Romans 12:17-21
"Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: 'It is mine to avenge; I will repay,' says the Lord. On the contrary, 'If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.' Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."
The good here doesn't refer to any common good deed. The good in the Bible refers to what God orders you to do. Matthew 5:44 says: "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you". Every time I read this passage, I would be grateful to God. God didn't just tell us to love our enemies. Rather, He tells us to pray for those who persecute us. Instead of blaming them, we need to bless them. The reason is that the way Satan attacks us today is like the checkmate in chess. First, he would create a situation to make you upset and sad. Just like in the case of Job, the enemies took everything from him overnight. Or like in the case of the Lord Jesus, Satan made Him feel hungry after forty days of fasting when He was being tempted in the wilderness. The most important reason why Satan can move in our heart and even control us is that we always have hidden anger inside us towards God, others and ourselves, so space is left for Satan.
Secondly, Satan would jump into that situation to deceive and accuse us. In the Spiritual warfare, we are often only aware of the second move Satan takes. Therefore, we often rebuke the deception and accusation of the enemies. However, we would overlook the first move Satan takes, as a result it becomes too late when we try to rebuke the work of the enemies.
When Satan creates an upsetting situation in our life, we need to turn that curse around and pray for and bless those who persecute us. It doesn't mean that you are told to bless Satan. Rather, you should bless the situation he creates and each one he uses in the name of the Lord, because once we start to bless, Satan doesn't know how to respond. The more upset you are, the happier Satan becomes, for that is his specialty. He will take his second move to checkmate right away. But once you start to bless your enemies, he is going to run out of ideas. Brothers and sisters, if there is any hidden anger in your life, you need to confess before God, then turn that curse around by praying for your enemies. The joy of the Spirit will then start to flow in your heart due to your obedience.
Pray with Pastor Tong Liu
Dear Lord, may your Spirit shine on us so that there won't be any upset or grief in our heart. May the precious blood of the Lord cleanse us, and give us courage, so that we don't repeat our mistakes, but correct them, and please you. We thank you and we pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!
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