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Sermon on the Mount: Love Your Enemy
To Remember: We must love everyone - even those who don't like
usVocabulary
- Love: Putting someone else first
Matthew 5:43-48 43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shall love thy neighbor, and hate your enemy. 44 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; 45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he makes his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? 47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? 48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. (KJV)Jesus teaches that to be like God, we have to do more than what comes naturally to us. We all love people who are nice to us. But it isn't easy to be nice to those who are mean to you. But that's what God did. He takes care of everyone, and sent His son to die for all, even though they did not all treat Him well.
Jesus says we must love our enemies. What does that mean? Does it mean we must feel affection for them? No, it means that we must treat them as well as we treat people we like. We must be kind and respectful to them. We must put their needs before ours. We must not treat them badly.
The Bible says "a soft answer turns away wrath." (Prov. 15:1) And by being nice to someone, we can bring them to shame. (Prov. 25: 21,22) It is difficult for someone to continue being mean to you if you don't let it get you angry. It takes away their fun in it. So God's advise is not only the better way to handle the situation from His end, but from ours also.
True or False
- We have no enemies. F
- We must be kind to our enemies. T
- Being mean to people can solve our problems. F
- Jesus was kind to His enemies. T
- We can convert people by being mean to them. F
Discussion: Do you have any enemies? If so, think about ho they are and name three things you can do for them. Have students list. If they have trouble, suggest:
- Pray for them
- Forgive them and start over
- Never talk badly about them
- Help them: study, make friends, practice a sport or activity, carry books, etc.
- List their good points in your mind.
- Teach them about Jesus
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Memory Work
- Luke 6:27 "But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you"
- Concentration
- Musical Blessings: Name ways that others have shown love to you.
linguistic
questions - Recite the memory verse.
- What turns away wrath, according to Proverbs?
- How do we heap "coals of fire" upon our enemies heads'?
- The rain falls on the _____ and the ________.
activity questions - Sing Jesus Loves the Little Children
- Find the word LOVE three times in the worksheet.
emotion questions - How do enemies make us feel?
- How should we feel toward our enemies?
- How does God feel towards his enemies?
- How will an enemy feel if we're nice to them?
application questions - Name 2 ways we can be nice to our enemies.
- How can we control our anger?
- Why should we set a good example?
fact questions - What did God do for his enemies?
- Name 2 nice things Jesus did while on earth.
- Define love.
review questions - Who must we act like?
- Name 2 ways others have shown love to you.
- Do we normally feel affection for our enemies?