followers forget is the art of love. I’m not talking about food, vacation spots, TV shows, or even sports teams, I’m talking about loving the way that God commanded us and showed us.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”
Matthew 5:43-45

It has always amazed me that the people who are the most loving are usually the ones who have faced the most trials. Maybe it’s because they have seen the darkest valleys so they appreciate everyone and everything more in their life. Maybe as a byproduct of their struggles, they are more in touch with the grace Jesus has given them. My friend has seen harder times and faced steeper challenges than anything I could imagine. He grew up in Egypt as a Muslim. In his experience, he learned hatred and mistrust of others. He moved to the U.S. as a young adult and served in the Army.  He was severely injured in combat in Iraq which forced him to retire from the Army. He got caught up in the party life, including drugs and alcohol. He was alone.

The beginning of the fifth chapter of Matthew’s Gospel contains what is known as the Beatitudes. What Jesus was explaining to his listeners is how we can be happy (blessed). Later, Jesus explains a deeper and even harder concept of God’s command for us. Love our enemies? How the heck are we supposed to do that? In the passage above, the word “love” and “pray” are imperatives. They are commands. They are also verbs in the present tense, which means it’s supposed to be an ongoing act. Christ is not telling us to love our enemies once in a while, he’s telling us to love them and pray for them constantly.

During his Iraq deployment, my friend experienced brutal injuries during combat. “A sniper shot me in my left knee. I was hit by a mortar, and I witnessed four of my friends get blown up in front of my eyes,” he explained. “I was in a coma for over a month and a half.” His active capacity in the military was over. He was truly lucky to be alive. Back in the U.S. he got into doing whatever felt right at the time. This included everything. His idea of Jesus was that he was a prophet that God would use to perform miracles. “Only good behavior would get me to heaven.”

His first wife was a Christian and for five years, she urged him to attend church with her. He continued, “I told her that I would live and die as a Muslim. I had no desire to experience anything to do with a church or Christianity.” After hearing that his wife was being harassed at their church, he told her that he was going to attend that day so he could beat the guy up. “She wore a wedding ring, but for five years I was never there, people weren’t sure what was going on.” Well God’s timing is always perfect. His plan is too. My friend laughed, “I will never forget the message from that service. What are you waiting for? The Pastor told us to go to Jesus, and just let it go.”

He told me that his newly found interest in Jesus and the church was short-lived. He went back to drugs and drinking. “Four months later, I was at the lowest point in my life,” he confessed. He told me the despair he felt made him feel isolated, helpless. He was seriously contemplating suicide. “I told Jesus that I didn’t want to go through this any more.” Like someone who is drowning and grasping for anything to hold them afloat, my friend added, “I figured that I had nothing to lose, so I accepted Jesus as my savior. I asked Him to help me.” My friend told me that he grabbed the doorknob to walk out the door but stopped. “I swear the Holy Spirit was in that doorknob. He stopped me. I went back in the room. It was freezing but it shouldn’t have been,” he said. Jesus knew his despair. He knows our limits. “I was crying and crying but have never experienced that level of peace in my entire life.”

If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Matthew 5:46-48

In this hard lesson, Jesus transforms our enemies into neighbors. He tells us in the same way we naturally love and pray for our neighbor, we need to do as Christ would and love and pray for our enemies. Time for a reality check. Loving our enemies does not make us a child of God. Loving and praying for our enemies is proof that we are a child of God.

Spiritual gifts come abundantly to my friend. Encouragement, teaching, and wisdom to name a few. He taught Vacation Bible School when it was out of his comfort zone and is still teaching 4th, 5th, and 7th grade Christian education every single week. I asked him what he’s giving his students. “Truth about Jesus,” he replied without hesitation. “Actions speak louder than words. Love can change people. When we show love, it builds relationships,” he stated.

We spoke for many minutes about Christian role models. We discussed how critical this is in today’s dark and skeptical society. “Loving Jesus transformed me. It transformed my whole life. We won’t change people by judging them, we will only change them by loving them.” He stressed the importance of showing this love in all scenarios to all people. “When we show the love of Christ, we are showing Christ.”

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Corinthians 13:4:4-7

This kind of love that Paul wrote about in Corinthians puts other people first. It expects needs of others and serves them. Even when we’re let down, we keeps no records. We forgive quickly. We even approach our enemies with humility. When people disappoint us we want to dismiss them, but love endures.

My friend is so full of faith, love, and forgiveness, I’m always a changed man when I’m around him. He is also a firm believer in accountability to our faith. He has been remarried for several years. The way he describes his wife is a reflection of Gospel love. She is his best friend, his lover, his strength, and his accountability partner. “When I’m struggling, I pray. I try to see where the Holy Spirit is leading me,” he said. “I try not to oppose him with my pride and ego, I listen for His whispers.”

He and the family he grew up with are at odds because of his decision to commit to Jesus Christ. Due to his injuries, he wakes every morning without fail enveloped in pain. He walked in the valley of the shadow of death. He partied with evil. The sun was brilliantly glowing in the blue skies over us as we talked, and despite this guy’s trials and tragedies, there was no bitterness. No hatred. After a sip of his coffee, my friend calmly said, “A heart that dwells in forgiveness, doesn’t dwell in the past.” I told him to stop because I had to write that down exactly as he said it.

God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’
Hebrews 13:5

Thanks to God’s grace, we aren’t left alone. Gospel love isn’t a lofty concept or Pinterest saying, it’s a person. As we grow closer to that person, Jesus Christ, we’ll see our love for one another grow. My good friend looked at me and grinned. “This always blows me away,” he said. “The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead, lives inside of us.” So what are we waiting for?

Key Applications:

1. Start each day with a simple thanks to God for being alive. Thank him for each breath of life you get to take. Tell Him you’re grateful for all you have.
2. Do your best to pray each day this week. Even for 10 minutes. Be honest and open with God. Listen for His whispers to you.
3. In each day this week, watch your behavior. Don’t talk a good game. Live a good game. Love like Jesus.

Where else in your life can you live out the teachings of Christ? Look for next week’s Devotion.