Loving Judas: The Better Example

At the start of this series, I mentioned how loving enemies is a struggle of mine. Loving others who have wronged me and/or my family is not easy, and I am reminded that it is one of the many reasons I fall short of God's glory, as Romans 3:23 says.

Chances are you struggle to love and pray for those who make your life miserable. Why would you want to pray for someone who enjoys watching your pain? I often find we all struggle with how to treat our enemies. Because we struggle with loving those who do not love us back, we should not be the first example for others to follow if they are wanting to know how to love people they do not like.

So, who do we follow?

Matthew 5:48 says, "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect."

The problem is we are not perfect and can be as perfect as Jesus. Romans 3:10 says, "There is no one righteous, not even one."

The religious leaders encouraged others at this time to follow the Law of Moses, but compared to God's standard, that is not enough. We are to live out the righteousness of God, and that includes changing how we view and think about others, even our enemies. We are to put others above ourselves and to treat others as God would treat us.

Even though it is impossible for us to achieve perfection, we have a Heavenly Father who loves us. Romans 3:23-25 tells us we are justified by God's grace. In 1 John 3:2-3, we know that we will one day be perfect as Jesus is perfect. That day will come when we get to Heaven.

The day of perfection is coming soon. Until then, let us model the example of Jesus. He loved us when we hated Him. Jesus accepted us when we rejected Him. Now, He calls us to do the same for our enemies, as hard as it may be for us.

References: NIV Application Study Bible, Bible Ref, John MacArthur Bible Commentary