Emulate Jesus Christ -- Post 18: Tony -- From Feared Enemy to Faithful Companion.
- judyrix
- 3 hours ago
- 3 min read
By John Rix...
Is your enemy really your enemy? Enjoy this insightful article by guest blogger, John Rix.
Tony Was Terrifying.
Tony was a mongrel about the size of a labrador retriever. We children were terrified of him!
In those days, dogs were simply let out to run. Most of the time, Tony was in our neighbor's yard barking and snarling furiously protecting his property. I would hurry by on the opposite side of the street with my heart pounding trying to act like I wasn’t scared. Somehow, I always managed to escape unhurt as Tony would stop a few feet from me, still snarling as if he would tear me to shreds.
“Don’t worry,” his owners would say if they were outside. “His bark is worse than his bite.” There was little comfort in that assurance. His bark was so bad that his bite could have been very much less severe and still have been fatal.
Tony Became My Friend.
Then one day, an amazing thing happened. Tony’s owners moved away. They chose to not sell the house but to rent it out instead…and they decided not to take Tony. My parents became the new renters, and I became Tony’s new owner. Suddenly, Tony stopped barking at me. I lived in his house now, and I was part of the territory that he was so determined to protect.
Soon we were inseparable companions, and I learned to love him. Sometimes when Tony frightened an innocent pedestrian, I would say, “Don’t worry, his bark is worse than his bite.”
A year later, tragedy struck. We got home from an outing, and Tony was on the porch. This time though, instead of bounding out to meet us as usual, he just lifted his head and wagged his tail feebly. Dad discovered that Tony had been shot. He rushed the bleeding dog to the vet and came back an hour later to tell us that Tony had died.
Tony Was Gone.
It was my first experience with grief, and I wept for hours. Tony had gone from feared enemy, to faithful companion, to beloved memory, all in a matter of a year.
It was a reminder that no one need remain an enemy and that a friend can still be a friend even after death. Sometimes we might feel that "love your enemies" sounds like we're being counseled to be charitable and weak to people who have hurt us. But maybe it's just a loving God reminding us that we're all His children. We might find that if we treat each other as brothers and sisters, we would have many new friends. Wouldn't a world full of friends be a much happier place than a world filled with enemies?
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Go to the Source -- What Do the Scriptures and Respected Teachers Say?
“Ye have heard that it hath been said, thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you.”
“But behold 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.”
"But I say unto you which hear, love your enemies, do good to them which hate you, bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you. And unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek, offer also the other. And him that taketh away thy cloak, forbid not to take thy coat also."
"And if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not vex him. But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself."
"A new commandment I give unto you that as I have loved you, that ye also love one another."
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