1 Peter 3:15

But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,

Friend or Enemy?

“For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son” (Romans 5:10).

No one had invited me to the meeting on the front lawn of my high school campus that day. In effect, I was eavesdropping on the Christians’ time of worship. But the preacher there made one statement that hit my heart like a lightning bolt from Heaven: “Jesus said, ‘You’re either for Me or against Me.’”

In other words, you’re either God’s friend or God’s enemy.

I looked around at the Christians and thought, “They’re the friends of God. They have a relationship with Him, and they are for Him. I’m not one of them. Does that mean I’m against God?”

The last thing I wanted was to be against God. So that was the day I became a Christian.

If you’re not a friend of God, then by default you’re an enemy of God. Romans 5:10 says, “For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son”.

The Bible also says that “whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God” (James 4:4).

Are you a friend of God? If not, then you can come into a relationship with Him. You can have your sin forgiven and can go to Heaven when you die.

Maybe you’re thinking, “No, that’s too good to be true.”

It is true, and it can be true for you right now. Jesus died on the cross for your sin. He stood in the gap for you and died in your place. And if you’ll turn from your sin and believe in Him, you can be forgiven and know, without any doubt, that you go to Heaven when you die.

You can have friendship with God today.

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2 Timothy 1:9

He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,

Friendship with God

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8).

Moses was taking things to the next level. He was going for the gold. He prayed for the very glory of God to be revealed to him. As he talked with God one day, he said, “Please, show me Your glory” (Exodus 33:18).

In other words, “Lord, I love our conversations together, but I actually would like to see You.”

By the way, that is a good thing. As the nineteenth-century commentator A. B. Simpson wrote, “Once it was the blessing, now it is the Lord. Once it was the feeling, now it is His Word. Once His gift I wanted, now, the Giver own. Once I sought for healing, now Himself alone.”

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8).

Moses wanted to see the Lord, but if he had, he would have died on the spot (see Exodus 33:20).

Therefore, God worked out a sweet deal for Moses. He told him, “Look, stand near me on this rock. As my glorious presence passes by, I will hide you in the crevice of the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove my hand and let you see me from behind. But my face will not be seen” (verses 21–23).

I can’t even imagine what Moses saw. We’re in awe of such a relationship. But if you’re a Christian, your friendship with God is even closer than the very special friendship Moses had with God. That’s because Moses was under the Old Covenant.

When Jesus died on the cross, a New Covenant was established. He fulfilled all the Old Testament sacrifices and types in Himself. He was the Lamb of God who took away the sin of the world. As a result, we can have friendship with God.

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2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.

Accepted and Loved

“And He said, ‘My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest’” (Exodus 33:13).

When I’m hanging out with my grandkids, they always want me to watch them do whatever it is they’re doing. They might be riding a skateboard or doing a cartwheel or some other thing, and they say, “Papa, watch me!” So I’ll watch them, and afterward, I’ll give my approval.

“You did that beautifully! That was great!”

They want to me to affirm them. They want to know that I love and appreciate them. But really, are we any different in our relationship with God? In a sense, we all say, “Lord, watch me!”

When Moses asked God for direction, God gave him this promise: “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest”. In the original Hebrew, the language is vivid. We could translate it this way: “My face will go with you.”

God was saying, “Don’t worry, Moses. I’ll go with you. You have My full attention.”

Aren’t you glad, by the way, that God doesn’t have a cell phone? We all know what it’s like to have a conversation with someone who’s busy scrolling through things on their phone. God isn’t that way with us, thankfully. We have His full attention.

He’s watching us, but He’s watching with great love and affection. Psalm 84:11 tells us, “For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly”.

God is for us, and God approves of us.

Now, if we’re living apart from Him in sin, that isn’t true. But if we have asked Him to forgive us of our sin, then the Bible says that “He made us accepted in the Beloved” (Ephesians 1:6).

