Enemy Hatred is poisonous.

Life demands destroying whatever is unacceptable to the physical body. For instance, fumigation is the only solution to eradicate cockroaches, which are hated by most people. Happiness is assumed as possible after destroying all causes of unhappiness. However, that behaviour excludes human destruction.

The devastating wars, aimed at destroying humanity, across the world, are considered normal. However, destroying humanity as a means of attaining peace is delusional. Logically, the idea of destroying fellow humans, to attain peace is unworkable. Destroying enemies invites reprisal from such envisaged enemies.

In other words, those enemies, deserving to be eliminated, harbour similar vindictive ideas of eliminating those they also consider as their adversaries. In short, the pain inflicted on enemies; triggers the counter infliction, which multiplies the hurtful pain against the antagonists.

The only method, Satan uses to destroy humanity, is to plant enmity against one another. Developed nations are known to pride themselves, on having accumulated sufficient nuclear arsenal to exterminate other nations. The less-developed nations have to coalesce with the like-minded, for protection.

The spectre of World War III distresses peace-loving humanity, desperately failing to curb its inevitability. Desiring to destroy unacceptable effects can be natural, but extremely unnatural for human survival consideration.

Whatever injury one inflicts on another human being; boomerangs against oneself. God’s laws are attached to the scientific laws, activated by the law of cause and effect. In other words, nothing happens without being caused.

“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life and only a few find it. Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit, you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles?” (Matthew 7:12-16 NIV).

The above Scripture may not only be intriguing but also reveals the causes of what has bothered humanity since time immemorial. Doing well to others is doing well to oneself. Conversely, committing injury to other people is also committing injury to oneself. Jesus projected this philosophy as the bedrock of human survival.

You want good things to come your way, send good things to other people. You commit injury to other people; injury comes your way. This is a simple formula for human survival. Let us now come down to the nitty-gritty of why this simple formula cannot be ordinarily applied by humanity.

Out of ignorance, some people are quick to point fingers at considered trouble causers. In Africa, colonialism is often given the greatest blame. Africa is assumed as having been impoverished by colonialists. To start with; the law of cause and effect generates another law; used in bookkeeping transactions.

The transactional law dictates that for the existent transaction that gives, there has to be another transaction that receives and vice versa. To start up a business enterprise, one has to invest money into some workable project. The investment comprises what one gives, with anticipation of generating profit. Without capital investment, there is no business enterprise to talk about.

The virgin land needs tilling, before planting crops. A good farmer pulverizes the soil before planting and adding fertilizer, to expect to produce acceptable yields. The hard labour, being applied, can be another form of capital investment. But an inexperienced farmer can degrade that piece of land, or cause soil erosion so that the anticipated yields can no longer be forthcoming.

The same applies to any field of production. There has to be input before output can be expected. A fruit farmer provides whatever would be necessary for nurturing the fruit plants. He aims at producing sufficient fruits, according to the input invested. However, good farmers always weigh outputs, against inputs.

Is the farmer getting sufficient profits from his investments, or not? If a particular plant fails to produce sufficient yields, after investing much fertilizer, water and pesticides, the farmer may decide to disinvest. This may require deciding to replace that type of plant with another crop, to avoid further losses.

Alternatively, the farmer may start pruning, which the inexperienced farmers may consider being unacceptably cruel. Pruning might bring forth exponential yields, in the end; unless the land would be unsuitable for the crop in question. The idea would be aiming at settling with what brings good returns.

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me, you can do nothing” (John 15:1-5 NIV).

The Gardener, described as our Father, applies the same principle, aiming at examining the value of humanity. The farmer may find no value in retaining the unproductive plants. Such plants may have to be replaced by the considered productive crops.

There is nothing unusual in practising that conduct when following patterns of natural laws. The initial consideration is given, before expecting benefits. From this analogy, one can infer that God invested the beingness of Jesus to humanity.

The branches that produce fruits are those connected to Jesus, who declared the impossibility of producing fruits without Him. Jesus previously uttered similar sentiments. “Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?” (Matthew 7:16).

Christian believers, referred to, by Jesus, cannot be regarded as investors. They comprise branches of a fruitful tree that God invested through Jesus. The giver, who is the Father, provided the aspect of giving through Jesus. Christian believers produce fruits through the services of primary investment, in Jesus. The aspect of producing fruit, results from the services of Jesus.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son” (John 3:16-18 NIV).

