Loving Even When It's Hard: Reject "Us" and "Them"

We are either rescued—or in need of rescue. There is no “us" and 'them”. Every one of us is dependent on God’s mercy, and every one of us is called to extend that mercy to others. It is no secret that our world feels increasingly divided. Anger, hostility, and hate rhetoric seem to dominate conversations—whether in politics, culture, or even within families. But as followers of Christ, we are called to a different response. We are called to love those who hate us, to bless those who curse us, and to pray for those who persecute us (Matthew 5:44). We only carry one title above all else - Christian. We should identify under that, not any political affiliation, gender, ethnicity, nationality.

Jesus Himself modeled this. When He walked the earth, He didn’t direct His anger at sinners lost in their sin—His heart was broken for them. He loved us enough to die for us while we were still sinners (Romans 5:8).

That same call rests on us. Our response must look different than the world’s. Yes, it is human to feel upset or even angry, but we are set apart. Jesus calls us the salt of the earth and the light of the world (Matthew 5:13–16). Salt changes whatever it touches—it enhances and restores. Light illuminates every environment it enters—it cannot be ignored, it reveals what the darkness wants to keep hidden, it also leads the way home. If we truly are salt and light, then how we respond in every situation, especially to those who carry different beliefs than us, should reflect the transforming power of Christ.

Jonah and the Danger of a Hardened Heart

Jonah ran from Nineveh because he didn’t think the Ninevites "deserved" God’s forgiveness. He wanted judgment, not grace. But in doing so, Jonah put himself in the dangerous place of deciding who was worthy of mercy. He forgot that he too lived only by God’s compassion. We shouldn't judge Jonah too harshly either because we all have a Jonah spirit living inside of us and if we aren't careful, we can place ourselves in the judgement seat of believing people "got what they deserved". Be honest, have you ever thought that?

When we start believing certain people don’t deserve God’s mercy, we make the same mistake as Jonah. “Judge not that you be not judged, for with what judgement you judge, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you." Matthew 7:1-2.

Jonah is a cautionary tale for all of us to reflect not on Jonah and his failures, but on ourselves and the Jonah that lives inside us all.

The Disciples and the Samaritans

The disciples showed that same attitude when a Samaritan village rejected Jesus. They asked, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?” (Luke 9:54). But Jesus rebuked them. His mission was not to destroy lives but to save them.

The Samaritan woman at the well (John 4) and the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25–37) reveal how Jesus turned human prejudice on its head. The people others avoided, He moved toward. The people others despised, He lifted up as examples. Jesus showed His heart was to save all.

The lesson? There is no us and them. There are only people in need of living water, and those that have received the fountain of everlasting life. "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

That "Them" Might Be Paul....

If anyone looked like a "them" to the early Christians, it was Saul. He was actively persecuting Christians. Yet, God was already planting the seeds. When Stephen was martyred, his final words echoed Jesus’: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them” (Acts 7:60). He didn’t curse his killers or cry out in hatred. Instead, he reflected Christ’s heart of forgiveness. His love and mercy in that moment bore powerful witness to all who watched—including Saul. Like Stephen, we are called to respond not with hate but with forgiveness that points to Jesus. We don't know who might be seeing our witness and God will use those seeds we are planting.

And think about this—Saul wasn’t just a bystander; he actively approved of Stephen’s death (Acts 8:1). He went on to continue to persecute the Church fiercely, reviling and imprisoning Christians. Yet, after an encounter with Jesus, this same Saul was transformed into Paul, the man who carried the gospel across the known world and wrote a third of the New Testament.

Stephen’s forgiveness planted a seed that God later watered. From the ashes of his martyrdom, God raised up Paul. This is the power of loving those who hate us: we never know what God will do with the hearts of those who oppose Him today. What looks like an enemy could be a future brother or sister in Christ.

Ananias: A Model of Obedience

When God told Ananias to go to Saul, he knew exactly who Saul was and what he had done. Saul had hunted believers. He had hurt his brothers and sisters in Christ. Yet when the Lord called, Ananias replied, “Here I am, Lord” (Acts 9:10).

