Truth Magazine

By Mike Willis

Each of us has been appalled at the disastrous effect which various false doctrines have had on the Lord’s church. However, the local church of which you are a member is probably not presently fighting over a doctrinal issue which threatens its very existence as being faithful to the word of God. However, each of us is a member of a church which is fighting for its very existence in a war against apathy.

 

The general public in America has recently taken a rather apathetic approach toward religious matters. More and more Americans are becoming secularists; they are pragmatically accepting a view which rejects any form of religious faith and worship, whether consciously adopting that belief or not. The percentage of Americans who have totally ceased to assemble to worship God increases yearly; the number who assemble only occasionally also continues to rise. From a practical standpoint, if not from a doctrinal standpoint, most Americans are secularists who are apathetic toward religion and ethical matters.

This has spilled over into the church. That attitude which is beginning to permeate our whole society is beginning to affect local congregations all over the United States. One former editor of the religious periodical among us stated that he thought that apathy was posing the greatest threat to the church today. I do not know who could doubt the truthfulness of the statement.

What Is Apathy?

Webster defines “apathy” as “I. lack of emotion; 2. lack of interest; listless condition; indifference.” Some of the synonyms of the word are impassiveness, indifference, lethargy, unconcern. When I am speaking of apathy, I am speaking of the lack of interest which many Christians are showing toward spiritual things such as the church, study of the word of God, prayer, heaven and hell, etc.

To demonstrate that apathy is a problem to congregations among us, one only needs to compare the Sunday morning attendance of any congregation with that of Wednesday or Sunday night. The difference between the two attendances approaches 50% in some congregations. The evidence of apathy is even greater when one compares the gospel meeting attendances with that of Sunday morning. Furthermore, many Christians show up for Bible classes without having done any preparation for that period of Bible study. There appears to be little interest among the greater majority of most congregations in visiting the sick, contacting visitors, teaching home Bible studies, etc.

Apathy is an attitude of indifference and unconcern toward spiritual things. It generally ignores spiritual matters in order to place a greater emphasis on material things.

What Is Wrong With Apathy?

Having defined what apathy is, most Christians will immediately recognize the sinfulness of it. However, in case someone is so afflicted with apathy that he does not recognize what is wrong with it, let me explain why apathy is sinful.

1. It destroys a church. We recognize, with reference to physical pings, the principle that slothfulness destroys. The wise an stated, “By much slothfulness the building decayeth; and through idleness of the hands the house droppeth through” (Eccl. 10:18). Again, he wrote, “He also that is slothful in his work is brother to him that is a great waster” (Prov. 18:9). We recognize that a man does not have to tear down a house to destroy it; all that he has to do is just fail to repair the things which need repairing and soon the house will collapse. We recognize that a man does not have to burn a field to destroy its crop; all that he must do is to fail to plow it, weed it, and fertilize it to produce the same effect. The wise man’s inspired comments regarding slothfulness are easily verified by observation.

What we recognize as true in the physical realm is also true with reference to the church. When brethren become apathetic and allow the work of the Lord to go undone, the church will be destroyed. Here are some things which occur when apathy sets in which destroys the church: (1) neglecting the services (this discourages the weak members and causes them to also neglect the services, compounding the problem); (2) failing to visit those who visit our services, the sick and the discouraged, and (3) neglecting home Bible studies. The result of this negligence is that few home Bible studies are conducted and fewer are converted; the weak become weaker until they eventually just completely apostatize. As the stronger members die, brethren move away, and the children of half-converted Christians decide not to be faithful to the Lord, the church in a given area dies.

The Lord warned brethren about destroying the church, the temple of God; Paul wrote, “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are” (1 Cor. 3:16-17). Although the context is primarily discussing the destruction which occurs to the Lord’s temple through sinful division, the application would extend to anything which destroys the temple of God. Apathy results in destruction of the Lord’s church and is wrong for that reason.

2. It causes spiritual needs to go unmet. When apathy afflicts a congregation, spiritual needs are unmet. Each of us recognizes that the gospel is God’s saving power (Rom. 1:16); one cannot be converted without being taught the gospel of Christ (Mk. 16:15-16). This is the only means which God uses to draw men to Him (Jn. 6:44-45). However, when apathy sets in, the work of taking the gospel to the lost people of the world almost comes to a halt. How many home Bible studies have been conducted by the members of the church where you worship in the last month? Six months? Year? Is there any wonder that there are so few conversions? Who can doubt that apathy is afflicting us?

