The Call to Pray for Our Enemies
By Abby Hughes, Resonate Ellensburg
There are few images the mind can conjure as painful and beautiful as this: Jesus, hanging naked on a cross, struggling with his last breaths, being mocked by the very people who strung his bloodied wrists to slabs of wood. And what did he use his last breaths to do? He prayed for them. He asked God to forgive them.
Can you even imagine? The one who hung the heavens up in the sky now hung dead on a tree. And of all the things he could have said to his enemies watching from below, he prayed for them.
Of course, this was not out of character for Jesus, as he made it clear that these are his ways. In Matthew 5:44-48, Jesus gave a clear command: “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. 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.”
Rather than indulging the desires for hostility, bitterness, and hate, Jesus is serious about His people modeling love and forgiveness. Why? Because while sin made us enemies of God, he still chose to love us. This was not simply love in theory; it was love in action. It was love to the point that Jesus came to live a life inviting his enemies to himself, even using death to model the lengths he would go. Without this demonstration of love, none of us would be able to exchange the position of being enemies of God to children of God. Jesus asks his children to follow his example so that we would be recognized as his. If we’re serious about our identity as children of God, we’ll take the call to pray for our enemies seriously.
Church, I can’t think of a better time for us to step into this identity as children of God. To obey our Father who calls us to the most radical and humbling of postures, we need to love and pray for our enemies. While there is so much to be angry about, to grieve for, or to be righteously zealous for, we are still asked to love and pray for those we feel are against us. As we sit in the middle of a pandemic, days away from an election, with racial injustice and economic fragility heavy in the air, it is so easy to choose the way of hate and bitterness.
It is okay to be angry. It is okay to want change. In fact, there are many things in this world Christ followers should be leading out in change. It doesn’t mean you need to ignore pain or hurt, nor does it mean you should agree with those whose actions don't line up with the Word of God. But scripture is still clear:
“Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse..” Romans 12:14
“If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Proverbs 25:21-22
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” Matthew 5:9
“Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.” 1 John 4:20-21
Maybe the word “enemy” seems inaccessible or too intense for some. Maybe for others, the list is long and has footnotes with justifications. It could be tempting to shrug off the command to pray for our enemies and disregard it as inapplicable or impossible. But Jesus does not ask us to pick and choose obedience based on ease. He asks us to follow him into the painful places so we can learn a new way. A way of self-denial and self-upheaval. A way to love and pray for those who disagree with us that is forged in intentionality and made complete in action.
What does this intentionality and action look like?
1. Examine our hearts.
We have to take stock of where there is hostility, bitterness, and hate in our hearts and put ourselves aside to become like Christ. It starts in the privacy of our hearts, the dark places only God can see, and discovering where the love of Christ is lacking. This is a time to ask God to reveal to you who your enemies are or where you lack prayer for people who disagree with you. Is there a political leader you wouldn’t dream of praying for? Or people you harbor bitterness towards because they support beliefs you don’t? A family member or friend who betrayed you? Do you find your heart hardened towards them? Take these things to God and ask him to remind you of the power of gospel forgiveness.
2. Confess where it is hard to love.
Allow other believers to speak into what God is saying after you spend time in prayer. Let them ask you deeper questions. Share with them convictions God brought to your heart and ways they can keep you accountable. Talk through the practical ways this will look in your life.
3. Make plans to pray.
In prayer, we have the opportunity to have our heart softened by God and open ourselves to correction. Take time every week to specifically pray through names of those that are hard to love, recording what you are praying for them. Fill a journal and see what you experience over time as God works on your own heart.
4. Keep a seat open at your table.
If we are to model the life of Jesus in every way, let’s remember Jesus got uncomfortably close to people who weren’t like him. His last meal was shared with the man that turned his back on him. This may be the hardest step and may take the longest amount of time, but keep a seat at your table open. Pray that those who are hard for you to love would fill that seat one day. If we only share meals with those who are like us, how are we different then anyone else?
These things can seem daunting at times. We have to acknowledge that we don’t love and pray for enemies because we feel they deserve it or because we expect to be treated better. In fact, Jesus commands this not because it will change our enemies, but because it will change us. It is the posture of our hearts Jesus is after first and foremost. In these coming days, weeks, and years of our lives, we have the opportunity to exemplify the humility of Christ through being known as people who pray and live in radical ways. Let it be so.
