Love. We are commanded to love. But who should we love? We ask. Even them He commands. Them. Those we whisper about behind closed doors. Those we cross streets to avoid. The addict. The liar. The one who betrayed trust. Yes, even them. The neighbor flying the flag you condemn. The stranger praying a different prayer. The one who defamed your name The one you block so you sleep at night. Love them. Not to fix them. Not to beat them. But because He did. He does.
Check Out the Inspiration for Even Them
I often like to write about the gospel as I understood it growing up. I don’t claim to be a preacher, but I like to label these pieces Sunday Sermons. They are a small way for me to pause and reflect on what love and kindness mean to me, which is where I try to center my spirituality.
No Yeah, Buts About It
This is how I see it: you find this exact dynamic playing out throughout the Gospels, especially when people are trying to draw a neat little boundary line around who they actually have to be decent to.
- The “Who Counts?” Loophole
(Luke 10:25–37)
A lawyer asks, “And who is my neighbor?” hoping to find the legal cutoff point for his empathy. Jesus responds with the Good Samaritan story, forcing him to admit that his neighbor is the very person he has been conditioned to despise. - The “Limits on Forgiveness” Loophole
|(Matthew 18:21–22)
Peter thinks he is being generous by asking whether he should forgive someone up to seven times. Jesus blows up the math entirely with “seventy times seven,” essentially saying that if you’re still counting, you’re missing the point. - The “Standard Enemy” Loophole
(Matthew 5:43–48)
The common wisdom of the day was to love your neighbor and hate your enemy. Jesus removes the exception entirely, telling people to love their enemies and pray for their persecutors. Bad behavior from someone else is not permission for bad behavior from you.
Every time someone tries to narrow the scope or find an out, He pushes the boundaries even farther.