Lil Old Lady and Al the Painter

I can say that most days I hate my job. The only days I actually enjoy them are when I get to work around people, whether it be the customer that i'm putting a new faucet in for or for another worker who happens to be at the new house i'm working on. Well today was a good day because I got to experience both! And not only that but somehow the same conversation came up twice and now I can't help but tell all you fine folks about it! It's on a topic i've been wrestling with for a couple years now...

As I'm working on Lil Old Lady's toilet (eww, i know) I notice a lot of spiritual decorations around the house so I begin to talk to her about Christianity. Once she realizes that I too am a Christian she proceeds conversing with me in great excitement because "we just need more Christians out there". I agree with her but she continues by saying, "because it really is us (Christians) verse the Terrorists (she also called them Muslims at one point)...Whether it be in my day or not sooner or later we're gonna have to fight all of them off to protect this great country and uphold it's values" Now I know we all have different opinions when it comes to this but you will soon find out mine because...well..let's just say I wanted to throw up.

Can I say that?

I had to bite my tongue so hard and just nod my head as she continued telling me why Christianity was going be the victor over the Terrorists by us wiping them off the face of the planet. Needless to say, I finished fixing her toilet and left, heartbroken, onto my next job....where I met Al the Painter.

Al the Painter is a guy in his late 30's and boy is he a talker. I could barely get any of my work done. I had seen him around on other job sites before but today it was just me and him. We began talking about what we do (outside of our day job) and I find out that Al the Painter is a boxer. A dang good one. And he teaches inner city kids in Peoria how to box. But it's deeper than that because he's a mentor to these kids too. He said it's sad because most of the kids come in wanting to fight so they can beat kids up but he uses this avenue to teach them a better way to live...which is as Al the Painter says, "To LOVE your enemies." Apparently you can be a boxer and still love your enemies, which I find fantastic. He teaches them boxing but teaches them how to live right by loving those around you, even your enemies, and forgiving those who wrong you. Al the Painter is also a Christian.

Is this just a small difference in beliefs? Is this on the same par as "well this Christian just does hymns at their church but that one has a full band at theirs".
How can Lil Old Lady and Al the Painter both claim to be Christians but yet hold such STARK differences on something as big as how to handle our enemies, both on a national level and on a personal level? (Al the Painter does not support war btw I asked him...he said that loving your enemies thing, he feels, applies to our national enemies as well).

I was very encouraged by Al the Painter.

So, what does Jesus say about our enemies? And what does His example tell us?

First off, in Matthew 5:43-48 which is the Sermon on the Mount (Christianity 101) Jesus says,
43"You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." (note that the word "perfect" here doesn't mean without blemish it means UNCONDITIONAL)

Pretty self explanatory i'd say...why do we make excuses that as a Christian it's okay to actually kill/hate/slander our national enemies and those who have wronged us in our own personal lives? Are we not to take the words of Jesus serious? or are they just not "realistic"? When Jesus was standing before His enemies (those that were sending him to the Cross to die) Pilate asks him what is it that he had done and he (Jesus) responds, " My kingdom is not of this world, if it were, my servants would FIGHT to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders, but my Kingdom is from another place."

We are called (as Christians, followers of Jesus) to live by the rules of another kingdom. Not when we get to heaven, but NOW. We are called to bring "His kingdom to Earth as it is in Heaven".

I've seen bumper stickers that read "Who Would Jesus BOMB?" These are an attempt to get people to think about the absurdity of that question. Can you really see Jesus flying over a country and unloading bombs over those people below him? Or looking through the scope of a sniper rifle aimed at another human and pulling the trigger? No, absolutely not. Are we not called to Follow THIS example? Now matter how much it may defy common sense? Jesus kingdom is, after all, NOT of this world...it may not makes sense to us (neither does a perfect God taking on human form and dwelled with us only to die for us make any sense but we believe that don't we?)...but it may be the only hope we have to actually make this world a better place.

So what do we do about these pesky terrorists then?

Honestly i don't have answers BUT I have hope...

It starts with a shift in our thinking as Christians. Someone actually told me once that sometimes the best way to love your enemy is to KILL them.

Really?

What happened to Paul's beautiful poem about love in 1 Cor. 13 where he says that "Love does NO HARM". We have to stop thinking like the world and think with the MIND of Christ that has been given to us through the death and resurrection of Jesus. MAYBE once we start believing that and we actually take Jesus words seriously about LOVING our enemies, then maybe we'd be forced to start using the CREATIVITY that God gave us ( in making US like HIM-In His image) and begin to think of radical non-violent ways in making this world the world God had in mind. After all if we are IN CHRIST, "there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is ALL, and IN ALL" Colossians 3:11 (in today's words that could mean, there is no Christian, Jew, Muslim, Terrorist, Catholic, Homosexual, Untouchable, etc--there is no border to God's love and grace) We have to start seeing people as God sees them! Then maybe we'll start getting somewhere.

This is more than just about loving our national enemies. it's about loving those around you no matter what they've done to you. We deal with this everyday. Someone who said something to you that pissed you off or talked to someone else about you and tainted your character or just rubs you the wrong way when you're around them, someone who may have actually hurt you physically or emotionally, or even spiritually....this is everyday stuff. And we are called to unconditionally love these people. That is the way of Christ. That is the ONLY way this world is going to be the place God dreams it to be. God's given us the tools necessary and it's up to us to use them. May we work together to use them and in our everyday lives may we work to "overcome evil with GOOD" Romans 12:21

Grace and Peace
-Ty