God accepts us and loves us. We don’t have to earn that. It already has been done for us, bought by Jesus Christ on the cross.

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The story behind the song "Weary Traveler"

Psalm 139:23-24
Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!

His Good Plan

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect” (Romans 12:2).

I believe that God has a plan for your life. That’s why every believer should ask God to reveal His will for them. James tells us, “If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking” (verse 5).

We read in Exodus that Moses asked the Lord for divine direction. He said, “Now therefore, I pray, if I have found grace in Your sight, show me now Your way, that I may know You and that I may find grace in Your sight” (33:13).

When you don’t know what to do, pray about it.

Romans 12 offers a very important insight into how to know the Will of God. The apostle Paul wrote, “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him” (verse 1).

Paul went on to say, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect” (verse 2).

So if you want to know the good and pleasing and perfect Will of God, then first present yourself to Him. It’s something we should do again and again, not just once. Then the Lord promises that He will reveal His Will.

Let’s also notice that God’s Will is “good and pleasing and perfect.” So don’t be afraid to ask God to reveal His Will to you. Never be afraid to commit an unknown future to known God. God loves you. And His plan for you is good.

www.harvest.org

You're welcome!

"Weary Traveler" by Jordan St Cyr

Joshua 1:9
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; be not frightened, neither be dismayed; for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Keep Asking

“Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7).

His son was very sick. In fact, he was at death’s door. But the desperate father, who was part of a royal family, came and humbled himself before Jesus Christ. He begged Jesus to touch his dear son.

Jesus’s response, however, was quite unusual: “Will you never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders?” (John 4:48).

Now, what kind of thing is that to say to a desperate dad who simply wanted his son to be healed? The fact is that Jesus wasn’t really addressing the father. He actually was addressing the fickle crowd that had come to be entertained. They came to see a sign, a miracle, something to dazzle them.

Meanwhile, this persistent dad stood there, waiting. He wouldn’t give up. He said, “Lord, please come now before my little boy dies” (verse 49).

But Jesus told him, “Go back home. Your son will live!” (verse 50 NLT).

So why not just respond to this father immediately? Jesus wanted to draw him out. He wanted to teach him that sometimes we need to keep asking, keep seeking, and keep knocking. And sometimes, because we won’t be persistent in our prayers, we don’t see them answered in the affirmative.

What looks like a barrier at times actually may be a bridge. So don’t give up. Jesus said, “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7).

Yet God will allow tests in our lives to see if we will press on and not give up. Are you willing to pray for other people to come to the Lord? Are you willing to pray with persistence for the Lord to answer the prayer that you’re bringing before Him?

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Isaiah 55:8-9
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Growing Endurance

“For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow” (James 1:3).

While Moses was on Mount Sinai receiving the Ten Commandments, he didn’t know how bad things were back at the camp where he had left Aaron in charge. He didn’t yet know that the people were dancing around a golden calf and calling it their god.

So while he was there, the Lord said to him, “I have seen how stubborn and rebellious these people are. Now leave me alone so my fierce anger can blaze against them, and I will destroy them. Then I will make you, Moses, into a great nation” (Exodus 32:9-10).

But Moses interceded for them. He stood in the gap and prayed for them, and God changed His mind. Then Moses descended from the mountain to find the people engaged in full-tilt idolatry and immorality. And Aaron offered the most ridiculous excuse of all time to justify their horrible behavior.

Moses was so angry that he took the two tablets of stone he had been carrying and threw them on the ground, smashing them into pieces.

I think God used this experience to develop Moses and test him. Maybe God has been testing you lately, and you’re wondering why. Why does God allow trials, tribulation, and hardship in the lives of His children?

James 1 tells us, “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing” (James 1:2-4).

God lets us go through these trials to strengthen us. Trials are like God’s gym. We break down muscle to build it up, and we’ll be stronger as a result.

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Job 23:10-11
But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come forth as gold. My foot has held fast to his steps; I have kept his way and have not turned aside.

