“Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.” Romans 12:21
It is quite obvious that the scripture is speaking directly about the evil that is in, and that is done by people. God tells us to address this as a sin problem that we are to overcome, rather than a matter of going to war with the person.
We have a tendency to personalize evil as being unique to the individual that has done evil and develop enmity towards them. This is like a doctor who takes offense to his patients because they are sick, rather than to fight their disease. It is Satan’s purpose to cause us to be overcome of the evil, rather than exercise our faith to overcome the evil with good.
God does not tell us to go to war with the person, but rather to do what is necessary to overcome the evil. And the first cautionary and self preserving step we must take is, “Be not overcome of evil.” When men were doing evil unto Christ, He could have called fire down from Heaven and devoured them. But instead, He prayed, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.”
Next, our offense (which happens to be the proper defense also) is to overcome evil with good. “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.” Romans 12:20 We cannot defeat anything that is of the Devil, if we respond according to the ways of the Devil, instead of according to God’s Word. Disease can only be overcome with good medicine and by a healing process that overcomes the disease, that will not be corrupted itself by the disease.
There is no question that evil is deserving of judgment. We must teach this, fear it, believe it, but most importantly, we must commit the judgement of all evil into God’s hands, “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.” Romans 12:19 And in light of the surety and severity of Divine judgment against evil, we should fear for them and seek rather to pray for their conversion from the evil of their way.
Only a righteous God is in the position to judge evil. Since we all are sinners, thus worthy of condemnation ourselves, we must not usurp the “right” to avenge ourselves, but rather fear our own sin condition to the extent that we strive not to be overcome with any more evil than we already have in our adamic self, but rather that we overcome evil with good.
SHARING
