Christ doesn’t really have a lot to say about our relationships. By that I mean, he basically has a very pointed, specific message about them and expects us to live it as simply as he did. He believed that we should elevate others so that they are as important to us as our loved one.

It’s easy to categorize people. This person is bad. This one is good by how important they are to us. But Jesus says that God gives rain and sunshine to both the wicked and the good. The farmers in our congregation will tell you that both rain and sunshine are good things. God gives good things to those whom we would consider good and wicked.

Our trouble is that we think we can determine who the wicked and the good are. Of course we are the good and those enemies I have, they are the wicked. But even when a man ran up and bowed before Jesus and called him “Good Master”, Jesus’ response was to say that there is only one who is good. And it ain’t me.

Into this ethic we have Matthew 7:1- Don’t judge. This can’t mean, never judging anything. We make judgments all the time and for good reason. I judge that Special K with almonds is far superior to Cheerios. Paul in Romans 12 tells us that we are to think with sober judgment. He even puts into the context of not thinking better than anyone else.

I believe that Christ is talking about judging the condition of a person’s soul in eternity. When we condemn a person to hell, we write them off and dismiss the hope of God being able to change them. We take the place of God.

But it makes us feel better when we get to judge others.

Surely we are better than they are.

We have never murdered anyone.

We have never committed adultery.

We have never

Lied,

Cheated,

Gossiped,

Been angry with a brother or sister..

Well, see, those times I did those things, well, um, that was different. And besides, I’ve been forgiven. Amen and hallelujah! So you see, it’s different.

But most often this is just such hypocrisy. We live with our own flaws for so long that we can easily overlook them, ignore them, justify them.

We focus on the insignificant problems of other people while huge issues, hunger, greed, poverty, abuse, go on and on and we don’t even blink at them. It’s easier to point at the guy saying the “bad” words. Or heaven forbid, smoking a cigarette!

Both this sermon and the one given to us by James want us so badly to check ourselves. We are to self-examine so as to not fool ourselves. Who are these people in our hearts?

Jesus shows us that the freedom he brings means being free from judging people. We are free to not believe the lie that some people are more important than other people. We are free to be the servant of all, not just the ones who share our last name or love us back.

And always we are led back to the decision… Do we follow or do we not? Do we walk in the footsteps or do we try to rationalize our own exceptions to his ethic?

How did Christ act?

How did Christ treat people?

The question is before us as it always is… Do we follow the footsteps of Christ or do we not? Does what he said and what he did have meaning in our lives?

Christ continues his Sermon on the Mount by showing us his ethic in terms of how our relationships should look. We hear things like “Turn the other cheek”, “Give your cloak also”, and “Love your enemies”.

Loving your enemies? I don’t think we really understand what revolutionary thought this is if it is to be lived out in daily life. The very notion is against everything the world has tried to tell us since the fall of humanity. It is totally illogical. It is massively impractical. It just don’t make no sense.

And yet, Jesus starts this part of the sermon off understanding all of that. “You have heard it said… But I tell you…” He gets it. He has heard the lie. He understand the way of the world.

I often wish he didn’t understand. I wish I could point out in his life where he didn’t live up to this ethic that he is setting out before us. Unfortunately, he seems to put his money where his mouth is every time he is given the opportunity not to.

So does he really mean for us to live like this? Does he actually envision his church living out this crazy, weird, illogical ethic of loving its enemies? Again, surely this is just some lofty goal. Did Christ just not understand how bad our enemies are?

I mean, he had to throw in some exceptions to these verses. Give me just a moment and let me scan for those. Hmmmm… I can’t seem to see them but I’m sure they are there. Right? There has to be a way for me to rationalize my way out of having to live like this.

And it is here that a sense of dread comes over me as I have to ask myself what to do when our logic and feelings and reason comes into conflict with the life and teachings of Jesus.

I want there to be a rational explanation. I want there to be exceptions. But I just can’t find them.

He just doesn’t set forth any. And here is why or at least, why I think he doesn’t. We only have enemies when we have fear. We are afraid of them taking our property, our lives, our loved ones, our dignity. We think those things are ours and we must fight to protect them from those who would steal them. Except what is it that really belongs to us? All things belong to Christ. All things under heaven and earth have been given to him. And so if we do not own anything, even our lives, then we cannot have them stolen from us. And if we can’t have those things taken from us because they don’t belong to us, then we do not need to fear those who we think will take them. We no longer have to see them as our enemies. We no longer have to fear them.

This is not a diminishing of our brothers and sisters but a lifting up of our enemies. We are to love as Christ loved and Christ loved all. We are told to offer prayer for those who persecute you. This is something goes far beyond, “God, let them be better.” Prayer as a relationship and an intimate one at that. That is how our relationships should be even with those whom the world would have us be enemies.

These instructions given to his people, to his church, to his body. Instructions that show the world a new way of being. I way of being, an example to say that there is a different way to live life. One not based on fear.