The apostle Paul writes:
“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Rom. 12:21)
The Greek word translated “overcome” is the normal verb for victory in a military battle, so we could translated this is as: “conquer evil with good.” That more clearly suggests that this is part of the spiritual battle between good and evil. But what would that look like in daily life?
The apostle Paul has given us a nice, compact saying that we can carry with us. But the Lord addresses the same topic with a story: the Parable of the Good Samaritan
You remember the story. A Jewish man is robbed and beaten nearly to death. When two of his Jewish countrymen approach him, they simply ignore him and pass by. Then a passing
Samaritan sees him, has mercy on him, takes care of his wounds puts him on his own donkey, takes him to an inn, covers all the expenses and promises to pay more if necessary. His action is identified as both “mercy” and “compassion”.I think we can safely assume that the man who was beaten and robbed in the story was a typical Jewish man, who like Jesus’ hearers had inherited centuries of hatred and animosity for the Samaritans. So let’s extend the story a bit. What would be the effect of the Samaritan’s mercy and compassion on the heart of that Jewish man once he had recovered? I think that he would never be the same! In fact, he may now find it impossible to hate Samaritans. In Jesus’ story were seeing a movie clip of evil being conquered by good!
So let’s think about this. People who practice evil are in the grip of it. If I respond to evil with evil, I become evil and change sides, so to speak, in the battle between good and evil.
But does this mean that I just roll-over when confronted with evil? Not at all! The command is not to passively accept evil; it is to conquer it! The strategy is completely proactive, and the parable of the Samaritan illustrates this well. If I respond to evil with good, or if I launch an assault of good even before evil strikes, I am unleashing the power of God against evil. Remember how God treats his enemies:
God did you good by giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness.” Acts 14:17
For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. Matthew 5:45
. . . God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? Romans 2:4
When Jesus was reviled, he did not revile in return. What was he doing? He was unleashing good against evil. He was fighting the battle against it, and He won!
Perhaps a modern example may help. Years ago I sold commercial detergents, chemicals and sanitizers to restaurants and hotels. Our company’s philosophy was to win customer loyalty by going the extra mile. In restaurants when we showed up to take their monthly order, we would go over all the functional items on their commercial dishwashing machine and take whatever steps necessary to put it in good working order. . .at no charge to the customer.
One afternoon I showed up a location of a local restaurant chain about the caliber of Denny’s. Norma, the manager of this location was under constant pressure because her store was adjacent to the corporate headquarters. It was like daily unannounced inspections, and it showed in her attitude. She didn’t use a broom; she rode one. After I finished my inventory, I described to her what I had done to fix plugged nozzles and adjust the rinse temperature, etc. Instead of thanking me, she launched into a vicious attack, blaming me of negligence! I was shocked and angry, but for some reason I just walked away and sat down at the front counter to write up my report. (To add insult to injury instead of giving me the customary free soda, the counter waitress charged me for a glass of water!)
As I sat at the counter, I could see right into the back room, and the Lord directed my attention to Norma. Her face was bright red, veins popping, voice raised, excoriating one of her own employees. And as I watched, the Lord whispered in my ear: “What do you think it would be like to be Norma right now and feel what she’s feeling?” I knew she was living in hell, and I felt compassion for her. So I finished my written report and apologized to her for the deplorable state of her dish machine. A month later when I made my regular call, something miraculous took place. Norma welcomed me with a smile and treated me pleasantly, actually expressing her appreciation for my excellent service!
What had taken place!? Although I didn’t realize the full significance of it at the time, the Living God had actually used me to conquered evil with good!
It’s important to remember that there is no guarantee of the response. Some people’s hearts will be softened and other people’s hearts will be hardened. But the good has been launched into the battle nonetheless.
The point I wish to make is this: For many years I saw treating people the way I had treated Norma, as the right thing to do. . .my duty. But looking back I now see that there are far deeper matters at stake. It’s not just the right thing to do. God is calling us into strategic engagements in the battle between good and evil. And the good we can wield in the conflict is far more powerful than we realize. So:
“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Rom. 12:21)