The same might be said of those who are weak among us. The weak need special attention (1 Thess. 5:14 – support the weak; comfort the feebleminded). Those who are caught up in sin need spiritually minded men to take the time to work to restore them (Gal. 6:1; Jas. 5:19-20). However, when apathy sets in, this need goes unmet. Frequently what happens is that the congregation neglects the needs of these members until they completely quit attending; then, the congregation withdraws (or is it “washes its hands” of the matter?) from them for forsaking the assembly. Surely we can see why apathy is sinful!

3. It destroys the quality of worship. In order for worship to be acceptable to God, it must be offered from the heart of man. Mere outward ceremonies have never been acceptable to the Lord (Mic. 6:6-8). In our worship today, every item demands our fullest concentration and attention. During the preaching of God’s word, every member has an obligation to strive to be learning all that he can, examining the Scriptures to be certain that what is taught is what God revealed (Acts 17:11; 1 Jn. 4:1). During the singing, the Christian is expected to “make melody in his heart” (Eph. 5:19), “singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord” (Col. 3:16). During the prayer, we are to listen in order to say “Amen” (1 Cor. 14:16), being exceedingly careful not to merely offer vain repetitions (Matt. 6:7). To properly observe the Lord’s supper one must remember Christ’s death (1 Cor. 11:24-29). Even our giving must be done purposely (2 Cor. 9:6-7).

Yet, when apathy afflicts members, the quality of worship is destroyed! Members day-dream during the lesson, if they do not altogether fall asleep. Notes are passed, fingernails are clipped, and whispering occurs. These things destroy the quality and acceptability of our worship; they are the fruits of apathy.

4. It puts God second. Spiritual indifference occurs because something has taken priority over God in one’s life. The seed of the kingdom is choked out by the care of this world and the deceitfulness of riches (Matt. 13:22). Something other than God has first priority in the life of that person who is apathetic.

God will not take second place in one’s life! Christ commanded, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness . . .” (Matt. 6:33). Again, He stated, “He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me” (Matt. 10:37-38). (Be sure to study Lk. 14:15-35 for other Scriptures pertaining to putting something else above one’s service to God.)

If God will not even allow one to put his father, mother, son or daughter before Him in reference to priorities, He certainly will not tolerate a man putting a football, baseball, or some other kind of game before Him. Neither will He tolerate being placed second to anything on television, shopping, dining out, etc. Apathy is sinful because it manifests that one’s priorities have been misplaced.

5. It damns the soul. Because apathy does all the things mentioned above, we can easily see that it damns the soul. The letters to the seven churches of Asia manifests this. (One cannot help but notice that three of the seven churches of Asia were instructed regarding something pertaining to the problem of apathy. This sin is not new.) Here are the comments made by the Lord concerning this problem:

Nevertheless, I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent (Rev. 2:4-5).

. . . I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead. Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God. Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee (Rev. 3:1-3).

I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth (Rev. 3:16-17).

These quotations certainly show God’s disapproval of apathy. We simply must accept the conclusion that an apathetic attitude toward Christ and toward service in His kingdom will damn one’s soul in hell. Hence, that is what is wrong with apathy – it will damn one’s soul in hell.

Questions

1. What is the current attitude of most Americans toward religion and how it is affecting the church in your area?
2. What is “apathy”?
3. What are some evidences of its existence in the local congregation which you attend?
4. How does apathy destroy a congregation?
5. How does it cause spiritual needs to go unmet?
6. How does apathy affect one’s worship?
7. What are the proiorities in your life?
8. How can you tell where your priorities lie?
9. What is one’s “first love” as used in Rev. 2:4-5?
10. How would a congregation have a name that it was alive but be dead (Rev. 3:1-3)?
11. Why would the Lord prefer one to be “cold” rather than “lukewarm” (Rev. 3:16-17)?

