Defying Evil, Doing Good Sýnishorn

Pursue Goodness to Overcome Evil

Romans 12:21 unleashes a powerful command: “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Paul wrote similarly to the Thessalonians, “See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all people” (1 Thess. 5:15). The elderly apostle John also affirmed, “Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God” (3 John 11). The mark of one who knows God and lives an unshaken life is that they do good in the face of evil.

We live in an evil world. We have heard about the Holocaust, the destruction of entire tribes, and other atrocities throughout the world and history. We follow news stories of senseless acts of murder. We read about corruption at almost every level of government and in countless business boardrooms.

Closer to home, Christians are being maligned and misrepresented by antagonistic opponents of all that is good. And, getting personal, you can probably picture the faces of some folks who are inflicting misery on you.

Here is some great news. It is likely to get worse: “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived” (2 Tim. 3:12–13).

So how do we overcome evil with good? Here are a few obvious choices we can make every day:

1. Pray for Evildoers–David did this. “In return for my love they act as my accusers; but I am in prayer” (Ps. 109:4). Jesus commanded this: “But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 5:44–45). Our prayers may not change the evildoers, but they will change us. We will prove to be children of the Father.
2. Live a Life of Light–In the physical world, light always overcomes darkness. Our problem today is not the darkness’s pervasiveness but our failure to display the light. God calls us to live as “children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world” (Phil. 2:15).
3. Exhibit a Heart of Honor–To persecuted believers in the first century, Peter wrote, “For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men. Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God. Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king” (1 Peter 2:15–17). Honor is a testimony of the power of godliness. It is a resolve against which there is no defense, even in the face of a hostile culture.
4. Trust Your Trustworthy God–David trusted God in his darkest moments of treachery. He set his heart on God’s unchanging character and His power to change David’s character. You can do the same.

We hope you found this study encouraging and encourage you to pick-up a full copy of Never Shaken: Finding Your Footing When the World Is Sliding Awayto continue reading.