These days of September are a time of remembering in the United States, remembering loss, remembering man’s inhumanity toward man. For some it’s a time of anger, for others a renewal of a call for vengeance. For most, it’s a time of wondering how things can come to such a point.
September 11 was, for many, the first real reminder since the end of the Cold War that there are people in this world who consider us as enemies. Not limiting their anger to the U.S. military or the U.S. government, they vowed to strike at the citizenry itself. Enmity became a part of our lives.
So what do we do with Jesus’ call to love our enemies? How can that be lived out? It’s not easy, but at least we had someone show us the way:
“For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” (Romans 5:6-11) “While we were enemies,” Paul says. How would Jesus treat his enemies? He’s already shown us, by dying on the cross.
This supper is a reminder of what Jesus did for his enemies, of how God loves his enemies. It is a call to us to live out the same kind of love, to enemy and friend, to alien and brother, to all men. If any would consider us an enemy, may it not be because of anything that we have done. May we be seen as people of the reconciliation, people of peace, people of love. People of God.