Truth Magazine XXIV: 17, pp. 276-278
April 24, 1980

By Mike Willis

The May 1979 issue of Bible Truth contained the results of a survey taken by the paper among members of the church (predominantly, if not exclusively, among liberal brethren). In response to the survey regarding what brethren thought were “major problems facing Christians today,” the following six problems were listed in their order of importance as follows: (1) apathy/indifference; (2) divorce/remarriage; (3) liberalism/modernism; (4) church as social club; (5) evangelism; (6) legalism. Though it is interesting to see that the liberals have themselves become concerned about the liberalism which they spot among themselves (two out of the first six major problems confronting these brethren pertain to liberalism), one cannot seriously doubt that one of the major problems confronting all Christians in the 1980’s is apathy.

The Stark Statistics

Recent-studies have shown that church attendance in general is declining. The Dayton Journal Herald (29 December 1979) reported the results of a Gallup Poll which showed that, on a national average, only four out of ten Americans attend a church or synagogue in a given week. Not surprisingly, the percentage is even lower among our youth. The survey is given in more detail below:

Results of the study

ATTEND CHURCH

National 40%

Protestants 40

Catholics 52

Jews 20

New England 35

Mid Atlantic 39

East Central 44

West Central 49

Southeast 40

Southwest 44

Rocky Mountain 32

Pacific 33

Summary

East 38

Midwest 46

South 41

West 33

BY AGE

18 34

19 34

20 35

21-24 26

25-29 20

30-34 38

35-39 41

40-44 42

45-49 47

50-59 46

60-69 48

70 and up 46

Summary

18-29 29

30-49 42

50 and older 47

BY EDUCATION

College

Complete 43

Incomplete 40

Technical, trade, business school 42

12th grade 40

9-11 33

8th 43

5-7 47

Less than 5 43

Summary

College 41

High school 38

Grade school 44

Men 35

Women 45

White 40

Non-white 45

Married 43

Single 28

Divorced 29

Separated 29

Widowed 49

Parents 42

Non-parents 39

TREND SINCE 1955

1955 49

1956 46

1957 47

1958 49

1959 47

1960 47

1961 47

1962 46

1963 46

1964 45

1965 44

1966 44

1967 43

1968 43

1969 42

1970 42

1971 40

1972 40

1973 40

1974 40

1975 40

1976 42

1977 41

1978 41

1979 40

The problem of lack of interest in religion has been felt in almost every section of the country. After having a socalled “revival of religion” in the 1950s and 1960s (I lived through both of these periods and did not even know that we had one), since the mid 1960s, things have taken a rather abrupt turn downward.

. . . For example, in 1958, approximately 49 per cent of the population reported having attended church during an average week. For Catholics, the percentage attending reached 74 per cent, and Protestant attendance was 44 per cent. Giving to the churches rose considerably, and new church development had high priority in an attempt to minister to the growing suburban population.

Since the mid 1960s, beginning about 1964 or 1965, things have taken a rather abrupt downturn. Membership declines that are unprecedented in the religious history of the United States has beset mainline Protestant denominations . . . . Catholicism did not lose members during this period; however, there were sharp declines in Catholic church attendance. From the 74 per cent in 1958, Catholic attendance was down to 56 per cent by 1975. Protestant attendance began to decline from its 44 per cent high in the late SOs, and has hovered around 37 per cent since 1964. Giving has also declined in mainline churches, though not so sharply as has membership. And new church development has slowed almost to a halt (Jackson W. Carroll, “The Church in the World: Understanding Church Growth and Decline,” Theology Today XXXV:70-80, April 1978).

Certainly the trends toward religious apathy can be seen in the following chart reflecting membership in selected denominations from this same article:

Inclusive Membership In Selected Denominations, 1965-1975
	1965	1975	Percentage Change
American Baptist	1,538,988 *a	1,603,033	4.2
Assemblies of God	572,123	785,148	37.3
Church of the Nazarene	343,380	441,093	28.4
Episcopal	3429153 *a	2,857,513	-16.7
Lutheran Church of America	3,106,844	2,986,078	-3.9
Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod	2,692,889	2,763,545	2.6
Presbyterian, U.S.	950,139	878,126	-8.6
Roman Catholic Church	46,246,175	48,881,872	5.7
Seventh Day Adventist	364,666	495,699	35.9
Southern Baptist Convention	10,770,573	12,733,124	18.2
United Church of Christ	2,070,413	1,818,762	-12.1
United Methodist Church	11082024 *b	9,975,710	-10.0
United Presbyterian Church, U.S.A.	3,034,321	2,657,699	-12.4
*a 1966   * b 1965 figure includes Evangelical United Brethren members who merged with the Methodist Church in 1968. Source: Yearbook of American Canadian Churches, 1977.

