Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Assisting the Enemy

Proverbs 25:21-22
 
21If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink; 22For so you will heap coals of fire on his head, and the Lord will reward you.
 
What does it mean to give and provide for someone who has not been kind to you or has tried to harm you? It means that you will show God's love even if they refuse to do so. Showing God's love is how the common world will know He exists. We are to be examples of God's love to the world by how we treat one another. But if one doesn't treat the other well, is it all bets off? No. Often God will put those who have harmed you in a position where they will have to ask you for assistance or they may need assistance whether they ask or not. And if GOD says you are to meet that need, you do so with His love in mind. Remember, it is God who will give the directive on what you are to do. Your hurt feelings must be put in the proper context. But what about if they are not so nice to you? Does it mean you won't be angry and hurt? No. It is normal to feel those feelings. You are to acknowledge them but then you are to ask God to remove them from you. Having the anger is not a sin but acting on the anger is. Keeping the anger leads to bitterness and that is why you have to let it go. So before you give or do anything, it still has to be done with the correct intention or motive that lines up with God. Your well treatment of someone who has not been good to you is to show them that God's love in you outweighs the anger and bitterness of their heart. It is supposed to cause them to reflect and to feel a level of guilt for their less than stellar behavior toward you. It is supposed to cause them shame now rather than judgment later as the NKJ Study Bible notes. The shame is to lead them to repent and be remorseful of their behavior then God will forgive them. God gets the glory because His love shown through you is supposed to bring about change in others and bring them closer to Him. Your reward from God will come for your obedience. What if they still do not get it? You cannot control them. All you can do is your part and God will handle the rest whether good or bad. God is the God who sees or Jehovah Roi and He will handle it according to His time.