If someone
wrongs you, do not wrong them in return.
Be known
for your honesty.
Live in
peace (if possible) with all people.
Don't seek
revenge- the LORD will take care of the need for all vengeance.
If you
have an enemy and he's hungry- don't withhold food from him- feed him. If you
have an enemy that is thirsty- don't keep water from him- offering him a
drink. By feeding your enemy and giving
your enemy something to drink you are revealing the love of God in you and
prayerfully your enemy will desire to know how you could be kind to one who is
so evil to you, barring that, your kindness will bring out even more evil from
them and for that they will have to answer.
Do not let
evil overcome you, don't become like your enemy- overcome the evil in the
situation with the good that comes from God.
Rom
12:17 Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the
sight of all men.
Rom
12:18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all
men.
Rom
12:19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto
wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the
Lord.
Rom
12:20 Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him
drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.
Rom
12:21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
I don't
know when it begins, the need to hurt others because you've been hurt, but it
is at the root of most bullying- not all, but most. I'm not just talking about
school yard bullying, I'm talking about adult bullies as well, and there are a
lot of them. Often the bully will not use his or her bullying against the one
who caused their inner anger, but use that built up anger on others. They are
not overcoming the evil with good, but increasing the evil with more evil.
That's
what happens when anyone is evil towards us in any way. The subtle slight, the
small dig, the humor wrought at your expense and brushed off as just kidding
around, no harm done- all of that has a base in evil.
Evil at
its core is the worst you can imagine, but evil tendrils from that solid core
can stretch out far and thin making themselves into the smallest of hurts,
pinpricks of emotional pain.
The
tiniest of evils still must be overcome by good.
You don't
have to wait around for a substantial evil to be committed against you before
you choose to overcome evil with good. All you have to do is hold the door for
one who pushed past you only a moment ago giving you a sneer of disdain. To the
one who gives you that backhanded compliment- for example- That old shirt looks
good on you. Acknowledge silently that yes, you've been slighted but are going
to choose to ignore the slight, that is overcoming evil with good.
So often,
too often in fact, people excuse their evilness behind the guise of meaning
well, of caring or else they wouldn't have said anything.
Little
evils have a way of taking on disguises that the big evils could never pull
off. Little evils dressed up in glitter and sunshine surround us and we in turn
find it very easy to fill our lives with these pretty little evils.
We need to
overcome all the evils in our lives, every single one without any excuse for
their cute, harmlessness.
Loving our
enemies, includes the loved ones who are enemies in disguise.
Overcome
the evil with GOOD, not with more evil.
Payback is left to God not us. No return of evil for evil in anyway is a
good thing. No spreading the evil in anyway is a good thing.
May God
help us to overcome evil with good in all the ways we possibly can and if we
find ourselves wanting to return evil for evil, please Lord, help us repent and
seek forgiveness.
Please,
Lord, we would be Yours, now and forever!
We believe, help Thou our unbelief! Teach us in the ways we should go.
Let the Holy Spirit live in us in all things. You are our HOPE, our
everlasting, eternal HOPE. Keep us from evil- Jesus prayed this for us, and we
pray for this- deliver us from evil. YOURS is the kingdom, YOURS is the power,
YOURS is the glory forever, God, forever!
Amen.
