The other day I was singing a song to my children. The song is called “Love is.” In this song, love is compared to other things such as a soft summer rain, a smile and a kiss. Then it says something I never truly heard before, though I had sang the song a million times. It says, “and I like it best when it’s shared with a friend.” Hum? Is love really only supposed to be shared with a friend, even though that’s how I like it best?

How many of you would agree with those lyrics? That we like it best when love is shared with a friend. I think just about every one of us would agree to that. It is easy to love someone who loves us or at least as a person we have affection for and who offers us care in return. Yet the Bible calls us to do more than simply share love with friends. The Bible asked us to not only love our neighbor as ourselves but also to love our enemies. It’s not enough just to love the easy to love and lovable, that is not the real love God has called us to share.

In scripture we see that we should go a step further than just saying we love our enemies but also that we should bless those who curse us. What God asks is not an easy thing.  What is required of us goes against our nature. Yet it is something that Christ demonstrated for us.  It’s what he has called all believers to do.

Remember that scripture “Christ demonstrated his love towards us that while we were his enemies he died for us.” He blessed us with salvation and redemption when we were his enemies. When we had so often cursed his name, taken it in vain, and sinned against him he still sacrificed everything for us. God showed us the true depths that love can reach and it is so much more than easy loving or loving the lovable. He asks us to go deeper in our love towards others. 

So many Christians just love the love chapter in the Bible (1 Corinthians 13). They read it at weddings, post it on walls, sing lines from it in songs, and declare it loudly, but have they really read it all? Have they read it the right way? Do they know what it is actually saying? Let’s look at the love chapter in a new way today.  Not just thinking of loving people who love us, but loving the way God called us to.  To love everyone even our enemies as the chapter describes. 

First, Love is patient and kind even with those who aren’t to us. Love does not envy or boast and is not proud or easily angered by not just those we like but by everyone and in all situations. God’s love shown by believers should keeps no record of wrongs for anyone, even when we have been wronged and even if they are not sorry. Love doesn’t rejoice in evil, but it rejoices in the truth. We are to love our enemies with this kind of unselfish, patient, charitable, forgiving, long suffering, and righteous love. The love chapter also declares that it doesn’t matter what gifts you have, what gifts you bring, without real love the gifts are nothing and worthless. How many times have we become short tempered with that person at work that seems to have it out for us or cursed back when someone shouts at us in traffic? Those are opportunities we miss to love our enemies. There are so many opportunities we allow to pass us by when we choose to only give love to those we want to. How many times do we withhold forgiveness because someone has offended us, and they do not deserve forgiveness in our minds? We should be careful to make sure that in all circumstances and as we have opportunity to love as God has called us to.

Remember, when we love our enemies as Christ has called us to, we are following the example that Christ set for us when he died for us while we were still his enemies. If he can give his life so freely for his enemies, us, then we can be patient, kind, humble, calm, forgiving, and infuse our actions towards our enemies with real love.

I challenge you today to ask yourself, how am I loving others? Am I only loving the way that easy – shared with friends only? Or am I willing to love the unlovable and unworthy like Christ loved me? Can I honor God by loving my enemies? If you haven’t started yet I challenge you to. If you need help, pray and ask God for help you love the way you should. With God’s help you can share God’s real love the way he intended you to share it. Let’s love today with the real love of God that is for everyone!