One of the hardest things you will do is the right thing in the face of opposition. Without trust in God and his power and willingness to save, the right thing often seems to be a pointless thing to do. Perseverance can be hard to muster when society is pushing us to “go with the flow”. Alas, that flow doesn’t go where we want to go. “Enter by the narrow gate,” said Jesus. “For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.”
But perhaps the most difficult thing that we have ever been commanded to do is to love our enemies. Those who try to stop us from doing the right thing sometimes resort to dirty tactics, and we find ourselves being verbally or even physically attacked. They smear our reputations in an effort to undermine our credibility as witnesses of Christ, and when that doesn’t seem to work, they resort to deception to deprive us of liberty, property, and even life.
And we love them. We want to see them saved and enter by that narrow gate. We pray for them. We minister to them. It’s no less than what Jesus would do—has done, as he forgave his traitors and executioners.
That’s something to think about.
Westside Church of Christ 