How Can We Overcome Evil with Good?
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One of the reasons that the Bible was given to us is to instruct and correct us. Quite often the Bible goes against the flow of the way we naturally think and behave. One of those instructive and corrective statements is found in Romans 12:21:
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
This is one of those verses that goes against your natural instinct. For many when you are confronted with evil, a typical response and if we are honest probably the most desired response, is to strike back with evil. You hit me, I will hit you back and try to do it even harder. If you have ever felt that way it does not mean you are not a Christian, it simply means you are human.
Yet despite this natural desire to want to strike back, God desires us to have a different reaction wanting us to overcome evil with good. Hopefully you are thinking how I am thinking. How can we overcome evil with good?
What Does "Overcome Evil With Good" Mean?
I want to make sure you understand what this verse means. Let start with some realities. You will have enemies in this world. You will have people who will not like you and may want to do harm to you. This may not always be physical harm, for example they may try to hurt your reputation (social media is good for doing that.)
Because of the sinful, fallen world we live in you must recognize the possibility that you can and will experience the effects of sin and evil in this life. Sad to say but this will not just come from people who are outside the church, sometimes other Christians will do evil to you. If you want proof just look at some of the evil ways Christians talk to each other on social media.
When this happens, whether the evil comes from a believer or unbeliever, the natural tendency is to respond to the evil with more evil which is what this verse is addressing.
The word for overcome that is used here can also mean conquer, which some translations use.
“Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.” – (CSB)
When you are confronted with evil and you respond with evil then you have been conquered by evil. However, if you don’t want to be conquered by evil than the only way to overcome that is by doing the opposite, which is good. By doing good it helps to override the desire to want to respond with evil. Let’s use a math equation to help understand this. I hope you remember negative and positive numbers if not let me refresh your memory.
Negative + Negative = A number more negative
Negative + Positive = A number more positive
If I have a negative number (we’ll call this evil done to me), and I add to it another negative number (I respond back with evil), I end up with simply more of the same (greater evil). However, if I have a negative number (still evil) and I add to it a positive number (I respond to evil with good) I can reduce the negative number and possibly cancel it out altogether.
The point is that you cannot conquer evil if you are overcome by it, you can only conquer it by doing the opposite which in this case is good. If evil is the disease, then good is the antidote and as it says in Romans 12:21, it is the only antidote.
What Is the Context of Romans 12?
The book of Romans was Paul’s letter to the church in Rome. This section begins with a discourse about love in action. Paul gives clear instructions on how we should live with those who are for us and with those who are against us. Look at these instructions because within these instructions you will discover how you can overcome evil with good.
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.
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.”
Paul lays out very clearly the steps it takes to overcome evil with good. I will be the first to tell you that even though the steps are clear they are not always easy. Let’s see if we can take these instructions and make it practical to our everyday lives.
How Can We Overcome Evil with Good?
1. Think about Your Words and Actions
In verse 14 Paul says, “bless those who persecute you.” This word bless means a few things. It means to give thanks to, to speak well of, or to act kindly towards. The first practical step is treat those who are evil towards you with kindness. To respond in kindness typically requires a slower response not an immediate one. You may have to take a moment to think about what you will say or how you will respond in the situation, which follows the wisdom from James of being slow to speak and slow to become angry (James 1:19).
By the way kindness does not mean you stay in a dangerous place or situation where you can be physically harmed. If you are in that situation and you can get out the best thing to do is to get to a place of safety. Kindness means when you want to curse that person, you bless them instead. Again I am not saying this is easy but I will get to why this is important in a moment.
2. Be a Peacemaker
Another one of Paul’s instructions was not to be the troublemaker. We are encouraged not just to live in peace but to do everything we can to create and maintain peace with everyone. This means that in difficult situations look to become a peacemaker instead of a fire starter.
This may require you to walk away from some arguments or heated disputes. It could mean that you let the other person win the debate. You might have to be the first one to apologize even if you were not in the wrong. Being a peacemaker means you may willingly give up your right to be proven right for the sake of maintaining peace.
You choose to humble yourself and put a higher premium on the relationship than on being right or winning. If winning is required at all costs, even at the expense of relationships, friendships, or just because you want to get back at someone then you have been overcome by evil.
3. Be a Contrarian
Feeding your enemy when he is hungry or giving him something to drink when he is thirsty is the opposite of what you may want to do. Yet this is what God requires us to do. He is telling us to treat our enemies better than they expect or better than they deserve. I know this feels like a tough pill but you must remember when you do this you are responding in the exact way that God treats us. Remember this verse from the Psalms.
“He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.” – Psalm 103:10
If you are going to overcome evil with good then this is going to have to be a part of it. By doing so you are giving back the mercy that you have freely received.
Why Should We Love and Be Kind to Our Enemies?
If you are human and normal, if someone has wronged you or done evil to you it is possible you may ask why should I be kind to my enemies? They certainly weren’t kind to me. Let me give you three reasons why this is important.
- Your kindness leaves room for repentance.
- Your kindness leaves room for reconciliation.
- Your kindness leaves room for God to repay.
When we respond in kindness it leaves room for the possibility of repentance and reconciliation. We should never forget that it is God’s kindness that leads us to repentance (Rom. 2:4). Hopefully by displaying kindness and good in the face of evil it will cause the person or persons to repent.
Seeing a person repent should always be our first goal and desire because that is in line with God’s heart. What kindness also does is leave from for God to repay. Ultimately God is the judge and he knows how to repay evil. The difference is he does it from a place of righteousness, not from a place of revenge. This does not mean we pray for God to exact revenge on our behalf, but we leave room for him to do it in the way he sees fit.
A Prayer for Grace
When it comes down to how we can overcome evil with good you must acknowledge that it is a work of grace that God must do in your heart. Loving your enemies will not come naturally but it will come when you give room for the Holy Spirit to move and operate in your life. This help flows out of God’s grace that is sufficient to help you accomplish this. If you are struggling in this area, the answer is not more willpower but more grace from the power of the Holy Spirit to help you overcome evil with good, love your enemies, and bless those who have done wrong to you.
Heavenly Father,
I pray that you would give me the grace to love those who are against me. Help me to overcome my natural desire to respond with evil and fill me with your Spirit that will give me your power to love my enemies and overcome evil with good.
Amen
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