Never Part of God’s Plan

“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned” (Romans 5:12).

Sickness was never part of God’s original plan. We weren’t supposed to get sick or age. In fact, we weren’t supposed to die. But it goes back to our first parents, Adam and Eve, in the Garden of Eden. If Adam and Eve hadn’t eaten the forbidden fruit, we wouldn’t get sick or age.

But because they did, we age and have illness, and ultimately, we die. Romans 5:12 says, “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned” (Romans 5:12).

Even so, why does God allow sickness? Here’s a short answer. Sometimes God allows sickness in our lives to bring us to Him. The psalmist said, “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep Your word.” (Psalm 119:67). I’ve heard many stories of people who felt they had no need for God, but then they became ill, asked for spiritual help, and found it. So sometimes God allows it to get our attention.

Then again, sometimes God allows sickness in the lives of believers to keep us humble, as He did with the apostle Paul. Writing about a “thorn in the flesh,” Paul said, “Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, ‘My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness’” (2 Corinthians 12:8-9).

God also may allow sickness so that He can be glorified through our lives as we honor Him. For example, Joni Eareckson Tada, a quadriplegic, and Nick Vujicic, who was born without arms and legs, have both turned a disability into an ability.

So even when we don’t understand why God allows sickness, there are reasons He does. And He can be glorified through it.

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Psalm 73:25-26
Whom have I in heaven but thee? And there is nothing upon earth that I desire besides thee. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever.

Choose the Right Voice

“As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, He said to the ruler of the synagogue, ‘Do not be afraid; only believe’” (Mark 5:36).

As Jairus made his way back home with Jesus, something tragic happened. Messengers arrived and told him, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further?” (Mark 5:35).

I’ve stood in the shoes of Jairus. I remember distinctly the day in 2008 when I heard the unthinkable news that our son Christopher had gone to be with the Lord. He died in an automobile accident. To say that my life changed is an understatement. It almost felt as though my life was over and that my world had ended. I didn’t know how I was going to get through it.

How devastating that must have been for Jairus to hear those words. But let’s not miss the next verse: “As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, He said to [Jairus], ‘Do not be afraid; only believe’” (verse 36).

Jairus had to choose which voice he was going to listen to. Was he going to listen to the voice of the person who just said that his daughter was dead? Or, was he going to listen to the voice of Jesus, who said, “Don’t be afraid; only believe”?

If you’ve lost a loved one, especially a child, you can get through this by hanging onto Jesus Christ. He’s your only hope at a time like this.

We choose every day what voice we are going to listen to. Will we listen to the voice of God as He speaks to us through Scripture? Or, will we listen to the voice of the culture or even the voice of the Devil, who would say that we’re worthless, that we’re failures, and that our lives aren’t even worth living?

Listen to the voice of God who says, “I love you. I have a plan for you. I have a future for you. Trust Me. Don’t be afraid.”

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2 Timothy 1:7
for God did not give us a spirit of timidity but a spirit of power and love and self-control.

What About Healing?

“But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5).

Does God still heal people today? I believe the answer is yes.

Does He heal everyone? The answer is no.

God has the ability to heal, and He has the desire to heal. Isaiah 53 says of Jesus, “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed” (verse 5).

Peter, commenting on the same verse, wrote, “He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed” (1 Peter 2:24). In the original language, the word Peter used for “healed” always speaks of physical healing.

Can God heal, then? Yes. So why are some still sick? It may be because they haven’t asked Him for healing. James 4:2 says, “Yet you do not have because you do not ask”.

Jesus said, “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you” (Luke 11:9 NKJV). In the original language there’s an ascending intensity to those verbs. Jesus was saying, “Keep asking, keep seeking, keep knocking, and keep praying.”

Of course, the apostle Paul prayed three times that God would remove his thorn in the flesh. However, God said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

So there are times when God will say no. But there are also times when He will say yes, and it’s a glorious thing when He does.

