Even while we kill and punish we must try to feel about the enemy as we feel about ourselves — to wish that he were not bad, to hope that he may, in this world or another, be cured: in fact, to wish his good.
That is what is meant in the Bible by loving him: wishing his good, not feeling fond of him nor saying he is nice when he is not.
✦ Wishing His Good
Lewis strips the command to love your enemy of every sentimental distortion — and what remains is harder than sentiment, not softer. Love is not feeling fond of someone. It is not saying he is nice when he is not. It is not pretending the wrong was not wrong. It is not the warm feeling the world calls love.
Love is wishing his good. Wanting him cured. Hoping — in this world or another — that the badness in him will be healed. That is the biblical command. Not to manufacture affection. Not to approve of evil. Not to call darkness light. To wish the enemy's good. To want for him what God wants for him — restoration, not destruction.
This is the hardest love. Because the heart that has been wronged does not naturally wish the wrongdoer well. The natural heart wishes justice — or worse. And Lewis says: even while justice is done — even while we kill and punish — the love continues. The wish for the enemy's good does not stop because the punishment begins. The punishment addresses the wrong. The love addresses the person. And both can be present in the same heart at the same time. 🙏
✦ Not Feeling — Willing
Lewis makes the distinction that frees the soul from the impossible burden of manufacturing emotions. The command is not: feel fond of your enemy. That would be a command to produce what only God can produce. The command is: wish his good. That is an act of the will — not a feeling. Aquinas said devotion is the will given readily. Lewis says love is the will directed toward the enemy's good.
The will can choose to wish good even when the feelings refuse. The will can pray for the enemy's cure even when the heart is still bleeding from his blow. The will can hope for his restoration even when every nerve says he deserves nothing. Because love — biblical love — is not a feeling. It is a decision. And decisions can be made in the teeth of contrary feelings. That is what makes them acts of the will — and that is what makes them love. 🙏
"That is what is meant in the Bible by loving him: wishing his good, not feeling fond of him nor saying he is nice when he is not."
C.S. Lewis · On Love · The hardest love — and the truestPeter strongly urged the scattered believers to love one another deeply and sincerely. He didn't base his argument on legal rules, human nature, or philosophy, but on the divine identity God gave them.
Think of it like a mentor training young royalty; they encourage noble behavior by reminding the students of their royal lineage.
✦ The Royal Lineage
Spurgeon takes Peter's command to love — the same command Lewis just defined — and asks: what is the basis for it? Not law. Not human nature. Not philosophy. Identity. Peter bases the command to love on who the believers are — not on what they should do. The doing flows from the being. The behavior flows from the identity.
And the identity is royal. Spurgeon sees the picture: a mentor training young royalty. Not teaching them the rules of court — teaching them who they are. You are a prince. Act like one. You are a princess. Carry yourself accordingly. The noble behavior is not imposed from outside. It flows from the lineage. When you know who you are, you know how to act.
Peter looks at the scattered, persecuted, struggling believers and says: you are heirs of glory. You are descendants of the King of Kings. You are the world's true aristocracy. Not the aristocracy of birth or wealth or education. The aristocracy of the incorruptible seed. Born not of corruptible seed — not of flesh, not of blood, not of the will of man — but of incorruptible seed, through the Word of God that lives and abides forever. 🙏
He tells them: "Love each other because of your noble origin. You were born from seed that never dies, descended from the Creator Himself, and destined for eternity.
Unlike the fading things of this world, you will last forever."
✦ Seed That Never Dies
Spurgeon gives Peter's argument its full weight. Love each other — because of who you are. Not because you are told to. Not because the rules require it. Because your origin demands it. You were born from seed that never dies — the incorruptible seed of the Word of God. You are descended from the Creator Himself — not from corruptible human ancestry but from the eternal, unchangeable, incorruptible God. And you are destined for eternity — not for the fading, wilting, dying things of this world.
Jowett said yesterday: the inheritance is incorruptible, undefiled, unfading. Spurgeon says: the one who inherits is also incorruptible. The seed does not die. The birth does not reverse. The lineage does not expire. Unlike the fading things of this world, you will last forever. The grass withers. The flower fades. But the one born of incorruptible seed — endures. 🙏
What is a Christian? Compared to a king, a believer possesses both royal status and a sacred holiness.
A king's power is often just in his crown, but a Christian's nobility is woven into their very soul. Through spiritual rebirth, a believer is set apart, called to live differently than the crowd.
✦ Woven Into the Soul
Spurgeon asks the question and gives the answer that redefines everything: what is a Christian? Not a person who follows rules. Not a person who attends church. Not a person who holds correct opinions. A person whose nobility is woven into the soul itself.
A king's power is in his crown — external, removable, dependent on circumstance. Take the crown off and the king looks like anyone else. But a Christian's nobility is not in a crown. It is in the soul. It cannot be removed. It cannot be taken by enemies. It cannot be lost in the manifold trials. It is woven — threaded through the very fabric of the person — by the spiritual rebirth that made a new creature out of the old.
This is why Le said: my personal time with the Lord is who I am. Not what she does. Who she is. The identity is not external. It is woven. The nobility is not performed. It is inherent. And the life that flows from it — the rising before dawn, the devotion, the love, the faithfulness — is not the cause of the identity. It is the expression of it. 🙏
Because you are chosen and distinguished by grace, you shouldn't settle for a worldly life.
Let your high calling and bright future motivate you to pursue holiness and stay far away from even the hint of evil.
✦ Don't Settle
Spurgeon closes with the practical consequence of the royal identity: don't settle. You are chosen. You are distinguished by grace. You are born of incorruptible seed, descended from the King of Kings, destined for eternity. And someone with that identity should not settle for a worldly life.
The high calling is the motivation. The bright future is the fuel. Not guilt. Not fear. Not the threat of punishment. Identity. You are royalty — act like it. You are born of incorruptible seed — live accordingly. You are destined for an inheritance that does not fade — so why settle for things that do?
Lewis said: love your enemy by wishing his good — because that is what love truly is. Spurgeon says: the reason you can love that way is because of who you are. The incorruptible seed produces incorruptible love. The royal identity produces noble behavior. The one who knows she is a daughter of the King — loves as the King loves. Not by feeling fond. By wishing good. By willing the enemy's cure. By choosing love when every nerve says otherwise. Because that is what royalty does. 🙏
"A king's power is often just in his crown, but a Christian's nobility is woven into their very soul."
Charles Spurgeon · 1 Peter 1:23 · Born of seed that never diesWishing His Good
Love is not feeling fond. It is wishing the enemy's good — hoping he may be cured. Not approving evil. Not pretending wrong is right. Willing his restoration. The hardest love — and the truest.
Royal Lineage
Peter bases the command to love on identity, not law. You are heirs of glory, descendants of the King of Kings. The noble behavior flows from the lineage. Know who you are — and you know how to act.
Incorruptible Seed
Born not of corruptible seed but incorruptible. Descended from the Creator. Destined for eternity. Unlike the fading things of this world — you will last forever. The seed does not die.
Woven Into the Soul
A king's power is in his crown — removable. A Christian's nobility is woven into the soul — permanent. Set apart by rebirth. Called to live differently. Don't settle for a worldly life.