Love Your Enemies
But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Luke 6:27-28
Inside the Martin Luther King Jr. Center in Atlanta is an exhibit of the travel bag Dr. King had used on his fatal trip to Memphis. Inside the bag were two books. The one on top was entitled Strength to Love. It is a reminder of his audacious belief that loving one’s enemies, not violence, held the power to transform society. Was he right? Could simply acting in love in the face of hostility really make a difference?
Mrs. King, Dr. King’s widow tells this story in response to those questions:
“One January night in 1956 while Martin was away, I sat home with our baby. Suddenly there was a thunderous blast. A bomb had been tossed onto the front porch. The baby and I were unharmed, but an angry crowd of our friends, wanting revenge, had gathered around the house when Martin got home.
“It was the first test of his theory,” she continued. “Martin hushed the crowd and said, ‘I want you to go home and put down your weapons. We must meet violence with nonviolence. We must meet hate with love.’”
“The anger melted and the crowd faded into the night,” she said with a smile. “You see, the power of love is a mighty force.”
I don’t understand totally how to live by the teaching of Jesus to love our enemies, but I know that is exactly what Jesus did. We are called to be reflections of His love, and the Holy Spirit gives us the will and courage to do this.
Lord, give us the strength to love even when we are treated in hurtful ways. May the example of Jesus, and people like Martin Luther King Jr. inspire us to chose the way of love. In Jesus’ name, amen.