To you who hear I say,
love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.
Jesus is calling us to break free from the need to always receive something in return for our good deeds. To a world obsessed with quid pro quo exchanges Jesus takes the extreme case to make his point. He goes beyond telling us to love those who sometimes forget to send thank you notes to telling us to love even those with open hostility, who are actively trying to sabotage our success in the world. We are called to regard even enemies, not from the limited perspective of our wounded egos, but from God's perspective, just as David treated Saul.
Today, though the LORD delivered you into my grasp,
I would not harm the LORD’s anointed.
David had been wronged by Saul but did not insist on himself being the one to balance the scale. Rather, he forgave, and trusted that the Lord himself would take his part and bless him. Indeed, by not trying to seize the blessing of kingship for himself he ensured that he was open to receiving it in the Lord's time and in the Lord's way.
and from the person who takes your cloak,
do not withhold even your tunic.
Give to everyone who asks of you,
and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back.
We are called to experience a freedom in giving that is supernatural. It is not so much that we are called to bankrupt or ruin ourselves by giving away more than we can afford as it is that we are called to move beyond concern for balanced and equivalent exchange. Because we are fallen, we tend to note every sleight and eagerly await repayment. We have very specific criteria for when and how much we will give. Will it make us feel good? Will the recipient earn it by at least putting it to good use? On the one hand, it is not that we are called to donate to so-called charities that are actually promoting intrinsically evil actions just because the ask of us. On the other, however, it we are called to be free enough to give even outside of our budget, at times that are inconvenient, without being in perfect control of what happens afterward.
Do to others as you would have them do to you.
The golden rule taught by Jesus is also the safety valve to assure that our reckless generosity does not actually cause harm. We are supposed to give above and beyond what is comfortable, or what seems prudent. But these gifts are meant to be those that will most likely bless the other rather than harm them, and which will leave us with sufficient resources to continue to follow the vocation to which we ourselves have been called. We wouldn't want others to finance evil for our sakes, or bankrupt themselves to keep us comfortable. Neither are we called to do so for anyone else. But even with that caveat we must be cautious. We are always looking for excuses to do the least possible. Jesus is trying to teach us instead to do the most we can, motivated by mercy rather than what we can get in return.
But rather, love your enemies and do good to them,
and lend expecting nothing back;
then your reward will be great
and you will be children of the Most High,
for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
We are called to have hearts that are merciful as the heart of our heavenly Father is merciful. God loves us even though there is by definition nothing we can do to repay him, even though he is lacking is nothing and therefore has nothing which can be given him in return. Nor even does he bless us only as we remember to acknowledge him or make good use of what he gives. Fortunately for us, he blesses even while we are living as his enemies (see Romans 5:8). He continues to bless us even though we never fully and adequately thank him or respond to his gifts. It is precisely our experience of this freedom of his that calls out to us to desire the transformation that will allow us to imitate him. When we begin to love others with the same freedom and mercy that we ourselves first received it can become an unspoken invitation, the first step of genuine evangelism.
Give, and gifts will be given to you;
a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.
When we experience difficult times in life it is often the case that they are marked by an overly inward focus. Our thinking at such times becomes dominated by those things we imagine we need that we don't have or those things that we don't want but are nevertheless forced to experience. They are, in short, about us. At such times it is especially important to give. Giving when times are tough can be an experience a transcendent freedom from our usual self-centered perspective. It can open us to be able to receive more of the grace of God as he makes us become the women and men he desires us to be. It can be the increasing of the measure with which we measure so that God can pour ever more of himself into our hearts.
Just as we have borne the image of the earthly one,
we shall also bear the image of the heavenly one.
We have spent years bearing the image of Adam who chose himself over and against God, and who, as a consequence, became utterly preoccupied with his own survival and success. We are called to allow Jesus himself to reshape us in his image, the image of the one who loved us while we were yet sinners, who gave everything he had to give for our sakes.
As a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him.
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