“I LOVE MANKIND. . . .”

Matthew 5:44
“But I say to you, love your enemies . . .”

In the comic strip Peanuts, Linus once explained, “I love mankind; it’s people I can’t stand.” English playwright W. Somerset Maugham similarly said, “I’ve always been interested in people, but I’ve never liked them.”

Perhaps you can identify with those sentiments. People can be rude, obnoxious, selfish, foolish, trying, vexing, and vicious. Some of them even fall into the category of “enemies”—people who criticize us or try to take advantage of us. We naturally feel resentment, anger, fear, and even hatred.

Yet Jesus said, “Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you.”

We can do this only on our knees. The person we most dislike is still a soul for whom Christ died. We don’t have to always agree with our critics or defer to our enemies, but loving unconditionally is simply letting the love of Christ flow through us like warm water through a pipe. The most unlovable person is the one who needs love the most. After all, if Christ loved us, He can help us love others.

So find someone you don’t like, and pray for that person today!

David Jeremiah, Turning Points with God: 365 Daily Devotions (Tyndale, 2014)
Scripture for opening text taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.