Giving Up - Enemies | Matthew 26
The Enemy at the Table: Learning to Love Like Jesus
There’s something powerful that happens when we pause long enough to ask ourselves, “Who is my enemy?” That word enemy feels extreme, right? Like it belongs to warzones or spy movies—not our everyday lives. But if we're honest, we all have them.
It might be a friend who betrayed your trust. A family member who won’t speak to you. A coworker who spreads rumors. A political leader you think is ruining everything. Or maybe it's deeper—someone who harmed you, hurt you, abandoned you.
It’s easy to love people who love us back. Jesus said as much in Luke 6:32—“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you?” But real, radical love—the kind that turns the world upside down—asks more of us. It asks us to love our enemies.
The Enemy Within Our Story
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend.” He had enemies everywhere: pastors who opposed him, police who beat him, people who spat on him, even those who tried to kill him. Yet he still chose love. Why?
Because love has a power that revenge never will.
That doesn’t mean love is passive. It doesn’t mean we excuse or enable abuse, harm, or injustice. Jesus never said, “Let people walk all over you.” In fact, if you read Luke 6 in full—his famous Sermon on the Mount—you’ll see a call to both justice and kindness.
Jesus says, “Woe to you who are rich,” but not just because they have money—because they gained it on the backs of others. He says, “Woe to you who are full,” because their abundance came by taking food from the mouths of the hungry. “Woe to you who laugh,” because their laughter comes at the expense of the oppressed.
In other words, Jesus isn’t just asking us to be kind—He’s asking us to pursue justice too.
Justice and Kindness—A Balancing Act
When I was a kid, I loved the seesaw at the park. There’s something fun about the rhythm, the give-and-take. But you know what happens when one side is way heavier than the other? It stops working. It becomes unbalanced.
That’s our world right now—way too much imbalance. Some people are all justice, all fire and fury, ready to cancel and cut off. Others are all kindness, afraid to speak up, tolerating what should never be tolerated.
Micah 6:8 gives us the formula: act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with God. That’s how we live in balance.
It’s not easy. Especially when we’ve been wronged. When someone slaps you—literally or figuratively—our natural reactions fall into two camps:
The passive response: ignore it, bury it, hope it goes away.
The vindictive response: hit back, get even, burn bridges.
But Jesus gives us a third way.
Jesus, Justice, and the Other Cheek
In John 18, Jesus is arrested. He’s taken to the high priest and questioned. When He answers truthfully, an official slaps Him across the face. Now, if it were me? I’d probably say, “Slap me again and see what happens!” But not Jesus.
Instead, He responds: “If I’ve spoken wrongly, give evidence. But if I’ve spoken truthfully, why did you hit me?” He stands up for Himself—with dignity, clarity, and calm strength. That’s the balance. Justice and kindness.
Turning the other cheek doesn’t mean letting people abuse you again and again. It means offering another chance once repentance and change have taken place. It means leaving space for healing—but not pretending nothing happened.
Justice says, “What you did to me was unacceptable. There are consequences.”
Kindness says, “I won’t hate you. I won’t seek revenge. I’ll pray for you from a distance.”
Sometimes, love means calling the police. Sometimes it means cutting off contact until true repentance happens. And sometimes, after healing has begun, it means offering the other cheek—not in weakness, but in hope.
Four Truths About Loving Our Enemies
This isn’t a cookie-cutter message. There are layers and nuance. But there are four truths I know:
God sees the heart. (1 Samuel 16:7)
We look at the outside. God sees the wounds, the pain, the backstory. Maybe that’s why Jesus could call Judas “friend” even as Judas betrayed Him.Call out injustice. (Luke 17:3-4)
“If your brother sins against you, rebuke them. If they repent, forgive them.” Justice first. Then kindness.God prepares a table in the presence of our enemies. (Psalm 23:5)
That’s not a flex—it’s a sign of healing. A table where enemies could one day sit together. Not out of denial, but because transformation has taken place.We were once God’s enemies. (Romans 5:10)
And still, He loved us. Still, He reconciled us through Jesus. If God can love us at our worst, maybe—just maybe—we can start to love others, too.
A Holy Invitation
So here’s the question I leave with you: What enemy is God calling you to love?
Maybe it’s someone you need to love from a distance. Maybe it's someone God is calling you to forgive face-to-face. Maybe the work starts in your heart long before it ever reaches theirs.
Forgiveness is a process. Healing takes time. Sometimes it requires therapy, counseling, prayer, and community. But bitterness? It holds us hostage. It gives control to the person who hurt us. It keeps us from becoming who God created us to be.
You may never be best friends with your enemy. You may never trust them again. That’s okay. But in your heart, can you begin to let go? Can you begin the process of rebalancing?
Justice and kindness.
Truth and grace.
Love and boundaries.
Let’s start the work.