The one bright spot in these reports is the statistic which indicated’ that churches which are theologically conservative are growing in contrast with churches which are theologically liberal which are declining. In most cases, the rate of growth has not kept up with the population increase; however, they have not actually been losing members through these years.

In a religious poll conducted by Gallup for Christianity Today (21 December 1979), the following rather astounding results were found to be true:

Almost half – 69 million people 18 and over – are hoping to go to heaven only because of their personal faith in Jesus Christ.

More than eight of every ten persons believe Jesus Christ is divine. A whopping 84 percent – more than eight of every ten people believe the Ten Commandments are valid today.

What one might expect from these statistics is that Americans are a Bible believing and Bible reading people. However, these statistics were also a part of Gallup’s survey:

Only 11 percent read the Bible every day, compared to 10 percent who read it weekly and 7 percent monthly. Thirty-seven million adults never read the Bible.

Fewer than half (42 per cent) can name at least five of the Ten Commandments.

This basically says that a number of Americans know what the truth is or have some basic idea that the Bible contains the truth but do not care enough to search the Bible to find out what it says! That, my dear brethren, is religious apathy!

It is not only a major problem in religious denominations in America, it is also a major problem in the local church. If you doubt my word, compare your Sunday morning attendance with your mid-week attendance. In most cases, my point will have been ,proven by this simple comparison. If you would like more evidence, check to see how many students are attending their Bible classes unprepared; check to see how many students act interested in their Bible classes. How long has it been since someone other than the preacher conducted a home Bible study in your congregation? How many families are trying to have some kind of Bible instruction at home each night? These and a number of other similar questions testify to the tremendous problem of apathy which is presently facing us.

In this issue of Truth Magazine, I would like to consider the problem of apathy as it affects the local church. Let us face the temptation which the adversary is putting in front of us and overcome his subtle attempts to lead us to Hell. With the hope that these articles will help us overcome these problems, this material is presented.

Truth Magazine XXIV: 17, pp. 274-275
April 24, 1980

By Ron Halbrook

For the truth’s sake, the children of God call upon their Father constantly. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were men of prayer, and men of faith (Heb. 11). The fire of suffering refined the faith of Job, a man noted for prayer (1:20-21; 42:1-6). In fact, God instructed Job’s friends’ who had spoken so bitterly against him in his suffering, to worship along with Job that he might pray for them – “for him will I accept” (42:8). The Psalms reflect the place of prayer in every phase of life, in success and failure, in the presence of friends and enemies. David prayed to God during the illness of his child born of adultery, hoping that his son’s life might be spared; when his son died, David still continued in worship and prayer, manifesting faith rather than bitterness (2 Sam. 12:15-20). The Son of God was transfigured “as he prayed” on a mountain top, and sweated “as it were great drops of blood” in prayer on the edge of the great valley of death (Lk. 9:28-29; 22:44). We need God. every hour and need to call upon Him every day.

The followers of Christ during His earthly ministry asked, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples” (Lk. 11:1). Jesus said that they should pray “after this manner”:

Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen (Matt. 6:9-13).

In this model, we find praise for the greatness of God, a recognition of our own humble existence; prayer for the progress of the Father’s will and kingdom; request for the material things which sustain life, in recognition of our absolute dependence upon God; acknowledgment of our sins in prayer for forgiveness; and, supplication for Divine aid in resisting temptation and escaping the snares set by Satan. Daily prayer draws us close to God, increasing our love for Him as we are constantly reminded that “we live, and move, and have our being” by His grace (Acts 17:28).

From the very start of the church, Christians prayed in their public assemblies – “they continued steadfastly . . . in prayer” (Acts 2:42). After Peter and John were threatened for preaching the gospel, they reported “to their own company,” who then “lifted up their voice to God with one accord” (4:23-31). The apostles urged the Jerusalem church to select special servants to care for the needy among them, so that the apostles might attend to their own work: “we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word” (6:4). All saints have the privilege of praying in private, but in mixed company involving the man-woman relationship, the Spirit instructed, “I will therefore that men pray everywhere . . .” (1 Tim. 2:8-15). “If therefore the whole church be come together into one place,” it was forbidden for women to take the lead over the men and women gathered for worship in songs, lessons, and prayers (1 Cor. 14). Public prayer complements, but cannot substitute, for private prayer. Neither public display nor endless repetitions avail with God (Matt. 6:1-7). But constant petitions, both private and public, offered from the hearts of His children avail greatly with God. (Lk. 18:1-8; Jas. 5:16).

