OVERCOMING EVIL WITH GOOD
Dear brethren,
Look at
Rom 12:9,21
9 “Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good; and verse 21 says: “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
God is love and love is good. Respect and honor is good. If you keep on reading verse 8-20, you’ll find out that the Spirit of God is urging us to live peacefully with all men. It says that as much as it’s up to you, live peacefully with all men. Vengeance is the Lord’s. God says He’s the only one qualified to judge between the good and the evil among us. Vengeance is not in your department; it is in God’s.
Let’s focus on an Old Testament example where someone refused to avenge evil for evil and as a result, the enemy ended up acknowledging the good in him. Please read 1 Samuel 24 for yourself. In that and the surrounding Scriptures, you’ll find that David was on the run and king Saul was after him to destroy him. David had been anointed to be king and he had been sent to Saul’s house to serve him with music. He had killed Goliath and he had gone to war for Saul and killed tens of thousands of the enemy. Saul himself had killed thousands. The women had sung the praises of David killing tens of thousands and Saul his thousands. Saul didn’t like that. Furthermore, he had been deceived that David was out to get him.
Thus Saul yielded to the spirit of envy and opened up the door for evil spirits to come in his mind and torment him. So in 1 Sam. 24, we find them in this cat and mouse chase. At least twice, David had the opportunity to kill Saul as he hunted for him with an army of 3,000 men but David would not touch “the Lord’s anointed.” The result of Saul finding out how David had the opportunity but would not harm him was the following confession from King Saul.
1 Sam 24:16-20
16 …And Saul lifted up his voice and wept. 17 Then he said to David: “You are more righteous than I; for you have rewarded me with good, whereas I have
rewarded you with evil. 18 And you have shown this day how you have dealt
well with me; for when the LORD delivered me into your hand, you did not kill
- …Therefore may the LORD reward you with good for what you have done
to me this day. 20 And now I know indeed that you shall surely be king, and that
the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand.
Brethren, avenge not yourself but rather, overcome evil with good. Vengeance belongs to the Lord.
