LOVING THE UNLOVABLE: A DAUNTING BUT COMPULSORY CHRISTIAN DUTY The news came as a rude shock and her

initial thought was that it must be a joke, how can they sack her just like that, after all she has put in and her contributions to the organization. She has tried her best to satisfy them, how can they treat me like this?, she often ask herself. As if this was not enough, they continue to speak ill of her and trying to discredit all she has worked for and the sacrifices she has made. At home she is confronted by a nagging husband, who does not show her any love or respect, the husband is even unfaithful, will rather spend his income on strange women outside, or attend clubs and come home often drunk then turn her into his punching bag. Did the Bible say I should love them all? How can you love these set of people who despite extending love to them, continue to return hatred to you and dont stop causing you both emotional and physical pain, or how possible is it to force oneself on them. Matthew 5:44 Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you

Proverb 25:21 If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; if he is thirsty, give him water to drink Luke 6:27-28 But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you Romains 12:14 Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not Romains 12:20 Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. 1 Thessalonians 5:15 See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves and to all men. The above scriptures seem too difficult, how can I love, feed and pray for those who hate me. Loving the unlovable seems to be one of the difficult expected duties of a Child of God. Our Lord Jesus Christ found Himself in a similar situation. The people whom He had shown love, compassion, and respect to; those he had preached to, healed of various kind of diseases and even fed, who not too long ago shouted hosanna to the Son of David, Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, Hosanna in the highest (Mat. 21:9), now preferred a harden criminal (Barabbas) to Him and shouted Crucify Him (Mark 15:13), despite all He had done for them, how can He love these people? One can imagine how He sat and eat with those who were about to abandon, deny and desert Him. How can He wash their feet despite knowing beforehand that they will soon stab Him from behind by their betrayal? He was surrounded by people who did

not deserve His love and respect, but their action did not stop him from showing them love and respect (John 13) Our Lord Jesus Christ demonstrated how to love the unlovable, it is not just to tolerate them, or pretend to love them (which many do), but to serve them and have compassion on them. And He even asked God to forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing (Luke 23:34) Stephens reaction to those who were stoning him to death confirms that, when we are born again we will have the same mind (love and forgiven spirit) like our Lord Jesus Christ; when in Acts 7:60 he cried even when he was dying that God should not hold the sin of murder against his killers. If he has cried for vengeance against killers, I doubt if Saul of Tarsus (later Paul) would not have been condemned, and the early Christian would have lost a formidable soldier of Christ. How do you react to people who make life difficult for you? In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus raised the bar for those who followed Him. It is very difficult to love your enemies unless you are energized by the power of the Holy Spirit. Matthew 5:44-45a is the heart of the whole matter Jesus said; "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 sons of your Father in heaven. And Hebrew 4:15 provide us with the necessary guide For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin.

Jesus recognized that hating our enemies is a common and natural thing to do love your neighbor and hate your enemy." But when we give our lives to Christ we are no longer natural beings, but supernatural beings, since we are embodied by the Holy Spirit, who comforts us whenever we are subjected to any emotional and physical pain. (2Cor 5:17). Some of us have more enemies than others. Enemies come from the circumstances of life and from the choices of life. Circumstances may be beyond our control. We are assaulted, cheated, abused, hated, and disliked. It may be because of the color of our skin or the job we hold or the prejudice against us or simply from being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Choices are within our control. No one can be our enemy unless we choose for them to be. Someone else may label us as the enemy, but no one can be our enemy without our consent. Some of us have many enemies because we choose so many for the enemy list. Our enemies include anyone who disagrees with us politically, religiously or personally. The enemy is anyone who does what we don't like. The threshold for "enemyhood" of some is low. Loving the unlovable is a command of our Lord Jesus Christ (John 13:34) A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another, since is it is the command of our Commander-in-Chief, we cannot disobey our commander, if we do according to John 14:24 shows we do not love Him. Loving the unlovable is a Christian choice to which Jesus Christ supernaturally invites us. But the choice is a compulsory one not an elective, if we are truly children of God (Matthew 5:45a). If we have truly put on the new man, then we must put away hatred (Ephesians 4:24, 31-32). Else we will grief the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30).

In conclusion, God demonstrated His love to us in this, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Rom. 5:8, John 3:16, John 15:13, Rom. 5:8). We are to live the life of love just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God (Ephesians 5:2). So as children of God, with the help of the Holy Spirit loving the unlovable is not a matter of choice, but our expected way of life (Philippians 2:5) Pastor Ayotunde Omodeinde Pastor In-Charge Prince of Peace Zone RCCG-FCT2 Province Abuja-Nigeria