One of the most powerful and perhaps polarizing scriptures comes from the Savior, "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you." (Matthew 5:42-44). Love your enemy, what a counter cultural and counter world view! But how do we as believers apply this? What does love your enemy mean? Does it mean make friends with your enemies? Does it mean spare them and never put them to the sword? Is it pacifism or it is putting our enemies to death in case of Just War? What does this very powerful word from Word and Prince of Peace mean? The answer is easily seen in rest of Scripture.
Loving you enemy requires you to love them enough to share the gospel, it is to want them to be saved by Jesus Christ through believing in Him. Francis of Assisi went to Sultan Al Kamil to convert Him and preached the gospel to Muslim ruler, when there was crusade on going. Why did Francis do this? Risking his very life? Because Francis loved his enemy. For it is written, "He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them," (2 Corinthians 5:15) and "who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth." (1 Timothy 2:4). This includes enemies of the faith, Jesus wants his enemies to be saved and know Emmanuel. Thus, to love our enemy is to share the gospel and love of Jesus Christ, this is why we are to "pray for those you persecute us," because our persecutors can become our greatest partisans.
Take Rome, it was considered the enemy of Jewish People, and the Early Church. And yet it was Rome that fulfilled the revelations, prophecies that Jesus would die for our sins by putting Him to death. That same Rome that persecuted Christians for three hundred years, especially under Emperor Diocletian, became the most prestigious and largest church, and became the epicenter for Christianity for next sixteen centuries! The Romans were the enemy of us Christians, and because Christians loved them and prayed for them, the Romans became Christians and the largest Church! That is power of loving your enemy, making an enemy like Rome your ally in your home.
Another example of an enemy become emissary for Emmanuel is Saul who became the Apostle Paul. Saul orgianlly persecuted the Church, killing Christians, "And Saul approved of their killing him. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison." (Acts 8:1,3). Then Saul on the Road to Damascus encountered the Risen Christ, "Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” And he said, “Who are You, Lord?" Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?”Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do." (Acts 9:1-16). From then on Paul became an ambassador for the Almighty, writing two thirds of the New Testament and reaching the Gentiles, especially the Greeks and Romans for Jesus Christ! Saul became Paul, he began an enemy of Emmanuel and His people, and became his greatest emissary and evangelist. That is the power of loving your enemy!
There comes a time when we are compelled to slay our enemies. Those who will not believe, that insist on destroying Christianity are condemned already, "Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God's one and only Son." (John 3:18). But to really love our enemy requires offering the word of Gospel before a sword. There is a time to wield a sword and weapons against those who would destroy the innocent and all that is beautiful. The problem is when we approach our enemies with a sword first we eliminate the opportunity to share the Gospel. It is said that Saladin on his deathbed converted to Christianity after what he witnessed during Crusades, this probably was because Saladin saw in King Richard Lionheart and the Crusaders something missing, because in culture of the Medieval world, people respected strength and shows of power to signify the true God, in fact battles were believed to be determined and favored by God, so if the Christians prevailed then it meant their God was stronger. Thus sharing the Gospel can look different, for most it would be like St. Francis of Assisi respectfully sharing the Gospel with the Sultan. But for radicals, like Saladin, the need was to see Power of God manifested. So the sword can serve to love an enemy if it shows them the Savior's Supremecy (Ephesians 1:20-21, Revelation 19:16). But that is for those types, for rest of people it is be like Francis of Assisi, going to their camp and sharing that Christ died for them and wants them to be saved. Rome needed True religion of Christ to be form of those ready to die, martyrds to reach them. While the Ayyubids and Sultante of Medieval Times needed True Religion of Chirst to manifest in mighty power and support from Heaven on hordes of Crusaders.
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