Why do Christians love everyone?

[Soloist]

I appreciate the responses but I remain unconvinced.

Of course, Christians don't actually "love everyone".

Of course, but even thinking that there is some obligation in this direction has practical implications that I consider harmful. Non-violence is one example. More generally if people feel an obligation toward cockroaches, then there will be more cockroaches and this isn't a good thing. This is how I view Christian support for most of humanity.

For contrast, consider the Islamic, Jewish, and Old Testament view on this issue. Islam says that one has an obligation not to harm non-Muslims unless they threaten you, but no further obligation. Judaism says that Jews have no moral obligations toward non-Jews at all. My understanding of the Old Testament is that one has an obligation not to harm people from cultures that are not overwhelmingly evil. I consider the Christian and Jewish positions to be unreasonable (opposite) extremes while the Islamic and Old Testament positions seem reasonable to me. If I thought that the Christian position was supported by the New Testament then at least I would accept it for Christians. I hope to move to the Mennonite area in north Mexico in a few months and then I will be able to speak directly to Mennonites there about this issue.

Why did God send Jonah to Nineveh as it was an extremely wicked city?

Ultimately I will not convince you of anything. Your world view is in opposition to reasons God did what He did in the old Testament and the New. He is the same God of judgment and justice in both. The coming wrath in the future will destroy the wicked. God says, Vengeance is mine. We are called not to take revenge for evil done against us but are called to repay evil with good. I reject the crusades and the notion that you can "kill" someone into the kingdom and that its loving to do so.
If you are willing to take the time, consider the story of the man who owed many talents.

This is Jesus speaking here,
Matt 18:23-35
23 Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants.
24 And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents.1
25 But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.
26 The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.2
27 Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.
28 But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest.3
29 And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.
30 And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.
31 So when his fellowservants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done.
and punished him who shewed no mercy to his fellow
32 Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me:
33 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee?
34 And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.
35 So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.

We who have lived in sin recognize the high cost to free us and the high cost to ourselves. While we hate the sin, we do not hate those who are bound by the grip of sin. We would desire their freedom even at the cost of our own lives. Jesus died on the cross for the love of all men, He owns the cattle on a thousand hills, but His own sons, he gives freedom to choose. Affectively this ties non-resistance into the very act of following Jesus by taking up our own crosses, "those who seek to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for My sake will gain eternal life" Non-resistance is the highest act of love, for a man might die for a righteous man, but why would a God lower Himself to die on the cross for evil wicked men?
How could I possibly say I love God and not follow His example? For me, Jesus offers life and hope for the future, something this godless society hasn't been able to ever achieve. The Jews God came to first, but they rejected Him as prophesied and the King, Our King was open to all of us without having to become Jews. They are circumcised in the flesh, we are in the heart, if we truly follow Him.

While you are correct that it is right and good to hate evil, one who is wise however, will see that all men are evil and it takes self rejection of the natural evil man to put on the new man. If we are called to follow Jesus, we must be willing to lay down our life for Him as is wrote in numerous passages in the new testament. This time was prophesied in the old as the time our swords would be beat in to plowshares and all men from every nation would come to worship the Lord. The judgement on the wicked is coming and God is not hasty to destroy them as He desires them to be cleansed from the filth of sin but only willingly. The patience of God is blessedly long suffering as many of us can attest with thanksgiving.
While Jesus will reject those who practice evil, we are called to warn the lost so that they might perhaps be saved.

There is a time and a place for the harsh rebukes, and I would hazard a guess you would experience this if you attended a CM church or rubbed shoulders with them long enough. Jesus didn't rebuke the Jewish leaders harshly at the first meeting, but gave them time to prove their worth or in this case, worthlessness. He also prophesied that they would kill the righteous as their fathers did. His rebuke was not hateful, but rather, a warning. At least a few of the converts after his resurrection were from the Pharisees. Steven had some harsh words of warning for the Pharisees too, but his last words were that of forgiving his enemies, and one of his main murderers ended up converting and writing a large part of the New Testament.

If you want, I would be happy for a back and forth dialog on the phone, I was in the Navy and I joined to protect this country, I now serve a different leader, and my mission is changed. Now rather then save earthly life with medicine, I seek to serve in the Christian corps offering the water of life.

[Soloist]

This is something my wife wrote

I follow the Old Testament and I hate the vast majority of humanity. Amos 5:15 says to hate evil, and the vast majority of humanity is evil, so I hate them. By my understanding, I am following God's will. Christians clearly disagree with this. Christians believe that they are supposed to love everyone. But I can find no support for this view in the New Testament.

