7. What it means to pray for your enemy?

Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, Matthew 5, 44. Prayer for your

enemies is one of the deepest forms of love because it means that you have to really

want that something good happened to them. You might do nice things for your enemy without

any genuine desire that things go well with them. But prayer for them is in the presence

of God who knows your heart and prayer is interceding with God on their behalf. It may

be for their conversion, it may be for their repentance, it may be that they would be awakened

to the enmity in their hearts, it may be that they will be stopped in their downward spiral

of sin even if it takes disease or calamity to do it. But the prayer Jesus has in mind

here is always for their good. This is what Jesus did as he hung across. Father, forgive

them, for they know not what they do. Luke 23, 34. And it's what Stephen did as he was

being stoned. Falling to his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, Lord, do not hold

this sin against them. Acts 7, 60. Jesus is calling us not just to do good things for

our enemy like greeting them and helping supply their needs, Matthew 5, 47. He is also calling

us to desire their best and to express those desires in prayers even when the enemy is

nowhere around. Our hearts should desire their salvation and desire their presence in heaven

with us and desire their eternal happiness. May God give us grace to pray like the Apostle

Paul for the Jewish people, many of whom made life very hard for Paul. My heart's desire

and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved. Romans 10, 1.