Heavenly father
give us grace to be careful with our looking at and our thinking about other people today,
and give us grace to allow evil no place in our minds and bodies27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery;’
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28 but I tell you that everyone who gazes at a woman to lust after her has committed adultery with her already in his heart.
29 If your right eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out and throw it away from you.
For it is more profitable for you…Heavenly father
give us grace to avoid doing things which have the semblance of being right, but which we know to be wrong,
and give us discernment to know what to do when all the options open to us seem wrong.
31 “It was also said, ‘Whoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorce,’
32 but I tell you that whoever puts away his wife, except for the cause of sexual immorality, makes her an adulteress;
and whoever marries her when she is put away commits adultery.Heavenly father
give us grace to be simple and clear in what we say today.33 “Again you have heard that it was said to the ancient ones,
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‘You shall not make false vows, but shall perform to the Lord your vows,’
34 but I tell you, don’t swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is the throne of God;
35 nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
36 Neither shall you swear by your head, for you can’t make one hair white or…Heavenly father
give us grace to never repay evil for evil, but to confront it with goodness38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’
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39 But I tell you, don’t resist him who is evil; but whoever strikes you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also.
40 If anyone sues you to take away your coat, let him have your cloak also.
41 Whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.
42 Give to him who asks you, and…‘You have heard that it was said, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” But I say to you: Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also, and if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, give your coat as well, and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile. Give to the one who asks of you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you.’ Matthew 5:38–42
Jesus sits close to his disciples, teaching them. Gathered around are hundreds, maybe thousands who’ve come from surrounding cities, eager to hear…
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moreYou have heard that it was said, “Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.” But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.… If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others?
—Matthew 5:43–48One way of viewing the Good News is that the Kingdom of Heaven, the Kingdom of Love is among us.
We can, here and how, live as citizens of…Heavenly father
give us grace to love those who do not love us, so that we may be your children today.43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’
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44 But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you,
and pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you,
45 that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven.
For he makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends…Jesus taught them, “But I say to you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” —Matthew 5:44
Richard Rohr describes how loving our enemies is a practice of “integrating the negative,” accepting what we find unacceptable within ourselves:
Our enemies always carry our own shadow side, the things we don’t like about ourselves. We will never face our own shadow until we embrace those who threaten us (as Francis of Assisi embraced the leper in his conversion experience). The people who turn us off…
moreBut I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, (Matthew 5:44)
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said …
When I speak of love I am not speaking of some sentimental and weak response. I am speaking of that force which all of the great religions have seen as the supreme unifying principle of life. Love is somehow the key that unlocks the door which leads to ultimate reality….
Far from being the pious injunction of a Utopian dreamer, the command to love one’s enemy…
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