A common argument is Matthew 5:43-44. In 43 "love your neighbor" is supported by the Old Testament (Leviticus 19:18) but "hate your enemy" is not. Then in 44 Jesus says to love your enemies. But which enemies? Jesus does not say to love ALL your enemies. Clearly if your enemy is your neighbor then you are required to love him because he is your neighbor. But what if you enemy is not your neighbor? This question isn't answered here. Exodus 23:4-5 talks about one's obligations to one's enemies. But in the Old Testament context this is clearly about enemies who are neighbors. This is clear because the Old Testament is mostly about moral obligations to members of one's community, not outsiders. Did Jesus change this? Without Jesus saying that he did, I have to assume that he didn't.

Well, in regards to this, it wasn't the Jews asking their fellow Jews to carry their packs, but rather their foreign oppressors, the Romans. It would have been very contrary to expectation for a Jew to not only happily walk the first mile with you, but to offer to go a second one.
Romans 5:6-10
For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly
For scarcely for a righteous man will one die, yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.
For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

Now, for Old testament examples of love for enemies, Isaac was willing to allow the herdsman of Gerar to take his wells, rather than fight for them (Genesis 26:15-220 When the Syrians came and attacked Israel, God struck the army blind, and Elisha told the king of Israel to feed the army, rather than smite them, which effected the men so that at least in that age, they never troubled Israel again. Finally, years later, Jonah was rather vexed at being sent to preach repentance to Israel's worst enemies, the Assyrian capitol of Ninevah. He even was so annoyed about the fact that they repented that he told God he would rather be dead. Here was God's reply:

Then said the LORD, "Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a night:
And should I not spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand; and also much cattle?"
Jonah 4:10-11

And this brings me to the question of who is my neighbor which is discussed in Luke 10:29-37. Jesus answers the question in Luke 10:37. Did Jesus say that everyone is the man's neighbor? Absolutely not, Jesus said the opposite. Jesus gave the examples of 3 people and then said that only 1 out of the 3 is the man's neighbor. The examples that Jesus gave are very significant. Jesus rejects the priest who represents shared theology. Then Jesus reject the Levite who represents ancestry (racism). Finally Jesus approves of the Samaritan because he helps the man. So Jesus's conclusion is that a real community is a group of people who help each other, and that members of this community are neighbors. Other people are not neighbors, so you have no obligation so such people, just as the Old Testament says.

Now for this, you have to remember how the Samaritan "neighbor" would have been treated by this Jew he had saved had they met in the marketplace. Due to some bad blood you can read about in the Old Testament, the Jews hated the Samaritans. They would avoid them, not speak to them, and possibly a lot worse. That Jewish man would have been unlikely to stop to help the Samaritan if the situation was reversed, and this is what made the Samaritan man so amazing. Men who should have helped their fellow Jew left him to die, while one hated by the Jews went above and beyond.

A good example of Jesus acting on these principles is Matthew 15:21-28. Here Jesus clearly doesn't act with love toward the Canaanite woman until 27 where she calls Israelites "masters" which shows that she accepts the Israelites and their religion. Only then does Jesus help her. This is consistent with my understanding of Luke 10:29-37 and also consistent with the Old Testament story of Ruth.

I see what you mean, but think this is a flawed argument, as Jesus wasn't acting in hatred, but merely testing her faith and humility. He used this to prove that a Gentile woman had much more faith than a lot of the Jews, just like in the case of the centurion. I don't think Jesus actually showed hatred to anyone. Also, reading this story, it seems like she was referring to Jesus as the master, and the Israelites as the children.

Finally there is Matthew 23 which is hardly an expression of love for the Pharisees. In the HCSB translation of Matthew 23:33, Jesus says of the Pharisees "Snakes! Brood of vipers! How can you escape being condemned to hell?". When was the last time a Mennonite spoke of a group of evil people in this way? And if they haven't, why do the Mennonites refuse to follow Jesus's example here?

Now, for this last point. These are harsh words from Jesus. I would call it tough love, because if Jesus didn't expose their hypocrisy, they would die feeling justified only to wake up to a harsh reality. I would compare it to talking to my mom when she's drunk. I have never called her a viper or anything like that, but apparently, telling her that she's wrecking her health and that if she continues in this path, she is going to die young and is probably NOT going to heaven and she needs to at least try to get help ends up not sounding loving to her. In fact, future drunk calls after that conversation usually add Mennonites and my husband to all the people who "hate" her. Ironically, I was almost crying when I was talking to her, and telling someone the truth out of love is a whole lot harder than just ignoring sin to have a friendly relationship here on earth. I think I've seen some Mennonites and other Anabaptists do this, but obviously, we do have to fight against fear of men, and we shouldn't allow examples of human shortcomings justify throwing out the concept. I've failed at times because I don't like conflict.

