What credit is that to you?
Luke 6:32-34 - A good question for each of us to ask ourselves each day is “Who can I bless today in Jesus’ name?”
“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full.”
Luke 6:32-34 NIV
In the context of the Gospel of Luke, these verses can almost seem like an afterthought, a set of questions that Jesus is asking His disciples. After all, the preceding verse is one of the cornerstones of Christianity: the Golden Rule (Luke 6:31) — “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” But all of these words from Jesus bolster His lesson to the disciples to treat everyone with love, sacrifice and respect — even your enemies.
It’s easy to love those who love us. As Jesus said, “even sinners love those who love them.” So if we simply return love that is given to us by others, we aren’t emulating Jesus as we should. The character of followers of Christ should be different from that of the rest of the world. David Guzik points out why in this explanation from Enduring Word:
There are many good reasons why more should be expected from Christians than others:
They claim to have something that others do not have; they claim to be renewed, repentant, and redeemed by Jesus Christ.
They do in fact have something that others do not have; they are in fact renewed, repentant, and redeemed by Jesus Christ.
They have a power that others do not have; they can do all things through Christ who strengthens them.
They have the Spirit of God dwelling within them.
They have a better future than others do.
In all three of these verses, Jesus provides examples of what happens naturally with those who are unrepentant nonbelievers. Even they can be “good”, displaying what appears to be love to those who love them, doing good to those who do good to them in return, and lending to others fully expecting to be repaid. From Precept Austin, we read this explanation of how Jesus is teaching the disciples by contrasting natural behavior with the supernatural behavior of believers:
Jesus wants to make sure the disciples (and apostles) see that the behavior He is calling them to carry out is radical and distinctly different than the behavior one sees in natural (unsaved) men in the world. Indeed the behavior Jesus is calling for is supernatural behavior, ultimately behavior that can ONLY be successfully carried out by continually, wholly yielding to the Holy Spirit, depending on His supernatural power. When they carry out the behaviors in this manner, God will be glorified because people will realize that He is the only One Who could do these things (Matthew 5:16).
In these verses, Jesus is imploring His followers to adopt a lifestyle that demonstrates God’s mercy to everyone. 19th Century preacher and evangelist J.C. Ryle, cited in Precept Austin, wrote this about Luke 6:32-34:
"our Lord points out to His disciples the necessity of their having a higher standard of duty to their neighbor than the children of this world. He reminds them that to love those who love them, and do good to those who do good to them, and lend to those of whom they hope to receive, is to act no better than “the sinner” who knows nothing of the Gospel. The Christian must be altogether another style of man. His feelings of love, and his deeds of kindness, must be like his Master’s,—free and gratuitous. He must let men see that he loves others from higher principles than the ungodly do, and that his charity is not confined to those from whom he hopes to get something in return. Anybody can show kindness and charity, when he hopes to gain something by it But such charity should never content a Christian. The man who is content with it, ought to remember that his practice does not rise an inch above the level of an old Roman or Greek idolater.” (J.C. Ryle)
You’ve probably heard of people “paying it backwards” at fast-food restaurants and coffee shops — paying the tab for people in cars behind them or standing behind them in line, even if they didn’t know those other people. Some Christian radio stations have encouraged this as a way to teach people to do Christ-like acts of kindness for people who certainly didn’t expect it, and then leave them a note (or tell them directly) that they did this kindness because of their love for Christ.
This idea has a strong biblical basis. The person giving is spending money for someone else’s benefit, for a person they don’t know and who might even be hostile to Christians. They’re giving without any guaranteed hope of return.
Jesus tells us in these verses to do good to people who can’t pay us back! As Christians, we should be concerned about giving to others selflessly and not about “getting credit” for that giving. A good question for each of us to ask ourselves each day is “Who can I bless today in Jesus’ name?”
Precept Austin also provides this explanation about the last verse, providing background into why Jesus encourages giving without expecting to be repaid:
In the Roman world, interest rates sometimes ran as high as 48 percent, but the Old Testament forbade usury, or charging interest. Because many Jewish creditors feared that they would lose their investment if they lent too near the seventh year (when the law required cancellation of all debts), they stopped lending then, hurting the small farmers who needed to borrow for planting. Jewish teachers thus found a way to circumvent this law so the poor could borrow so long as they repaid. Jesus argues that this practice should not be necessary; those with resources should help those without, whether or not they would lose money by doing so. Biblical laws about lending to the poor before the year of release (Deut 15:9; every seventh year debts were forgiven; cf. Lev 25) support Jesus’ principle here, but Jesus goes even farther in emphasizing unselfish giving. Although the law limited selfishness, Jesus looks to the heart of the law and advocates sacrifice for one’s neighbor. A good man’s “sons” were expected to exemplify their father’s character; thus God’s children should act like him.
Jesus is teaching us that we should freely give of our love and resources without expecting reciprocity. Generosity is just one way to start emulating His unconditional love for us!
Heaven On Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear God, Thank You for Your unconditional love. Help me to love those who may not love me back. Teach me to do good without expecting anything in return.
Grant me the strength to lend freely, without seeking repayment.
Open my heart to those who are difficult to love.
Let my actions reflect Your grace and kindness.
May I embody the love that You show to all, even to those who oppose me. In Jesus’ name, I pray. AMEN