Maybe you're praying for one thing, but God wants to do something above and beyond that. God is at work. He knows what He’s doing. So wait on His timing.

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Matthew 22:37-39
And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

Waiting for a Miracle

“Then Jesus said, ‘Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest’” (Matthew 11:28).

Have you ever been in a situation so bleak that it seemed as though it would never change? Maybe you had things going wonderfully in your life, and then suddenly you were hit with a severe illness or the loss of a loved one. You didn’t know how you were going to get through it.

That was the scenario facing two very different people in chapter 5 of Mark’s Gospel. One was a man, and the other was a woman. One was relatively famous, and the other was unknown. But they had something in common. They both needed Jesus.

The woman was in a helpless, hopeless situation. She had spent all of her money on doctors but to no avail. She could not get rid of the horrible sickness that plagued her. Mark tells us, “She had suffered a great deal from many doctors, and over the years she had spent everything she had to pay them, but she had gotten no better. In fact, she had gotten worse” (verse 26).

The man, whose name was Jairus, was a leader of the local synagogue. He had power and prestige, but he needed Jesus, too, because his beloved daughter was at death’s door. This young girl had experienced 12 years of relative happiness as the apple of her father’s eye. I think he doted on her and loved her, shown by his urgency in coming to Jesus.

On the other hand, the sick woman had experienced 12 years of pain, rejection, and tears. Yet on the same afternoon, both their lives were dramatically changed by their encounter with Jesus Christ.

This reminds us that everyone needs Jesus. Every man, every woman, every old person, every young person, and every middle-aged person needs Jesus. Whoever you are, He is there for you.

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Jeremiah 29:11-13
For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me; when you seek me with all your heart,

A Transformed Life

“Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me” (Matthew 12:30).

A while back I received a letter from a young woman who attended one of our Harvest events. She wrote, “My life lately has been in the slumps. I was freaked out about school. I was having boyfriend trouble. I was stressed to the max, and to top it off, my family life hasn’t been the greatest. I started to cut myself to cope with all of this. It was just hurting me more. I tried to stop, but I was addicted.”

She went on to say, “I heard that Christ saves lives. So I decided to give it a chance, and after attending your service, I felt like my life has made a complete turnaround. I committed my life to Jesus, and I decided to stop hurting myself. At the time I thought God would never forgive me for what I had done to myself and all the sins I committed. . . . God opened my eyes, and I’m now living my new life as a Christian.”

Maybe you’ve lost hope in life. Christ is the answer. But you have a choice. Either you can ask Him to come into your life, or you can turn Him away. Jesus says, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me” (Revelation 3:20).

To not open the door and invite Him is a clear rejection, and Jesus said, “Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me” (Matthew 12:30).

So what will you say to Jesus? Will you ignore Him or tell Him to go away? Or, will you say, “Come into my life right now”? No matter how big your problems are, God is bigger still. He can transform you. But you must call out to Him.

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Proverbs 14:22
Do they not err that devise evil? Those who devise good meet loyalty and faithfulness.

Over the Cliff

“And all the people in the region of the Gerasenes begged Jesus to go away and leave them alone, for a great wave of fear swept over them” (Luke 8:37).

After Jesus crossed the Sea of Galilee and cast a legion of demons out of a man, how did the people there react to this amazing demonstration of God’s power?

We should have read that all the people gave glory to God. But that isn’t what happened. One Gospel account tells us that “all the people in the region of the Gerasenes begged Jesus to go away and leave them alone, for a great wave of fear swept over them” (Luke 8:37).

This demonstration of the power of God frightened them. They should have been rejoicing, but instead, they were afraid. They should have been pleading with Jesus to stay with them, but instead, they did the very opposite.

And apparently, the people who owned the herd of swine were pretty angry, because they made a lot of money off the pigs that the demons went into. Hogs were big business on that side of the lake, and a lot of bacon went over the cliff that day. Jesus was bad for their business, so they didn’t want Him around.

