Luke 6: 27 "But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you
Matthew 5:44 But I say to you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which spitefully use you, and persecute you;
In 2 Kings 6 : 8 -23, we read about Elisha and how he rescued Israel from attacks by the Syrians by revealing to the King of Israel everything that the King of Syria secretly planned against them. This infuriated the King of Syria who went after Elisha. God was with Elisha, and caused Elisha's servant to see supernaturally how lots of horses and chariots of fire surrounded Elisha. This was God's army on Elisha's side. Elisha prayed for the Syrian army to be blinded. God answered and they were blinded to Elisha's presence - the very man they sought.
Thus, Elisha had his enemies in his hands and led them to Samaria. When the King of Israel saw his enemies, vulnerable and on his territory, he did the natural thing - When the king of Israel saw them, he asked Elisha, “Should I strike them down, my master?” He replied, “Do not strike them down! You did not capture them with your sword or bow, so what gives you the right to strike them down? Give them some food and water, so they can eat and drink and then go back to their master.” 2 Kings 6 : 21 -22
Elisha's answer is where the lesson for today lies. He encouraged the King to do good to his enemies. But remember, he had himself prayed earlier on for his enemies to be blinded. We have a task to pray to God to deliver us from evil. Elisha prayed for blindness for his enemies as a way of saying please deliver me from their evil motive. God did not make them permanently blind, He caused them not to recognise their bearings, they were led like zombies to those they sought to harm. The weapons of our warfare (2 Corinthians 10 :3 -5)- prayer, fasting, the Spoken Word, love, et cetera, are for battling strongholds and evil intentions against us.
However, to the very people that do evil to us, God asks that we become like Him, pray for them, love them and do good to them. Another thing to note down is that Elisha knew a long time about his enemies - he was the one revealing their evil intentions to the King. However, he did not go after them. In loving your enemies, you do not need to take any imprudent step that will endanger you. You can love your enemies if it calls for, from a distance, simply by praying for them and blessing them in prayer . Should you be faced with a situation where you have an upper hand over your enemies, do them good, rather than evil - Proverbs 25 : 21 - 22 If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; if he is thirsty, give him water to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head, and the LORD will reward you.
Elisha asked the King of Israel to feed his enemies, which he obliged . By so doing, he heaped burning coals on their head. The enemies of Israel had a change of heart and never again bothered to attack Israel. God therefore rewarded Israel by giving them rest from attacks by their enemy Syria. 2 Kings 6 :23 So he threw a big banquet for them and they ate and drank. Then he sent them back to their master. After that no Syrian raiding parties again invaded the land of Israel.
In the same way, as difficult as it may sound, God expects us as His children to love the unlovable, pray for them, and do good to our enemies. But in all of these , exercise caution and discernment. For instance, if you have an enemy as a suicide bomber already strapped with a bomb, you must flee, but can still pray (whilst you are running away ) for him to come to God. This is on a humorous note, but it is to remind us to exercise caution when dealing with enemies.
All the best!
WHAT IS NEXT?
