"For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?"
Matthew 5:46 NASB1995
The implication in this verse is if you “only” love those who love you. This is an ellipsis - a figure of speech where something is missing on purpose. What is missing intentionally is also what is emphasized explicitly. "Only". Don't only love those who love you. That's what the lowliest, most selfish, uncaring and worldly in our society (tax farmers) would think/do. Don't be like them.
Who is the hero in the story of your life? I think most people when they think of their own life they think of themselves as the hero of their own story. After all, if you were going to write an autobiography it would most likely be about you. And yet, your life is not about you. Your life is about the One who gave you life. And He is the hero of your story.
Don't hate me. I'm just the messenger. Actually, I'm just the messenger of the Messenger. But you are not the center of the universe. In fact, the center of the universe is not even the center of the universe. The center of the universe is the one who created the universe. (Hebrews 1:2; Colossians 1:16-18) The fact of the matter is, God is not in your story, you are in His story. God was not in Adam and Eve's story, they are in His story (For evidence of this fact see: The Bible). God is not in the story of Moses, or King David, or Elijah the prophet, but they are all people in His story. Why is that so important for us to understand and why am I stressing it so much?
Because it affects where we see ourselves in this teaching of Jesus and it affects our ability to apply that teaching. In the sentence before, Jesus said, "...so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous."(Matthew 5:45) Who is the evil that God causes the sun to rise on? Who is the unrighteous that God sends rain on? Have they both not been you? Me? Us? All of us at some point or another and possibly even now? "What then? Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin; as it is written, 'There is none righteous, not even one;'" (Romans 3:9-10)
Again, why is that so important for us to understand and why am I stressing it so much? Because better understanding that is what helps me to fulfill this teaching of Jesus and to love others, to love others who are evil, to love others who are evil even against me just like God loves me, and graces me, and is merciful to me, and provides for me, and cares for me when I have been evil and unrighteous towards others or Him!
When I am the center of my own story it's easy for me to look at others as less than, and for me to create the villains in my story. But when I am in God's story, and I am the sinner, I am the evil one, I am the unrighteous one, I am the villain, then everybody else are just people. They are people just like me. They are people who need care, and concern, and grace, and mercy, and forgiveness, and kindness, and provision, and love just like me.
When I make God the center of the universe, and I put myself in His story where I belong, then the Gentiles nor anyone else will be my standard; but Jesus Christ is my Lord, and God is my standard. I will not treat others how they have treated me, I will treat others how God has treated me. I will not treat others how others tell me to treat others, I will treat others how God has told me to treat others.
At the end of my story, I want people to say "He did like Jesus", not "He did like the tax collectors (farmers)". "He loved like the Lord", not "He loved like the Gentiles". I want my reward to be "Enter in my good and faithful servant" (Matthew 25:21), not "Depart from Me. I never knew you"(Matthew 7:23). What about you?
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