Evil Repaid

 

“Two wrongs do not make a right!” These words remain embedded in my mind in my mother’s stern tone of voice.

In the Bible, God is pretty clear about not repaying evil for evil (1 Thessalonians 5:14-15 below) but He makes an even more important statement about our responses to the wrongs done to us when He tells us, “Vengeance is Mine,” (Deuteronomy 32:35; Romans 12:19).

For context, when the Lord tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5 not to repay evil for evil He preceded it with some instructions about the Day of the Lord and final instructions about relationships within the body of Christ. He says:

“Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all. See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all (1Thessalonians 5:14-15).

God’s goal for us in conflicts within the body is always reconciliation. We are to “warn,” to “comfort,” “uphold,” “be patient,” and “see that no one renders evil for evil.” We are to deal with these things within the body, personally to one another. Today we have the added conflicts with those on social media that we believe to be brothers and sisters in the Lord. It is a big responsibility.

Where it appears that the vengeance of the Lord comes in is with those who will not hear the warning or who insist on repaying evil with evil. We live in difficult days. The tyranny that is coming from our civil government and even from inside the church is hard to take. We can read our Bibles and know that what is being mandated by law or proclamations of “emergencies” are evil. It can be very frustrating to repeatedly make our biblical points and have it thrown back in our faces as “racist,” or “oppressive,” or even “hate-speech.”

In Romans 12 Paul exhorts again:

If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. 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 12:18-21).

Considering the times, it seems that these verses would encourage us to persist with resistance against arguments and  humanistic laws that are evil in ways that honor God. It is easier than we think. We need to speak to our neighbors about the promises of God for obedience to His Word. We should be willing to try to influence any politician whose vote will be cast on issues that are turning our nation away from God rather than toward Him. We must be public, we must be loud enough to be heard, and we must be faithful to the Lord our God in doing it all.

And then we leave it there. When things do not go God’s way at our suggestion He is still in the battle in ways we do not see. Vengeance is His and we have to trust that He is standing ready to execute that vengeance/justice when He determines that the time is right. We may not see Him act. We may not see the results but He is faithful and when He says that vengeance is His, He does what He promises.

The last thing we want is for the vengeance of the Lord to be exacted toward us! In a more Christianized version of my mother’s words I might say, “Our sin in response to the sin of another is still sin.” It is a form of repaying evil with evil. Let’s repent if we have repaid evil with evil and rather walk and talk in faith to build the Kingdom of God one person at a time through the Truth of the gospel and the blessings of obedience to the Word of God.