We have all heard someone, in a fit of self-righteousness, say: “These people think they are so good. I am as good as they are.” St. Luke tells us we must think differently than that. St. Luke is telling us we must not be merely as good as they are; we must be better. Our standard of goodness in not our neighbor. Our standard of goodness is God, and we must strive to be as good as God.
It is our natural human response to want retaliation for wrongs done to us. Humans love revenge. We want people to get theirs. But this is the complete opposite of Christian love. Christian love is not an emotion and it does not come from the heart. Christian love runs counter to human instinct. Christian love is a choice, an act of the will. Though we have been angry, our choice is to set aside our desire for revenge and instead wish well for our enemy, to do that which is only good for that person.
We have the example of David in the first reading, with Saul. But David heard God’s call to a different response. David not only spared Saul’s life, he offered respect. We are called not only to do to others as we would have them do to us. No, we are called to do even better than this! We are to love our enemies, lend without exception, and we are to practice mercy.
God is our standard of goodness, and human goodness will never be good enough for a Christian.