Overcome evil

Therefore "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty give him a drink; for in so doing you will reap coals of fire on his head." Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. – Romans 12.20-21

I probably could have included today’s thought with yesterday’s, but I read a comment some place that I thought perfectly encapsulated the teaching of this particular verse. I did not want this verse to get missed in all that I mentioned yesterday.

‘Do not be overcome with evil, but overcome with good.’

When we take action by feeding our hungry enemy and giving him a drink we do good. He won’t normally get it. He may not respond well. But good will have its impact.

Our goal is not to become evil like the evil around us. When we do that evil has won – it has overcome our goodness.

Instead of that our goodness should overcome the evil.

I need to go back to the days of the early church once again to illustrate this great truth.

Will Durant explains it perfectly in his The History of Civilisation – ‘There is no greater drama in human record than the sight of a few Christians, scorned or oppressed by a succession of emperors, bearing all trials with a fierce tenacity, multiplying quietly, building order while their enemies generated chaos, fighting the sword with the word, brutality with hope, and at last defeating the strongest state that history has known. Caesar and Christ had met in the arena, and Christ had won.’

A few Christians

Fighting the sword with the word,

Fighting brutality with hope,

At last defeated the strongest state that history has known.

Good finally overcame evil. Caesar and Christ had met in the arena – and Christ had won.

Don’t you think if good could overcome evil the day when Christians were tossed to the wild beasts in the arena and crucified and burnt to light the roads that good can overcome evil today?