As a biblical reference, 1 Corinthians 5 tells them to excommunicate the man who is with his stepmom, and basically hand him over to Satan for the destruction of his flesh in hopes of the salvation of his soul. Some people might have found this harsh or hateful, but if this is the same guy mentioned in 2 Corinthians, it must have worked.

In short, there is a lot of evidence that the New Testament calls us to love ALL our enemies, and the early Christians weren't picky on who they tried to convert. Peter and Paul tell us to obey rulers when those same rulers are the ones who ended up putting them to death, and to pray for ALL men and speak evil of none. (1 Timothy 2:1-6, Titus 3:1-7)

I do think it's a hard concept to accept at times, and even harder to practice, but it's probably good to ask questions about it and pray for God to show you the truth and be willing to accept what He shows you in His word.

[haithabu]

I think you misunderstand Jesus’ exchange with the Canaanite woman.

She had approached him under false pretences, calling him “son of David” as if she also were a Jew. And why? - because she herself believed that he would not help her on any other terms. So when Jesus answered that it was not fit to give the children’s bread to the dogs he was repeating her belief back to her and at the same time calling her on her pretence.

I believe that Jesus was also led by the Spirit to challenge her in that way specifically to elicit her statement of faith. The Messiah has no need to ration his powers but there is enough for the house of Israel and all others besides for “God does not give the Spirit by measure”. (John 3:34)

This is a beautiful example of how God honours the importunity of faith.

[Soloist]

I think you misunderstand Jesus’ exchange with the Canaanite woman.

She had approached him under false pretences, calling him “son of David” as if she also were a Jew. And why? - because she herself believed that he would not help her on any other terms. So when Jesus answered that it was not fit to give the children’s bread to the dogs he was repeating her belief back to her and at the same time calling her on her pretence.

I believe that Jesus was also led by the Spirit to challenge her in that way specifically to elicit her statement of faith. The Messiah has no need to ration his powers but there is enough for the house of Israel and all others besides for “God does not give the Spirit by measure”. (John 3:34)

This is a beautiful example of how God honours the importunity of faith.

I don't think she was being false, I think she recognized Jesus as the Messiah from the beginning. He was if anything testing her faith and willingness to humble herself. Which she did, she called herself a dog basically. Why would she be praised at the end for her faith if she was being deceptive or if she didn't really believe.
She starts out by calling him Kurios and son of David. This is a pretty clear link to prophecies of the old testament. Her saying this was probably not implying she was ethnically Jewish, especially as she was not in Israel's territory. She was persistent as well, as we are told to using the example of the unrighteous judge or the man asking for bread at night.

[haithabu]

The Canaanite woman clearly had faith in Jesus’ powers as the Messiah but I doubt that she had faith that the Messiah would be interested in helping her as a Gentile until he provoked it in her. But that’s reading between the lines. It doesn’t say so in the text though to me that reading makes the most internal sense in understanding their encounter.

As to what Jesus was doing in Tyre, according to Josephus there was a Jewish community there, and it is apparent from Jesus’ first comment that he was ministering specifically to the Jews when the woman approached him.

Josephus additionally tells us that the Tyreans were bitter enemies of the Jewish community so the woman’s approach to Jesus was crossing a very hard line of division which may have entailed risk to her from both sides. Such was her desperation.

In these fraught circumstances Jesus’ praise of the woman’s faith would have been a lot more impactful to the listeners than we would think from a casual reading. I wonder if this, the only recorded act of Jesus from his Tyrean excursion was the God appointment for which the Spirit led him there in the first place?

[PetrChelcicky]

Franklin,
my point of view is that my (our?) capacity for loving is rather limited, so I should not even try to love everyone at the same time. On the other hand: "Loving my neighbour" means to me loving just the person I am occupied with at this moment. This is important as a recommendation and I have some technical tricks to come near to it (like looking for things we both have in common, or looking for his strong and admirable sides etc.)
If there is nobody I'm just occupied with, and if I have a free capacity for loving, I feel that I am completely at ease to decide for myself: Whom do I just want to care for - in this way making him my neighbour?
This means that in my eyes it is completely normal that in a conflict different people take different stands: Both conflicting parties need care, and life would be much worse if Christian faith would demand us all to care for the members of the same party. If we all decide for ourselves whom we make our neighbour there is a good chance that everyone has at last one Christian friend at his side.