The people, too, pleaded with Jesus to go away. He answered their prayer, so to speak, and left. So be careful what you pray for because you just might get it.

However, the man who had been possessed by demons had an entirely different reaction. Mark 5:18 says that “as Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him”.

Is Jesus bad for your business? I hope not. Whatever career choice you’ve made, if you can’t ask the Lord to bless it, then maybe you need a new career. In fact, I would take that a step further. If you can’t say to the Lord, “Hallowed be Your name” over whatever you’re about to do, then don’t do it.

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A Radical Transformation

“A crowd soon gathered around Jesus, and they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons. He was sitting there fully clothed and perfectly sane, and they were all afraid” (Mark 5:15).

Here in America, we have riots in our streets, and we’ve witnessed outright anarchy in some cities. Those serving in law enforcement have never had it more difficult than they have it right now. Meanwhile, the family continues to disintegrate and break apart, which by the way, is at the root of most of our social ills today.

Social media was supposed to bring us closer together. But I think that in many ways, social media has divided us and driven us apart. That’s because society and culture cannot cope with the problems caused by Satan and sin.

In Luke 8 we read of Jesus encountering a demon-possessed man. The Bible tells us this frightening, evil man with superhuman strength was hanging around in a graveyard, screaming and howling. If that weren’t enough, the man was naked. So everyone wrote him off. He was out of his mind. He was under the power of the Devil.

We see three forces at work in this story: Satan, society, and the Savior. What did the Devil do for this man? He brought chaos, destruction, and bondage. And what did society do for this man? Society had no answers for him, so they chained him up.

But what the chains could not do, Jesus did. Luke’s gospel tells us, “There happened to be a large herd of pigs feeding on the hillside nearby, and the demons begged him to let them enter into the pigs. So Jesus gave them permission. Then the demons came out of the man and entered the pigs, and the entire herd plunged down the steep hillside into the lake and drowned” (Luke 8:32-22).

As a result, the man was so radically transformed that people couldn’t believe he was the same person (see Mark 5:15). What society cannot do, Jesus can.

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1 John 4:18
There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and he who fears is not perfected in love.

Time Is Running Out

“Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time” (Revelation 12:12).

When I was a brand-new Christian, maybe a few weeks old in the Lord, I was at a meeting where we were singing some songs and praying. Someone there came up with the idea of praying for Satan’s conversion. I was listening to this and thinking, “This is nuts.” Even as a new Christian, I thought that wasn’t possible. And it isn’t.

Scripture is clear about the origin, agenda, and ultimate destruction of Satan. James 2:19 says, “You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!” . Another way to translate this would be, “Even the demons believe—and shudder!” It conveys a sense of horror, causing the hair to stand on end.

This may surprise you, but demons, though wicked, are actually quite orthodox in their beliefs. I’m not suggesting they believe in Jesus, because they are in rebellion against Him. But there are certain things they actually believe.

They know, for instance, that Christ has supremacy over them. In fact, demons said to Jesus, “What have we to do with You, Jesus, You Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time?” (Matthew 8:29 NKJV).

The Devil knows that a time of judgment is coming. He knows that he ultimately will end up in the Lake of Fire. Revelation 12:12 says, “For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time”

I believe that we are living in the last days and that Jesus is coming back again. And that is why, in these last days, the Devil is pulling out all the stops. His goal is to wreak as much havoc as he can until that day.

As Christians, we should be at least as motivated. What are we doing for the Lord? When is the last time you shared the gospel with someone?

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Romans 13:9-10
The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not kill, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this sentence, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.

Romans 8:38-39
For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:35,37
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

1 John 3:11
For this is the message which you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another,

1 John 4:10
In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the expiation for our sins.

John 13:34-35
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

1 Corinthians 13:4-5
Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;

1 Corinthians 13:1-3
If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

2 Thessalonians 1:3
We are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren, as is fitting, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing.

Matthew 5:43-45
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.