He obeyed. He walked into the house of the very man who had been terrorizing Christians, and he called him “Brother Saul” (Acts 9:17). I just imagine that brotherly embrace as Ananias healed Saul and the Holy Spirit filled him.

That is the heart we are called to have: an obedient spirit to do the Lord’s work, to receive the redeemed into the fold, and to believe that God can truly work miracles in people. We know it's true, because He worked the same miracle in us. "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." II Corinthians 5:17

Don’t Let Satan Divide Us

Satan knows that division is one of his greatest weapons. He sows suspicion, resentment, and hostility among people because a division is a distraction. The Bible warns us in 1 John 2:9–11: “Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates a brother or sister is still in the darkness.” And again in 1 John 4:20–21: “Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar.”

When we demonize others or place them into a “them” category, we lose sight of God’s heart. We become like Jonah, refusing to go to Nineveh, or like the disciples who didn’t want to enter Samaria. But Jesus desires all people to be saved and have knowledge of the truth(II Timothy 2:4). This cannot happen if we stop seeing every human being on earth as worthy of being rescued by Him.

Carrying Truth into Hard Places

And here’s the hard part: following Jesus means we will still carry His truth into places where it is not welcome. The gospel confronts sin, and people will hate that light. Jesus warned: “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated Me first” (John 15:18).

Yet even in rejection, we are called to respond in love. “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:21). Yes, there is real evil in this world. Jesus did not deny that—He confronted demons, healed the broken, and spoke truth boldly. But notice His response: He didn’t argue with the demon-possessed; He simply commanded them with authority. He brought freedom, not fights. Even Mary Magdalene, once possessed by seven demons, was not cast aside but restored and set free to become a faithful disciple.

Jesus teaches us that the battle is not against people but against spiritual forces (Ephesians 6:12). Our weapons, then, are prayer, truth, forgiveness, and love.

Guarding Our Witness Online

In today’s world, division isn’t just face-to-face—it’s amplified online. Algorithms feed us edited, curated content designed to stir emotions and pit us against each other. What we see on social media isn’t always the full truth, and often it’s shaped to keep us outraged. It is an echo chamber in which we never fully see any other competing view points if we don't actively search. That’s why the only unshakable truth we can stand on is the Word of God.

Who we are in every setting—including online—reflects our walk with Christ. If we engage in hate or rise to the same level of hostility we see in others, we no longer look like Jesus. Instead, we must be intentional: to love in every situation, to speak truth with grace, and to let our posts and comments reflect the light of Christ.

The Call for Us Today

Friends, believe it today for the world around us -No one is too far gone. The same God who turned a persecutor into the author of a third of the New Testament is still at work. It starts with us—with how we see people, with how we refuse to harden our hearts, and with how we show Christ to the world.

There is no us and them. There are only the rescued and those still in need of rescue. And Jesus calls us to be part of His rescue mission—with truth on our lips and love in our hearts.

“By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35).

Closing Prayer

Lord,
We confess that too often we are like Jonah, quick to judge and slow to show mercy. We confess that sometimes we are like the disciples, ready to call down fire instead of offering living water. We confess that we forget the beginning of Paul’s story, that You can turn even the fiercest enemy into a faithful servant.

Give us, Lord, a Hineni spirit—a heart that says, “Here I am.”
Here I am to love when it’s hard.
Here I am to carry truth even when it is met with hatred.
Here I am to believe that no one is beyond Your reach.
Here I am to welcome the redeemed into the fold with joy.

Help us see others as You see them: infinitely loved and precious in Your sight. Remind us that there is no “us and them.” There are only the rescued and those still in need of rescue. Use us, Lord, to join You in the work of rescue. May the world see Christ in us, not just in what we say, because words are empty but in how we love. Convict our hearts when we are guilty of putting people in the “them” category and instead reveal to us something you love about them.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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