[Sudsy]

I appreciate the responses but I remain unconvinced.

Of course, Christians don't actually "love everyone".

Of course, but even thinking that there is some obligation in this direction has practical implications that I consider harmful. Non-violence is one example. More generally if people feel an obligation toward cockroaches, then there will be more cockroaches and this isn't a good thing. This is how I view Christian support for most of humanity.

I could agree with this, except that the goal of non-violent love is not coexistence, it is transformation. If Christian love toward cockroaches could set them on a path to becoming (for example) chickens, there would be fewer cockroaches and this would be a good thing. The point of loving enemies is that they may not remain enemies but become friends, and by the grace of God, even brothers.

I especially like the part I made bold. Put another way when the love of God fills our hearts the 'obligation' we feel to love others is a concern for their eternal destiny. When this concern / love for people's souls grips our hearts there will be fewer 'cockroaches', as you put it.

This kind of love for everyone is not something we can manufacture in ourselves as our ego is primarily concerned about ourselves. Rather it is a love that God places there as our minds are transformed to view things from a whole new perspective. Many of us sense this love for other's souls yet we allow the fear of how man might respond negatively to hearing the Gospel. When love rules in this area, this fear no longer has it's grip on us. If this eternal concern is not in the mind of a professing Christian, then they likely have not been born again.

[Franklin]

Why did God send Jonah to Nineveh as it was an extremely wicked city?

To preach to them, not to love them. And in this case the preaching worked.

Ultimately I will not convince you of anything. Your world view is in opposition to reasons God did what He did in the old Testament and the New. He is the same God of judgment and justice in both. The coming wrath in the future will destroy the wicked. God says, Vengeance is mine. We are called not to take revenge for evil done against us but are called to repay evil with good. I reject the crusades and the notion that you can "kill" someone into the kingdom and that its loving to do so.

I also reject the crusades and I am opposed to violence except in self-defense. But when God kills billions of modern people, I will certainly rejoice.

Regarding Matt 18:21-35, I interpret it differently. The slave was unjust, treating the other slave worse than he himself was treated. It is also about forgiveness of "my brother" which I interpret to be a member of my community. Members of a good community are unlikely to pure evil, so if they occasionally make mistakes, it is good to forgive them. I consider members of modern culture to basically be pure evil, and I would never forgive them anything unless they reject modern culture.

While you are correct that it is right and good to hate evil, one who is wise however, will see that all men are evil and it takes self rejection of the natural evil man to put on the new man.

People vary in their degree of evil. This can be seen in the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. God destroyed these people because they were exceptionally evil, more evil than most people. I think members of modern culture are basically the same as the people of Sodom and Gomorrah.

If you want, I would be happy for a back and forth dialog on the phone, I was in the Navy and I joined to protect this country, I now serve a different leader, and my mission is changed. Now rather then save earthly life with medicine, I seek to serve in the Christian corps offering the water of life.

Sure but I leave my phone in airplane mode to prevent it from endlessly annoying me. My Skype ID is "franklin_schmidt".

[Franklin]

Someone on another forum posted a strong argument based on the details of the text in Matthew 5:43-48. So now my question has been answer and I understand why Christians are supposed to love everyone. Thank God that I am not a Christian since I would find it absolutely impossible to love members of modern culture.

[Sudsy]

Someone on another forum posted a strong argument based on the details of the text in Matthew 5:43-48. So now my question has been answer and I understand why Christians are supposed to love everyone. Thank God that I am not a Christian since I would find it absolutely impossible to love members of modern culture.

I believe many if not most of us, in our own strength and ability, cannot love everyone. This is a supernatural ability God gives us when we become a Christ follower and the Holy Spirit gives us this ability. It isn't something we just work up in ourselves. We begin to see people differently and there is a recognition that we all have our issues. The more we rely on this new source, the Holy Spirit, the more we can see how Jesus could even say as He was being crucified - 'Father forgive them for they know not what they do'.

I had an uncle that had nothing good to say on African Americans whatsoever. He gave his life to Christ and became a new creation. My father told me how they went to a mission in downtown Detroit, Michigan shortly after my uncle's conversion and dad said 'I knew uncle Sandy was born again as I watched him with his arm around an African American, struggling with alcohol, and praying with him for alcohol deliverance'.

There is a religion called 'Christianity' that is not at all like being a born again Christ follower. We don't love others to be obedient, we love others because God has changed our hearts/minds to see people differently.