We want to be children of our Heavenly Father in celestial realms of glory. This means we live the Divine Law of Love, which includes loving our enemies.

Michael Hart in his book, The Ranking of the Most (100) Influential Persons in History, found that most Christians do not love their enemies. So, Jesus was listed third in Hart’s ranking. His ranking is based on the person’s influence on the world community. Issac Newton and Mohammad were listed above Jesus. We know Hart’s ranking is wrong, because Jesus is the God, Jehovah, of the Old Testament. Jesus, clearly, should be first, because the Torah is the Law of Love, given to the world by Jehovah.

We are commanded to “Love Your Enemies”.  Matthew 5:43-48: “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. ‘ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.”

Two Profound Examples of Loving Your Enemies

Louis Zamperini came to the Lord and immediately overcame his drunkenness and horrible nightmares. In learning the great importance of forgiveness, the Lord taught Louis to love his enemies. This totally changed Louis’s life.

Zamperini’s inspiring story is profoundly documented in Laura Hillenbrand’s bestselling book, Unbroken. The movie by the same title is both inspiring, unforgettable, and lifechanging. Louis may have been the first one to beat the record for the famous “four-minute mile” had it not been for WWII. Surviving 47 days in a life raft in the Pacific Ocean was a miracle. Then the beyond-comprehension cruelty he received in Japanese prisons caused him later to become an alcoholic and have horrible nightmares. His wife led him to a Billy Graham revival, and the Lord healed him.

During his conversion process, his mind went back to his time on the life raft. He had promised God, that if He would save his life, he would devote his life to God. The Lord then taught him how to forgive and to love his enemies. Louis spent the rest of his life in ministry work and had a great influence on a lot of people.

Immaculée Ilibagiza’s incredible story of how she learned to love her enemies is shared in her book, Left to Tell. Immaculée internalized the following three profound messages as part of her surviving the 1994 Rwandan Holocaust. She and seven other women hid for 91 days cramped in a bathroom of a local pastor’s home. They were hiding from those who would kill them. After learning these lessons, miracles occurred, and they were preserved against all odds while a million Rwandans were murdered.

Three Powerful Lessons for Living the Law of Love

1. Keep fear, doubt, hate, and worry out of your lives; these are Satan’s tools and are not of God.



2. Pray every waking moment; the power of prayer is beyond our comprehension. He is always there for us if we will but reach out to Him. Through Him, we have power over Satan and his minions. Through her fervent prayers, the loving Lord visited her.

3.  We need to forgive and love everyone – especially our enemies. The Lord will teach us, as we ask, how to love this intently. By loving her enemies and by forgiveness Immaculée gained power over her enemies. The power of love is greater than any other.

Book Report

I was so impressed with Immaculée Ilibagiza’s book, Left to Tell, that I wrote a book report:  Book Report.

I highly recommend you read her book or my report, because in the days you will need what your learn there. Truly loving your enemies gives you power over them. You can walk by them and their eyes will not see you. They will drop their weapons in light of that power. Repeatedly, Immaculée witnessed that kind of loving power, as she and her friends escaped the holocaust.

I Share some Highlights from my Book Report:

Her highly respected and very intelligent father, anticipating the holocaust, asked a pastor friend to hide Immaculée. All of Immaculée’s family were killed in the holocaust, except her brother who was attending a university outside the country.

The killers were pressuring the pastor: “Where are the Tutsis? You know what we’ll do if we find them. Where is she, Pastor? Where is Immaculée? This is the last place she was seen. Where are you hiding her?”

Immaculée shared, “My spirit tumbled back into the arms of fear and doubt, and I was even more frightened than I’d been the first time the killers came. Their voices clawed at my flesh, and I felt like I was lying on a bed of burning coals. A sweeping wave of pain engulfed my body, and a thousand invisible needles stabbed my flesh. Yet I tried again to pray: Dear God, forgive me for my lapse of faith… I trust in You, God… I know that You will save us. You are stronger than the evil in this house…”

“Oh, God, please! I screamed silently. Why do You want me to go through this? Why? What else can I do to show You my love? I want to believe that You will save us, God. How can I have more faith? I’m praying so hard, God, so hard… but they’re so close, and I’m so tired! Oh, God… I’m so tired.
I felt faint – consciousness slipped away from me until the killers’ thundering voices were only a soft, distant rumble.”

“Then I was sleeping… and dreaming a sweet dream of Jesus.
I floated like a feather above the other women. I saw them trembling below me on the floor, holding their Bibles on their heads, begging God for mercy. I looked up and saw Jesus hovering above me in a pool of golden light, and his arms were reaching toward me. I smiled, and the constant aches and pains that had become part of my body after weeks of crouching disappeared. There was no hunger, no thirst, and no fear – I was so peaceful… so happy.”

“Then Jesus spoke: ‘Mountains are moved with faith, Immaculée, but if faith were easy, all the mountains would be gone. Trust in me, and know that I will never leave you. Trust in me, and have no more fear. Trust in me, and I will save you. I shall put my cross upon the door, and they will not reach you. Trust in me, and you shall live.’”

Many Miracles

Many amazing miracles followed as she saved the other women and herself from the holocaust.

During the 91 days, the Pastor would feed them scraps of food to keep them alive. He did that in the early morning hours so that the Hutus would not get suspicious of them hiding there. The Lord prompted her to learn English. Immaculée asked the Pastor for a French-English dictionary and some English books for her to read. He did that for her, and she had them read before they got out – a miracle all by itself.

Her dedication and devotion to the Lord are most inspiring. She went from 115 to 65 pounds during the 91 days in hiding with gnawing hunger as her continual companion. She kept her focus on the Lord’s will and her desire to be faithful to Him. Now she is circling the globe, inspiring countless thousands – fluently speaking in English or French.

In His Love and Timing

In the Lord’s infinite love, in His timing, He turns every evil into good. This horrible Rwandan holocaust – cost over a million lives. But it opened the door for many more than a million Rwandan Tutsi refugees from the 1959 and 1973 genocides to return to Rwanda from around the world. And they brought their children, grandchildren, and all manner of new cultural heritage and strange languages with them.

Immaculée’s above messages will help us abide in the days ahead, if we will internalize these messages as she did.

As horrible as was the 1994 Rwandan genocide, good things are continually coming out of it. Immaculée has written more books. She is now circling the globe with her most inspiring message of loving your enemies and loving and trusting the Lord. She has her own website.  In 2007, she was the recipient of the Mahatma Gandhi Reconciliation and Peace Award. See also her Wikipedia information.

Be One With The Lord

Now, learning to love our enemies is essential if we desire to be ONE with the Lord. As horrible as the 1994 Rwandan holocaust was, much more dynamic will be the future cleansing of the earth. Before the Lord comes, the wicked will destroy the wicked, and great suffering will occur. This would not happen if people would repent and turn to God.

After it is over, we will know that He was with us through it all – like Immaculée. And we will see that it was all worth it. We will be caught up in the incredible joy and incompressible love in His presence. We will be privileged to be part of the love, peace, joy, and communion in that ideal society called Zion. As we move into the millennial epoch, we will enjoy His Divine leadership as He becomes our Lord of lords and our King of kings.

His presence will fill our souls with unspeakable love and joy.

May we learn from Immaculée’s lessons. Let us love the Lord with all our hearts, minds, strengths, and souls and our neighbors as ourselves. That love includes loving our enemies. Let us prepare for the great day of the Lord is my prayer. I know God loves you and is there for you. As we truly come unto Him, He will teach us how to love that intently and to love our enemies.

David W. Allan

Photo:  CC Flicker