Scripture

Luke 6:27-31 (New International Version)

“But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you.”

Consider

Have you ever tried to push together the negative poles of two magnets? They repel each other, and the more you try to force them together, the stronger they resist connection. Short of an overriding external force, the only way those two magnets will come together is if one of them flips its position and approaches the other with its positive pole.

Relationships can be like that. When we are in the throes of conflict, approaching each other with our negative poles only increases our resistance to each other. For example, if you and I are both angry and defensive over an incident, the more we engage each other through our negativity, the more likely we are to resist connection and reinforce the strength of our negative positions.

Jesus summed up these polarity problems in the passage quoted above. He begins his discourse by saying, in effect, “To those of you who are willing to work at resolving conflict and healing your relationships, I have the solution for you.” He then proceeds with a command that runs contrary to our natural inclinations. He says to respond with goodness and mercy to the evil that is done to us.

He lists the evils—enmity, hatred, cursing, maltreatment, injury or insult, theft—as the negative poles that naturally provoke similar negative responses in us. Instead, he says, surprise your enemy by flipping your polarity and responding with positivity. Offer him your positive pole—love, goodness, kindness, blessing, prayers on his behalf, humility, vulnerability, generosity—and demonstrate to him that your desire to reestablish connection with him is more important to you than winning the argument or holding out for a just outcome.

Prayer

FATHER, I confess I am all too ready to respond to an insult or offense with my negative pole. Indignation, self-righteous posturing, and resentment seem to leap into position without my conscious volition. Help me to recognize when I am approaching an adversary with my negative pole, and help me to flip my position. Thank you that you always respond to my negativity with goodness and mercy that I do not deserve. May I follow your example and offer those healing graces to those who oppose and mistreat me.

Reflect

Romans 7:23-25; 12:21

Share

What kind of mistreatment is most likely to provoke a negative response from you? If you could reverse your polarity, what might your positive response look like?