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bigmike

Matthew 5:44 (LSB) 44 But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
There seems to be a misunderstanding in the body of Christ when it comes to proper use of the word, enemy.
Many may find it offensive to call someone an enemy.
Others fear using that word because they don’t know if it is scripturally correct, or even acceptable as a child of God, to consider someone an enemy.
We will often find people saying that we should never consider anyone an enemy; it is evil spirits that we war against, not people.
And while it is true that we war against wickedness and principalities in the spirit realm (Ephesians 6:12-13), we must still understand and acknowledge that we do have enemies.
Were this not true, Jesus would never have told us to pray for them.
Many of us wrestle at times to understand this truth.
God loves all of humanity. But He will also judge us all when we stand before Him.
Not everyone will “make the cut”, so to speak, and spend eternity in His presence.
Some will be forever separated from God for allowing themselves to live their lives as His enemy.
And while we know that it is Satan and his demons that tempt people, it is the people themselves who make the choice whether to follow evil desires or not. It is people who choose to carry out evil against you, me, and others we know.
So, yes, that makes them an enemy.
It is not incorrect to say that. It is not being disrespectful or mean. It is the truth, even as uncomfortable as it may be at times to speak those words.
So, let us understand that we do have enemies. We have people around us, some that we know, and some who are complete strangers to us, who would not hesitate to harm us if they had the opportunity to do so.
And it is these that Jesus referred to when He told us to love our enemies, and to pray for them even as they persecute us.
Is it easy? Of course not. It is one of the most difficult things we can undertake as humans. It is contrary to our flesh.
And it is for this reason that we must allow the Holy Spirit to teach us how to love the ones who would seek to harm us, mock us, persecute us, and even kill us.

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