God’s laws are axiomatic, whose effects can be observable in the law of cause and effect. The same principle is applicable in business transactions: – For an account that gives, there has to be an account that receives. An investor does this with anticipation of receiving profits.

Without the consideration of profits, an investment would be considered unwise, producing the opposite of the anticipated profits. God invested a seed that generously sprouted among humanity. That seed is Jesus, resembling a big plant, whose branches are expected to produce fruits.

The idea of pruning, or destroying the unproductive branches, may be necessary. There is nothing unusual with that conduct, as following the principle of the laws of creation. Christian believers resemble the investment, initiated through the services of Jesus. Their role is to remain attached to Jesus, whose proven services produce the anticipated fruits.

Ordinary humanity generally applies the law of Cause and effect, in conduct. When doing to others, the opposite of what is desired to be done to them, humans reap results but become surprised. What prevails would be the effects, imposed by those considered to be evil people.

The evil people exist because the good people would not have been effective. The existence of good people serves to neutralize wickedness. This is just as evil people could serve to neutralize goodness, in this world.

For instance, hatred is multiplied when good people revenge for evils committed by the considered evil people. The good principle in Jesus produces acceptable fruits. God’s investment, granted through Jesus, disallows revenge. This is a Jewel mindset which cannot agree with the common behaviour of humanity.

By ignoring what Jesus taught, but doing the opposite, the involved people cannot produce the envisaged fruits. They disconnect themselves from the vine so that it becomes impossible to produce the desired fruits.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:43-48 NIV).

Good fruits are possible through the acts of reconciliation, made possible by the branches connected to Jesus. The world may not recognize, let alone recompense the branches of Jesus. It ought to be Jesus who would be granted praises. They produce fruits, due to their attachment to Jesus.

They may be killed for what they are convinced to be right. The unconverted may regard them as foolishly sacrificing their lives. The rewards of the righteous are preserved in heaven, as such goodness cannot be recompensed in this world.

“Be careful not to do your acts of righteousness before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honoured by men. I tell you the truth; they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you” (Matthew 6:1-4 NIV).

It is impossible to produce good fruits unless one is grounded on Jesus. An ordinary giver desires to be rewarded. He feels as one closer to God when people confirm it by expressing their gratitude. Such are the people whose giving can be restricted when not treated with care. But they would not be grounded on Jesus.

The sense of belonging glues such givers among those attached to their respective denominations. Anyone saying unkindly words of such givers would be treated with scorn, even by pastors. Although aligned to generous givers, such pastors unknowingly harbour enmity toward the considered unfriendly non-givers. Therefore, the bad fruit manifests in their inability to accommodate critics.

When feeling like hating someone, that is tantamount to hating oneself. It is impossible to hate another person and leave oneself out of the equation. The axiomatic laws, governing this universe, make it impossible to hurt another person without hurting oneself. The law of loving one’s neighbour as oneself testifies to this as a living principle, without which there is no life.

The reason for hating those injuring physical bodies is because of the pain experienced in the body. But the pain inflicted on the body, though degrading, should not lead to seeking revenge. The best would be to treat those enemies in ways one would like to be treated. One does not cause the same injury to his enemies, especially having experienced how hurting that would be.

“Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life” (2 Corinthians 5:2-4 NIV).

If a Christian believer desires comfort outside the physical body, he might be living in the direction of hope. The physical life was never designed for Christian believers’ comfort. The only comfort a believer should experience is in being grounded in Jesus. Otherwise, the same believer gets poisoned by the hatred displayed towards those that persecute him day and night.

Andrew Masuku is the author of Dimensions of a New Civilization, laying down standards for uplifting Zimbabwe from the current state of economic depression into a model for other nations worldwide. A decaying tree provides an opportunity for a blossoming sprout. Written from a Christian perspective, the book is a product of inspiration, bringing relief to those having witnessed the strings of unworkable solutions––leading to the current economic and social decay. Most Zimbabweans should find the book as a long-awaited providential oasis of hope, in a simple conversational tone.

The Print copy is now available at Amazon.com for $13.99

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