Our Enemies As Christians

Let's talk about when it comes to our enemies as Christians, the Bible says;
-Matthew. 5:44 -But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you
-Luke 6:28 -Bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you

You will do exactly as these scriptures say, and them your enemies will keep going and going and devising more strategies to plot your demise, to curse you differently, to make your life more miserable, they will bear false witness against you also, they will slander you more and a whole lot of unpleasant things.

So, what I want to know is; is it wrong to stop praying for them and blessing them but in turn fight back with scriptures like;
-Psalm 70:2 -May those who try to kill me be humiliated and put to shame. May those who take delight in my trouble be turned back in disgrace.
-Psalm 40:14 -Let those be put to shame and disappointed altogether who seek to snatch away my life; let those be turned back and brought to dishonor who delight in my hurt!
-Psalms 35:7-9 -So let sudden ruin come upon them! Let them be caught in the trap they set for me! Let them be destroyed in the pit they dug for me.

What’s the way?

This is a great question! Because on the surface, it seems contradictory, doesn't it? How can I love my enemy while praying for their humiliation?

Well, the truth is there are times I've been humiliated in life- and that's exactly what I needed. Humiliated, put to shame, turned back in disgrace, disappointed, brought to dishonor, and suddenly ruined and caught in the trap I set, and destroyed in the pit I dug for others to fall into.

Sometimes God kicking the crap out of you, or breaking your hip is exactly the mercy you need from him. I certainly don't recommend praying like this all the time; but it's the Holy Spirit that guided these words: they were appropriate for the psalmists situation.

Approach this like a soldier on a rank-basis.
Psalms are written by David, my least favorite character in the Bible by the way.
The other verses are said by Jesus Himself !

So, i ignore David and follow Jesus. Very simple.

One need not fight back, but to defend oneself is permissible. To stand against spiritual enemies is required (Ephesians 6). Indeed Christ told His apostles to defend themselves and purchase swords in His absence. While He did not defend Himself in going to the cross, the apostle Paul did by appealing to Cesar. David's psalms are inspired by the Holy Spirit, so they need to be applied with discretion when needed. Loving your enemy does not mean condoning his evil deeds. It means not retaliating with the same behavior but blessing him.

Hi @FredBotswana

I say we heap hot coals upon their heads the way the Scriptures tell us to.

There are some important principles of Scripture that many preachers do not realize:. Therefore, they mislead Christians into inappropriate attitudes.

A. Psalms are for today. We don't tear out the pages as if the imprecatory prayers no longer apply. There's a reason that most New Testaments have Psalms included. We are told to sing them and Jesus quoted the OT.
Some pastors infer that David was in the flesh when he wrote the imprecatory/ curses in Psalms.
This is wrong because they were inspired by the Holy Spirit.

B. There's a difference between our personal enemies and God's enemies.
For example, someone might cuss you out or cut you off in traffic. That's a common occurrence. Pray for them.
That doesn't make them an enemy of God. He often refers to those as Reprobates. The Bible tells us about the enemies of God. He gives OT descriptions and New Testament, ie. Romans chapter 1 , the pharisees who misled the masses, and those who "offended children." There are those who Jesus did not say to offer kindness and pray for them. He said it would be better for a mill stone to be tied to them and be cast into the sea.
What do the mainstream pastors and pastorettes do? Welcome them into their churches with a Satanic emblem hanging from the front of their buildings. They want to include them in the assembly with children they offend. This should not be, but many of those pastors are reprobates, enemies of God.

Both are the words of Jesus. Very simple.

why is David your least favorite character? is it the adultery and murder, or putting a plague on his people?

So who do you say that it was that struck the child, born to David by the woman he committed adultery with, that the child become sick and die?

It’s mainly his ego, so when I read the story of David the lesson that I get is: Don’t be like David.

Well, I know in the land where all men are created equal, the people have vested what they call qualified immunity in some that exempts them from the same standards of conduct that others are subjected to. So if David, being king, had a divine right as their ruler still held himself subject to a higher law then I would say that would be an attribute of David that was worthy of respect.

Well, none of my enemies are Christians. None of my enemies have become Christians (that I know). I don't generally spend mental energy on speculative scenarios... so "my enemies as Christians" is somewhat irrelevant to me.

hope & pray for enemies always. never give up. if this isn't working for a Christian, then said Christian is doing something wrong, like maybe not forgiving, slandering, heart really isn't for enemy, just speaking worthless words, etc. or it isn't just the right time for God to move in the sinner's actions.

The way is where the Holy Spirit is guiding you. It is up to the individual to walk this chosen path.

the bible calls David a man after God's own heart. why not be like him?

I just don't want to be in that mental state of carrying a huge ego without knowing it.
The reasons for this are many and they involve culture (where i come from), Bible interpretations and lessons learned.
David pushes me away from God but i only tolerate him because Jesus Christ mentions the psalms so i try to respect David based on what the Highest says. But he's not someone who i want to hang out with or be with or learn anything from because he has nothing good to teach.

Paul on the other end is one example of crushing his ego. There he is a master pharisee, persecuting all the new believers, he's very sure of what he's doing and he's full of himself.
God takes his eyesight and he immediately learns a lesson in who The Most High is, then completely surrenders his ego and says that "to live is for Christ and to die is gain for Christ".
Paul is someone who i like a lot on this aspect.

But the person i like the most is Peter. He's a family man and a regular working man who i identify with.

Paul wrote to Timothy: "Alexander the coppersmith did great harm to me. The Lord will repay him according to his deeds."

Does that sound like Paul was hoping for Alexander to get off lightly?

Does that sound like Paul was hoping for Alexander to get off lightly?[/QUOTE]

Not even

You have enemies because you believe in God and follow the teachings of Christ. If you are persecuted for this, pray for your enemies that through your good conduct and witness, they may turn to God, convert and repent of their sins. Many are blinded to the truth and don't have eyes to see or understand the scriptures. These that never had a chance to learn the truth will be taught during the millennium reign of Christ.

careful now. dont talk that way about God's anointed kings. you know the bible teaches david will also be ruling in the kingdom? he will be your superior, i wonder how he feels about you thinking that way? how does Jesus feel about you thinking that way? Jesus is the Lord of David, and the son of David.