If we would be near to the heart of God, let us lay up in our heart the admonition, “Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1 Thess. 5:17-18).

Truth Magazine XXIV: 16, p. 266
April 17, 1980

By Keith Sharp

Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy.

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven; for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? Do not even the publicans the same?

And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? (Matt. 5:43-47)

Recently, I heard my three-year-old son soberly discuss the difficult subject of hell with a little friend. He solemnly announced, “If you hit someone who didn’t hit you, you’ll go to hell.” Cute? Of course, I think so. But, sadly, this concept of love to friends and hatred to enemies is only too prevalent among sophisticated adults. The demands of the Lord so far transcend this carnal standard as to be virtually incomparable. What is the law, of Christ pertaining to love and hatred of other people?

For the sixth time in his address on the mount, Jesus replaced what his auditors had previously heard with His own doctrine. Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy (Matt. 5:43). There are four key words in this passage. We will define each.

“Love” is at once one of the richest and one of the most abused words in the English language. One youthful wit, sorely smitten with infatuation for a pretty, young thing, described “love” as “an itch you can’t scratch.” What is its true meaning?

Greek is a language which is rich in synonyms; it has words with shades of meaning which English does not posses. In Greek there are four different words for love.

(i) There is the noun sterge with its accompanying verb stergein. These words are the characteristic words of family love . . . .

(ii) There is the noun eros and the accompanying verb eran. These words describe the love of a man for a maid; there is always passion in them; and there is always sexual love . . . . but as time went on they began to be tinged with the idea of lust rather than love, and they never occur in the New Testament at all.

(iii) There is philia with its accompanying verb philein. It describes real love, real affection . . . . It is the word of warm, tender affection ….

(iv) There is agape with its accompanying verb agapan. Agape is the word which is used here. The real meaning of agape is unconquerable benevolence, invincible goodwill. If we regard a person with agape, it means that no matter what that person does to us, no matter how he treats us, no matter if he insults us or injures us or grieves us, we will never allow any bitterness against him to invade our hearts, but we will regard him with unconquerable benevolence and goodwill which will seek nothing but his highest good (William Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, 1, pp. 171, 172).

Thus, the love Christ demands that we exercise toward our enemies is the active desire to do good, not selfish passion, tender affection or empty words. The test and measure of love is its ability to forego its own selfish pleasure for the good of the object of that love (cf. 1 Jn. 3:16-18). In short, “love” is “active goodwill.” Luke’s parallel account illustrates this by demanding we “do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again,” thus being “merciful, as your Father also is merciful” (Lk. 6:35, 36) to show our love. The parable of the Good Samaritan is the Master’s own illustration of the meaning of this word (Lk. 10:25-37).

The term “neighbor” literally means “the (one) near” (W.E. Vine, An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, 111, 107). The Old Testament and Hebrew concept limited its application to “a member of the Hebrew commonwealth” (J.H. Thayer, A Greek English Lexicon of the New Testament, pp. 518, 519; cf. Acts 7:27). “Hate” carries the meaning “of malicious . . . feelings toward others whether towards the innocent or by mutual animosity” (Vine, II, 198). One’s “enemy” is “the person to whom one is hostile . . .” (Thayer, p. 265).

What law enjoined love of friends and hatred of enemies? The requirements to love one’s neighbor is specifically laid down in Leviticus 19:17, 18. Although the opposite demand, hatred of one’s enemies, was not specifically stated in the law, in a limited sense it was a fair application of the Old Testament. Jehovah required that Israel annihilate the Amalekites (Dent. 25:17-19) and the Canaanite nations that inhabited the land of promise before them (Dent. 7:1, 2, 16, 23-26). Pure men of God hated not only the ways of the Lord’s enemies; they abhorred the enemies themselves (Psa. 26:5; 31:6; 139:21, 22).

