Love Your Enemies
Who are you nice to?
We’re continuing our series on the Sermon on the Mount, and this week we are thinking about what it means to love those we don’t like.
The service starts at 9:30am on stwderby.online.church
But this button will go live Sunday afternoon on 30th May for you to watch the service again if you missed it live! You won’t want to miss out!
Hope you enjoyed our Werb’s Kids Service this morning!!
We love how everyone is getting involved so don’t miss out! Just email Amy (amy.farrar@stwderby.org) so that we can keep making it better and better and involving more and more people!
We are looking today about what it means to love our enemies.
But first we need to think about what it means.
So do you have any enemies?
We might have those that we don’t like or maybe some might even say we ‘hate’ someone which is very strong but we often don’t really have enemies.
We only really see enemies in films. We meet a good guy for example BATMAN and if you’ve heard of him you might know his enemy or bad guy called THE JOKER!
Think about your favourite programmes. Do any of your favourite characters have enemies or bad guys that work against them? Or maybe there are teams that are against each other or those who are opponents and compete against one another.
For those unsure an enemy is someone who opposes someone else or something.
An enemy is often the bad guy so maybe they treat someone badly or are mean or cruel or stop the other person, their opponent from doing something.
Can you think of a way you might treat a friend and then a way you might treat an enemy?
What's the difference? What do you do differently? Have a few seconds just to think.
Think about what you might do and how you would treat a friend verses an enemy or someone you didn’t like. There will be things you do differently but why?
Jesus had some things to say about the way that we treat our enemies - and our friends and this is the passage we are looking at today.
“You have heard that it was said,
‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’
But I tell you, don’t stand up against an evil person. If someone slaps you on the right cheek,
then turn and let him slap the other cheek too.
If someone wants to sue you in court and take your shirt, then let him have your coat too.
If a soldier forces you to go with him one mile,
then go with him two miles.
If a person asks you for something, then give it to him.
Don’t refuse to give to a person who
wants to borrow from you.
‘You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemies.’
But I tell you, love your enemies.
Pray for those who hurt you. If you do this, then you will be true sons of your Father in heaven.
Your Father causes the sun to rise on good people and on bad people. Your Father sends rain to those who do good and to those who do wrong.
If you love only the people who love you, then you will get no reward. Even the tax collectors do that.
And if you are nice only to your friends, then you are no better than other people.
Even people without God are nice to their friends.
So you must be perfect,
just like your Father in heaven is perfect.”
Is there anything that sticks out to you about the passage we just heard?
What do you think about what Jesus has just said?
Think for a moment about the way we feel when someone does something that upsets us.
We want revenge don’t we! If someone hurts us we often want to hurt them back so they know how it feels. Or to make them pay in some way. We want to make sure they feel as bad as we feel.
But what does Jesus say in this passage?
It’s natural to want someone to feel bad when we get hurt but Jesus tells us that it never makes anything better and instead we should turn the other cheek. We need to go the extra mile to stop the cycle of hatred. Instead of getting angry or seeking revenge we need to show kindness.
Jesus wants us to treat our friends and enemies or those we dislike the same. He goes as far as to tell us to love our enemies. That even if they are to do wrong we are to not make the situation worse but instead love them and make things better. Maybe ask them why they did what they did? Solve the problem instead of make it worse.
This all might seem really unfair to you. That you think that God doesn’t care if we get hurt or is someone is mean to us. This isn’t true.
Remember our God loves justice, he loves for things to be fair and right. And he doesn’t want us to think that people will just get away with things when they do wrong. He just wants to remind us that we are not the ones that choose who pays and how. We need to learn to not make things worse and trust God is in control and leave the justice up to him.
GO DEEPER!
SPARKS (Preschool)
Who do you love?
And how do you show them that you love them?
Draw a picture of those you love!
Is there anyone you would say you don’t like?
Why is that? Is it maybe because they aren’t very nice or maybe they aren’t good at sharing or being kind?
It’s understandable that we aren’t friends with people who aren’t kind but…
in our passage today Jesus tells us we are meant to love EVERYBODY even if we don’t like them.
It’s not always easy to love someone we don’t like but I’m going to give you a few things that you could choose to do to help you love others this week.
Make a card or gift
Make a sweet treat like cupcakes or something chocolatey
Be kind even if someone isn’t kind back
Share your toys even if someone doesn’t share back
Can you try and do one of these this week?
Finish now by saying this prayer.
“Dear God,
Thank you that you love us no matter what!
Help us to love others even when it’s hard.
Help us to be people that share your kindness with others even if they don’t share it back.
Amen.”
