But if your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink. For in doing so you will be heaping fiery coals on his head. Do not be conquered by evil but conquer evil with good.    Romans 12:20-21 HCSB

Many people like to misquote Jesus when He said in Matthew 5:38, “You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” Many people stop right there. Jesus, however, didn’t stop there. He went on to say, “But I tell you don’t resist an evildoer.” Jesus went on to say we should turn the other cheek, give someone our coat also if they ask for our shirt and if they ask us to walk one mile, go an extra mile.

When Jesus is telling us not to resist the evildoer, He is telling us not to retaliate against them or set ourselves against them. When he said you have heard it said and eye for an eye, He was referring to Old Testament passages in Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy when they were establishing laws against personal injury.

Romans also deals with that in Chapter 13. If we intentionally murder someone and it is not in defense of ourselves or someone else, God has put law enforcement and the court system in place to deal with that.

In Romans chapter 12, Paul is trying to explain to us how we need to live the Christian life. He ends this chapter by telling us how to treat our enemies. It is important for us to also remember what he said in verse 19. He was quoting Scripture from Deuteronomy 32:35 when God told the Israelites that vengeance was His. He tells us to leave room for His wrath.

When we return evil for evil or seek revenge, we are only hurting ourselves. We are fighting ourselves. No one wins when this happens. We can’t control someone else’s behavior, but we can control ours. We can’t force someone else to behave as a Christian, but we should be sure that we do.

Proverbs 16:7 says, “When a man’s ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies be at peace with him.” Our job is to seek the Lord with all our heart (Jeremiah 29:13) and to love the Lord with all our heart, all our soul and all our mind (Matthew 22:37). It’s God’s job to protect us.

Psalm 91:2 says, “I will say to the Lord, ‘My refuge, my fortress, my God in whom I trust.’ ”  Psalm 46:10 tells us to be still. Some versions say stop your fighting. It goes on to say that we are to know He is God and He will be exalted among the nations and exalted on earth.

When we fight amongst ourselves and perpetrate evil or seek revenge, we are going against God’s word. We are not putting Him first in our lives. We are putting pride and anger first. God hates pride. Our pride will also bring destruction and downfall (Proverbs 16:18).

If you find yourself in a battle with someone let it go. Give it over to God. He will fight your battles. Trust in Him. The only person you are hurting when you refuse to do this is yourself. And, when you fight yourself, nobody wins.

Have a great day!