Text: Romans 12:14-21
“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” —Romans 12:21
A father and his two young sons were burned alive, martyred for their missionary work in Odisha, India.
Graham Staines spent 34 years of his life serving the people of Odisha, working with lepers and communities in abject poverty. More than 22 families had converted to Christ, angering a gang of radical fundamentalists. One night they mobbed Staines and his two boys, trapping them in a vehicle where they were burnt alive. The three charred bodies were recovered clinging to each other. More than 10,000 people attended the funeral, while the perpetrators hailed this was “to teach a lesson to [the missionary] about his religious activities.”
Staines left behind his widow, Gladys, and daughter, Esther. A few days after the martyrdom of her husband and sons, her response was printed in every newspaper in India to the glory of Christ. She said, “I have only one message for the people of India. I’m not bitter. Neither am I angry. But I have one great desire: that each citizen of this country should establish a personal relationship with Jesus Christ who gave his life for their sins… let us burn hatred and spread the flame of Christ’s love.”
Everyone thought she would move back to Australia. No. She said God had called them to India, and she would not leave. She said, “My husband and our children have sacrificed their lives for this nation; India is my home. I hope to be here and continue to serve the needy.” Then, perhaps the most remarkable of all—may all the teenagers take note—her daughter Esther was asked how she felt about the murder of her dad, and the 13-year-old said, “I praise the Lord that He found my father worthy to die for Him.”
Our modern society doesn’t understand that kind of response. But the early church would’ve found it very familiar, even native to their faith. Jesus taught his disciples how to respond to persecution and mistreatment: “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you” (Luke 6:27-28). We know that the early apostles “rejoiced” that they were “counted worthy to suffer” for the name of Jesus (Acts 5:41), and in our devotional passage for today, we read where Paul encouraged those early Christians to never be overcome by evil, but to overcome evil with good:
“Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them… Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all… Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’ To the contrary, ‘if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:14-21)
Imagine if our native response to every wrong done to us isn’t one of defensiveness or payback, but our chief aim is to exalt Christ in our bodies “whether by life or by death” (Philippians 1:20). That kind of response can only come from unusual grace enabling us to look like “little Christs,” which is exactly what the Greek word for “Christian” means. That gives perspective to what Paul described as being “crucified with Christ” so that Jesus would “live through us” (Galatians 2:20).
Consider this beloved, if we don’t practice a Christ-like response in the little offenses of life, we will never be prepared to have a Christ-like response in the larger offenses of life. The Christian who doesn’t look like Jesus in response to someone gossiping about them is surely not prepared to look like Jesus in the face of intense, life-threatening persecution. Faithfulness always begins with the little things. What are those little “evils” in your life that need to be overcome with good this week? Think about that as you seek to abide in Him.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, help us to make it our one ambition to exalt Jesus in every episode of life. Thank you for the grace that you provide when we are asked to do what we never imagined we could do—love our enemies and bless those who persecute us. Holy Spirit, help us to do this with your power and presence. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Questions for Personal Application or Group Discussion:
- What is your native response when people do you wrong?
- When have you seen evil overcome by good?
- What is it about us that makes the command to not avenge ourselves so difficult?
- Is there a situation where you need to bless someone right now, or pray for them, though everything in you wants to repay the offense?
- How might the Lord want you to set an example for others by “doing what is honorable in the sight of all”?