FLAMES (KS1)
What did you think of today’s passage?
Can you name any superheroes and their enemies?
You might want to draw some of them now.
Jesus tells us that we are to love those that we don’t like - our favourite superhero stories would be very different if they loved each other instead!
But they are just silly programmes in real life we know it’s never okay to hurt anyone no matter how we feel about them.
Do you have any enemies?
Maybe think of someone you don’t get along with - someone who has been mean to you in some way or someone that has been mean to one of your friends. Imagine that person needed help - would they help them?
Sometimes, whole countries don’t get along with whole other countries - they are enemies. Can you think of anywhere in the world that are enemy countries just now? What if someone from an enemy country needed help - would they help them?
Think about the story of the Good Samaritan.
If you need a reminder watch THIS video.
In the story we need to understand that Jews and Samaritans were enemies. They hated each other but in this story when the Jewish man gets hurt it is the Samaritan that helps him. His enemy cares for him and looks after him.
We see that those who were meant to help didn’t stop but the one who was his enemy did.
What do you think Jesus was trying to teach us by telling this story.
Is it an easy thing to do? Why or why not?
What do they think Jesus would say about treating our enemies even when they’re not in trouble or needing help?
You might want to write down what you think Jesus was trying to teach us.
Jesus wants us to be Good Samaritans too.
Jesus is teaching us here how we are to love others even those we think to be our enemies.
Even if we don’t like someone we should always be willing to help them and show them love.
Think about someone now that you find it hard to get on with and draw a picture of them. As you draw, talk to God quietly about why it’s hard to get along with that person and ask God to help you to show love to that person.
It’s not easy to show love to those we don’t get along with but God wants to help us show the world that we are different. God’s love is in us so pray now that God will help you show that love to that person and be kind to them.
Put your picture up somewhere and keep praying for that person. You never know what might happen, prayer changes things.
BLAZE (KS2)
What did you think of the passage today? Do you remember what Jesus said about loving others particularly loving our enemies?
Think of some famous enemies now. They might be real or fictional characters like those from films or tv programmes.
What makes someone an enemy? Could you explain what an enemy is?
Have a think now of a time when someone has done something bad to you. How did it make you feel? What did it make you want to do?
You might want to write or draw your answers.
Can you think of words that help express how you feel when someone wrongs you?
The main feelings that most people feel when they are hurt is sad and angry. And when these are mixed together it can make us want to retaliate or get revenge. Basically we want the other person to feel how we feel.
But Jesus doesn’t want us to do this. He knows when people get revenge more people get hurt and it doesn’t solve or make anything feel better.
How would you feel if Jesus told you that you should forgive the person who had made you feel bad?
Why on earth would Jesus want them to forgive instead of getting even?
Remember Jesus doesn’t want us to get revenge.
It’s super hard to not get even.
It’s not easy to show love to those we don’t get along with but God wants to help us show the world that we are different.
Go get some play dough or salt dough and make it into the form of a person.
Jesus practised what he preached – he didn’t fight back when people were mean to him.
Can you think of any times Jesus was hurt or picked on and he didn’t fight back?
If you’re struggling think about the Easter story.
Jesus was arrested. He listened to the leaders and people tell lies about him.
(Make your man stand with head hanging down.)
Jesus was mocked. He had a crown of thorns and a purple robe thrown onto him.
(Add crown and cloak.)
Jesus was whipped 39 times.
(Make scratches over the back and legs of their man.)
Jesus was nailed to a cross and left to die in the sun.
(Make a cross)
And yet Jesus forgave the people who killed him.
Look at your models and remember that Jesus never asks us to do anything that he isn’t prepared to do himself!
Think about someone now that you find it hard to get on with and draw a picture of them. As you draw, talk to God quietly about why it’s hard to get along with that person and ask God to help you to show love to that person.
Put your picture up somewhere and keep praying for that person. You never know what might happen, prayer changes things.
FUN ACTIVITIES + CRAFTS!
For those who LOVE colouring and activity sheets check these out:
Love your enemies dice game!
HERE is the website with everything you need to help you create this craft and help you learn this bible verse.Heart crafts
HERE are a number of fun crafts you could choose from to keep thinking about what it means to love those we don’t like
WORSHIP + PRAYER
This song below you might recognise. This version is of children from around the world.
Today we’ve talked about loving others particularly thinking about what it means to love those we don’t like. The song below is all about blessing others. The world thinks it’s okay to hate others but Jesus tells us that everyone deserves to be loved.
What would it look like to bless those who you don’t like? Think about this as you listen to the song.
Created by Amy Farrar using several different sources including energize.net
