Kingdom Revelator Australia – Issue 81
Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; it’s easier said than done. Forgiving and loving are two of the main teachings of the Lord. As followers of Christ, each Christian is called to follow in the footsteps of the Lord. While hanging on the Cross by three nails, Jesus forgave his tormenters, and prayed to the Father saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34).
When we forgive and pray for those who persecute us, we not only create the opportunity to save a soul, but we are also indirectly seeking the grace to love that person. Prayer not only can change the other person, but it can also change us. Bit by bit we grow closer to Jesus. In the Book of Job, after Job lost everything, he raised his eyes to the Lord and blessed the Lord, while his wife saw all the hurt caused due to the loss and cursed God. Job put his focus on God and not on his loss and hurt. Rather than looking at the hurt caused by our enemies, if we look to the Lord, we will see how the Lord is moulding each one of us through the sufferings we undergo.
We read in the Bible that Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father. But the first martyr of the Catholic Church, St Stephen, had the privilege of seeing the Lord standing at the right hand of the Father when he forgave those who were stoning him. From now on how about fasting from hate and feasting on love towards our enemies!