This is one of the sayings of Jesus that many people have a problem not only doing, but even believing that he actually said it.  But listen to Proverbs 25.  Many of the things that Jesus taught in his sermon are already embedded in the books of the Old Testament.  You just have to know where to look.

Proverbs 25:21-22 (KJV)
²¹If thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink:
²²For thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head, and the LORD shall reward thee.

The burning coals represents a burning conscience of wrongdoing not fire from Hell.

Keep in mind that Jesus is not saying that hating your enemy is part of the law or even in the Old Testament.  He simply says that “You have heard .”  So this isn’t something that Moses taught and for that matter it doesn’t appear anywhere in the O.T.  So Jesus is correcting a misconception that many had during his time.

We also have to clear up what he means by “enemy.”  The word in Greek is echthros (ἐχθρός), which refers to those who are hostile towards us and show hatred.  It does not appear to mean enemies of the state in this context. It refers to those who hate us and seek to do harm towards us. Verse 44 makes this clearer as the enemy is linked to those who persecute us. This also fits much better with the idea found in the Beatitudes about those who are blessed because they are being persecuted.

Matthew 5:44 (KJV)
⁴⁴But 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;

Our faith must be expressed in love if it is to be believable. Jesus teaches us that we shouldn’t repay evil with evil, but do good, especially to those who persecute us. For if we hate our enemies we are not likely to want to bring the gospel to them.  The power of the Gospel should be stronger than anything–even hatred of our enemies.

Jesus goes on to teach us that if we only love those who love us, we are not at all special or unique.  He wants us to have the right attitude so that we can become perfect (fully mature in Christ).  Even the world loves their friends and those who are good to them.  Jesus asks more from us.  He asks us to love those who persecute us. 

So what is “love?”  The context here is not some romantic feeling that we must have towards our enemy.  It is a willingness to help them when they need help.  It is providing food, shelter, and comfort for them.  Once again we can see God’s intention from the Old Testament:

Proverbs 25:21-22 (KJV)
²¹ If thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink:
²² For thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head, and the LORD shall reward thee.

This next verse bothers many believers because they simply don’t understand what it actually means.

Matthew 5:48 (KJV)
⁴⁸Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

Surprisingly, these words are even echoed in the Old Testament where the Jews are commanded to become perfect and holy.

Deuteronomy 18:13 (KJV)
¹³Thou shalt be perfect with the LORD thy God.

Leviticus 19:2 (KJV)
²Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the LORD your God am holy.

It is not that we should try to imitate God’s holiness, but that we should love his holiness and want to be complete in perfect harmony with his holiness through our faith. The perfection Jesus is speaking about is not self-righteousness, but is having the perfect relationship with God through a faith that is without flaw so that we are complete in Him.  These sayings are not always easy to hear, but this is what makes them so beautiful and perfect: that they are so unique to our minds and hearts, and that they rise above man’s self-proclaimed religions as well as man’s claims of metaphysical truths.

It is true that loving our enemy can sometimes put us in fearful situations, but John tells us that perfect love casts out all fear.

1 John 4:18 (KJV)
¹⁸There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.

So the key word throughout all of Jesus’ teachings as well as Paul’s and John’s is that love is behind our faith.  In order to teach this to others it is imperative that we not just teach it to them by words, but show it to them by our deeds as well.