Called to Blessings
Adapted from a sermon by Fr Augustinos Nada
Passage Luke 6:27-38
What is expected from us as people of God? The Lord gives the sermon on the Mount as instructions on how to live as Christians; how to live as the children of God. These may seem completely different to what the world teaches us. He is saying, “love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you.”
Human nature tells us that this is difficult to accomplish. It is difficult to love an enemy, to do good to those who do evil. The Lord is trying to give us an understanding that a person of God is different. We need to be different. If we want to have a life in Christ, to love Christ and to love the church, there are higher expectations placed. You have to shine differently to others. This is why He says, “you are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14). We may be living in the darkness of the world, but it is the duty of a Christian to take light from Christ and shine in a dark place.
What Christ is asking of us today is to go the second mile. To push harder when human nature tells us it is enough. It is not easy to love those who hate you, to bless those who curse you, to pray for those that spitefully use you.
The world teaches us to not associate with those that hate us, we should not love them, we should not pray for them. St Charbel is a 19th century saint of the Maronite church that many miracles are attributed to. He was a hermit monk that lived in the mountains of Lebanon. The Turks were invading the country at that time and they were persecuting many of the Christian monasteries. The Lebanese monks were very strong and full of zeal for the faith. They decided to take arms against the Turkish armies and defend their monastery. These monks went to St Charbel wounded and hurt, seeking his advice. St Charbel was greatly disturbed when he saw them and said, “What are you doing? The Lord calls us and says, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you, so you haven’t done what the Lord has instructed you.”
It was from that moment that the monks changed their approach to the persecution. They were not loving the enemy but fighting them. It defeated the purpose of the Christian faith to hate your enemies.
The Lord continues, “to him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back.” Do we give to anyone that asks of us? Do we give the clothes on our back in addition to the clothes that were taken from us?
“But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same.”
We love those who love us because it is easy to do, but the Lord is telling us this is of no credit to us. He goes on to talk about specific characteristics of our Christian faith. You cannot reach these levels unless there is an internal change. I have to be a certain person that understands the love of God and has a strong relationship with my Lord. I must strive daily to build virtues of love and forgiveness. It requires a person that has such great love for the Lord that these difficult commands become second nature. If you live a life of sin, it is impossible to forgive your enemies. If you are living a distant life from God, there is no way you can pray for those that hate you. If you live a lukewarm life, you will not bless those that curse you, or pray for anyone that spitefully uses you. If you don’t have a relationship to please God, these things become impossible.
In my own internal struggle, I must look within myself and see if I have any kind of hatred or animosity concealed within my heart. It’s okay to stay away from them but if they are near to me, do I retaliate? Do I seek revenge? Do I wish bad things for them? For me to be a person that loves my enemies and does good to those who hate and prays for those that spitefully use me, I need to be a changed person.
We see this in many of the saints. St Moses the Strong was a thief and head of a gang that murder, stole, committed adultery – an extremely violent person. He was the opposite of what the Lord commanded in the Sermon on the Mount. A man full of hate and of the world. What made him transform into a saint?
His repentance. His life with God. His struggle to overcome wrongdoing.
It may take time, but if we have the willingness then the Lord will give us strength to overcome. Everything that the Lord tells us is a reflection of His character. If He tells us to love those who hate us, it is because He loves those who hate Him. If He tells us to do good, it is because His goodness does not depend on our deeds. He says bless those who curse you, because He blesses those who curse Him.
All these qualities are exemplary of how the Lord deals with you and me. He will never hate you, no matter what you did against Him, He continues to do good. On the contrary, He loves you even more. He shows boundless mercy, He tells us to forgive so that we may be forgiven. We know that He forgives us all, even on the Cross, He says, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.”
What amazing forgiveness. He was suffering and in pain but His focus was on their forgiveness. This was the greatest act of forgiveness and when we look at Christ on the Cross, surely we can look within ourselves and see why I need to forgive, why I need to love those who hate me, why I need to pray for those who use me, why I need to bless those who curse me.
A lot of people will come and say, “Abouna, it is hard to forgive those who hate me.”
But the early church fathers teach us the best way to overcome wrongdoing is to pray for them by name. Sometimes it may be difficult at the start, but if you are encouraged enough to name that person in your prayers, do you not think that God will hear you?
That person will change before you. Their evil will turn to good. Their hatred will be dispersed. And your heart will change toward them also. God will channel inner peace within you to accept the circumstance. When you feel the grace of God within your heart, nothing of this world can move you. The peace of God supersedes all your troubles on earth. The trick is to mention that person in your prayers by name.
Dear Lord, remember ____ make them a person that I can love again. If they are at fault in any way, help me to forgive them. Make them the person that You have called them to be.
When we mention them by name, it breaks our pride. We stop thinking that we are owed an apology. They may never apologise, but if this is what you truly need to forgive, it becomes more probable when you pray for them by name. They could change toward you, and more importantly, you want good feelings toward them to flourish in your heart.
With any difficult instruction, there is always reward from our compassionate Lord. “Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you”
If you do good, good will come back to you. So often in our church, giving is the most powerful tool. We always see how God repays those who give. He can’t help but give back to those who give in love. Practice giving and see how God will give to you. If God hasn’t given back to you, remind Him of His promises. All of God’s promises are justifiable before our eyes.
✨ Full sermon ✨