SATURDAY October 10, 2020

Vengeance Belongs to God

Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Romans 12:19-21

Notice, Paul called Christians––beloved. We are the beloved children of God (Colossians 3:12). The word beloved means, “esteemed, dear, favorite, worthy of love.” Beloved is a name applied to Christians because they have been reconciled to God and judged worthy of eternal life.

Christians are not to take matters into their own hands. They should not act in anger towards another person. Let God take care of the situation. Who takes care of us? The Lord! Who takes vengeance on our enemies? The Lord! We do not have to worry about our enemies. Do your best to leave your enemies in the hands of the Lord.

Paul exhorted that Christians to overcome evil with good. In fact, Jesus instructed us to pray for our enemies. Perhaps God would not be too harsh with them. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught us to:

“…love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:43-48).

The only way we can do these things is through Christ’s love. Without His love, we shall naturally retaliate. Through Christ’s love we can love our enemies, but in our own strength we cannot–– no possible way! It is the love of Christ that constrains us. Keep your eyes on the Lord, and make sure you practice what you preach––love people.

If we understand our first and sole duty to consist of loving God supremely and loving everyone, even our enemies, for God’s dear sake, then we can enjoy spiritual tranquility under every circumstance.
~A.W. Tozer~

For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!