Thus, the law of Moses made a clear distinction between faithful children of Abraham and the ungodly Gentiles, and demands for love was limited to the godly. This had a dual purpose: protecting the people from their idolatrous enemies and preserving the lineage of the Messiah. Therefore, according to Paul, the law was the basis of enmity between Jew and Gentile (Eph. 2:14-18). This was one of its defects, which, although it served a legitimate, temporary purpose, necessitated its abrogation.

Evidently the Jews, in their traditions, had abused this principle, which applied to national and religious enemies, by applying it to personal adversaries. This violated the clear, Old Testament statute (Ex. 23:4, 5). How does the Master teach us to treat our enemies?

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you (Matt. 5:44; cf. Lk. 6:27, 28).

The Son of God requires that we love all kinds of people that we might normally consider enemies, for whatever reasons – personal, religious, racial, ethnic, national we might feel animosity toward them.

This supreme demand has primary application to the personal life of the Christian in relationship to other people. Therefore, that pacifist in international politics who fights and riots for “peace” so far misses the point of this great principle as to be ludicrous.

This ideal treatment of even one’s enemies is the height of the character of a Christian, setting him apart from all unbelievers. Yet, this is not an impossible requirement. Jesus does not demand that we have as much emotional affection for our enemies as for our own families. How does one feel tender affection for those who lie about him, seek to take away his job because of his stand for truth and even physically abuse him? But, we must always seek the highest good for our enemies, even for those who would persecute us for our faith.

The Master is our supreme example here as in every realm of faith. Of those who blasphemed, “Say we not well that thou art a Samaritan, and hast a devil?” (Jn. 8:48), Jesus lamented:

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not (Matt. 23:37).

He died for and offered salvation to even those who crucified Him (Lk. 19:10). In behalf of those who cruelly mocked Him on the cursed cross (Matt. 27:39-43), He tenderly prayed, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Lk. 23:34).

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends (Jn. 15:13).

Yet, of Christ, the apostle declares:

For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

For scarcely for a righteous men will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.

But God commandeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ dies for us (Rom. 5:6-8).

What wondrous love! O, for the strength to so walk!

This great precept is beautifully exemplified by saints who help compose “the great cloud of witnesses” (cf. Acts 7:54-60; 1 Cor. 4:12, 13). The Christian thus defeats his enemies by treating them as friends (Rom. 12:17-21). One cannot bless, do good to and pray for an enemy and still hate him.

Why should we love those who mistreat us?

That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?

And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publican so?

We should love our enemies that we might truly be the sons of God. Christ did not teach that loving one’s enemies is a condition of becoming His disciple. We are children of God by consequence of being born again (Jn. 3:3, 5; Gal. 3:26, 27). What, then, did he mean?

Hebrew is not rich in adjectives, and for that reason Hebrew often used son of . . . with an abstract noun, where we would use an adjective. For instance, a son of peace is a peaceful man; a son of consolation is a consoling man. So, then, a son of God is a godlike man (Barclay, Ibid, p. 175).

To love even one’s enemies is to truly be godlike in character, for, though “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23), nevertheless

God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life (Jn. 3:16).

Indeed, “He that loveth not knoweth not God, for God is love” (1 Jn. 4:8).

We all witness daily in the natural realm how God bestows physical blessings alike on both evil and good, just and unjust (cf. Psa. 145:9, 15, 16; Acts 14:16, 17). This is the result and proof of His divine love for all His creation. We should likewise practice love toward friend and foe alike. By so doing we demonstrate our godlike character (cf. Lk. 6:35, 36; Eph. 5:1, 2).

If we do not practice love toward our enemies, how can we expect God to reward us for our righteousness, for we would be evidencing no higher character than the publicans, the lowest of sinners to the Hebrews? Even the vilest of the unrighteous love their own friends! Is our morality not to exceed theirs?

Further, if we fail to manifest this higher love, we do no more than those in false and degrading religions. Even the Gentiles, who had corrupted the true worship of God into the grossest system of immorality and error, warmly greeted and graciously accepted their own friends! Is the righteousness of one walking in the steps of Jesus not to exceed that of an idol worshiper?

One can pursue any of three courses in his relationship to other people. He can render to others as they render to him – good for good and evil for evil. This is the standard of the world. One can render evil for good – the standard Satan employs. Or, one can do good in return for evil. This is what the Father does, and this is the godlike standard the Master sets for his disciples. Brother, which course do you follow?

Truth Magazine XXIV: 16, pp. 264-265
April 17, 1980