BEN F. VICK, JR.
In the Sermon upon the Mount, Jesus said: “Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” (Matt. 5:43-48.)
However, Christ was not the only one who had enemies. I have read of individuals of whom it was said they had no enemies. That is interesting because the sinless Son of God who walked upon this mundane sphere had his enemies. He did not seek them. He did not want them, but he had enemies.
The prophets of old had enemies. Jesus told his followers this: “Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted the prophets which were before you.” (Matt. 5:10-12.) No doubt, the Egyptian Pharaoh looked upon Moses as his enemy. As they took the land promised to Abraham’s descendants, the heathen nations looked upon the Israelites as the enemy. Elijah had his enemies – Ahab and Jezebel, who wanted to destroy all of God’s prophets, including Elijah. Ahab referred to Elijah as the one who troubled Israel, but Elijah said, “I have not troubled Israel; but thou and thy father’s house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed Baalim.” (1 Kings 18:17-18.)
Later, Micaiah, the prophet of God, was hated by Ahab. After Ahab’s four hundred prophets assured him he would win if he went up against the Syrians at Ramoth-Gilead, the southern king, Jehoshaphat, evidently knew that these prophets were all “yes men” for Ahab, so he wanted further confirmation. He inquired, “Is there not here a prophet of the Lord besides, that we might inquire of him?” (1 Kings 22:7). Though Micaiah was urged to speak as the false prophets did, he refused. He said, “As the Lord liveth, what the Lord saith unto me, that will I speak.” (1 Kings 22:14.) Micaiah was struck on the cheek and sent to prison to be fed bread and water. It would be a lifetime sentence because Ahab would not return alive from the battle, as predicted by Micaiah.
Jeremiah also had his enemies. God put his words in the mouth of Jeremiah, the prophet from Anathoth. He was set over the nations and the kingdoms to root out, pull down, destroy, throw down, and then build and plant. The Lord said to the Weeping Prophet, “For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land.” (Jer. 1:18.) He needed to be strong in the Lord to deliver the divine messages. But he was hit and put in stocks (Jer. 20:1-2). He was threatened with death by the priests, the false prophets, and all the people (Jer. 26:8). He was imprisoned and remained there for many days (Jer. 37:15-16). He was put into a miry pit. He was put in chains but later released (Jer. 40).
The apostles also suffered from their enemies. Jesus had warned them: “But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues; And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles. But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you. And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the Father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.” (Matt. 10:17-22.)
These things happened to the apostles as the Lord predicted. They were threatened (Acts 4:17, 29). The high priest and all the sect of the Sadducees rose against the apostles and put them in the common prison (Act 5:18). The apostles and early church were persecuted (Acts 8:1-4). Stephen was stoned. James, the brother of John, was slain with the sword. Others were put to death. Paul was followed by the Judaizing teachers who persecuted him from city to city. Paul asked the Galatian saints, “Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?” (Galatians 4:16.) He did not want enemies, but telling the truth brought opposition.
As was said of them of old, “of whom the world was not worthy” likewise, it could be applied to the early saints. When John, on the isle of Patmos for the word of God and testimony of Jesus Christ, saw the fifth seal opened, he said, “I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held: And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?” (Rev. 6:9-10.)
We must love the truth (Psa. 119:97,140,165; 2 Thess 2:10). We must speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15). Those who oppose the truth become our enemies. However, those who do not want the truth will attack those who stand for the truth. We do not relish enemies. We do not seek them.
Jesus had enemies not just because he told the truth but because he rebuked the religious leaders of the day. Their hatred and jealousy sent him to the cross. His greatest enemy, and ours, is the devil.
We will have enemies if we stand for what is right. What, then, should be our response? Jesus said, “Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets. But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you, Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.” (Luke 6:26-28.)