Radical Love
Before receiving Christ, love is generally based on two revelations: Self Love, and Loving people who love you. Matthew 5:46 says, "If you love those who love you, do you deserve a reward? Even the tax collectors do that!" The sad reality is that it is not easy to walk in love with some people, but those are precisely the people that Christ has called YOU and me to love. Most people have self love and most people love people who love them back. This is how most people love but this is also what separates true Christians from unreal Christians. Talk is cheap, a lot of people say that they are walking in the love of God but they are selective about who they really walk in love with. Is your conversion and thought pattern about people who have hurt you negative? Do you feel like you are always the victim and everyone hurts you which gives you the right (in your own mind) to NOT walk in love? Do you make excuses to avoid walking in love? Is your love conditional (you only love people when they do what YOU want them to do)? This is what Jesus said to do in response to difficult people who have hurt and offended you, "But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them who despitefully use you, and persecute you." Matthew 5:44
You can't really talk about walking in love without bringing up offense. It's so easy to fall into the trap of offense. As a matter of fact, the Greek word for offense is "skandalon." We get our English word "scandalize" from it. It means "the bait of a trap." How easy we fall into the trap of offense. What's sad is, you're the one that ends up bound because offense leads to unforgiveness and bitterness and before you know it, you're not acting at all like a Christian. You can't be selective about who you want to show love to.
God has called us to love our enemies. There is a lot of humility involved with loving your enemies. As Christians we have to take the high road and walk in forgiveness. Many times we allow pride to get in the way which prevents us from displaying the powerful love of God at a time when it's most needed. When are we as Christians going to walk in spiritual maturity. I say this in complete love, "GROW UP." It's not all about you, it's about Jesus and advancing His kingdom here on earth. If someone hurts you, turn the other cheek... Commit yourself to loving radically, the way Jesus loves.
A lot of times we get caught up in who is right and who is wrong. Let me inform you, if you are a Christian, and you are not walking in love and forgiveness, you are sinning against God. Therefore you are wrong. Who really cares if someone doesn't see your point of view or agree with you. What does it really matter? At the end of the day, pride seeks to be 'right' about everything, while God calls us to humble ourselves.
I challenge you to commit yourself to first repent for not walking in love and then pray, "really pray" for those who have hurt you and those you have not shown love to. This also means you have to show love within yourself, just at the thought of that person.
"Love is NOT rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs." I Corinthians 13:5