When someone has hurt or betrayed you, it goes against your grain to resist the instinct for revenge – especially when there is an opportunity to settle the old score and your friends urge you to capitalise on it. They tell you, ‘It’s only right and fair.’ Before you decide, consider the story in 1 Samuel 24. King Saul, consumed by jealousy, took every opportunity to try and destroy his God-ordained successor, David. Driven by a desire to eliminate him, Saul took three thousand soldiers to find him and kill him. By divine appointment, Saul stopped to rest in a large cave where David and his men were hiding. David’s men said, ‘Now is a perfect opportunity to kill him and take the throne.’ Instead, David just cut off a corner of Saul’s robe and showed it to Saul later as evidence he had spared the king’s life. David’s men probably considered his strategy ludicrous, but David lived by a different code – God’s Word! He told his men, ‘Don’t kill him. For who can remain innocent after attacking the Lord’s anointed one?’ (1 Samuel 26:9 NLT). And God hasn’t changed His mind. The Bible says don’t take revenge. That’s God’s territory – stay out of it! (See Romans 12:17-21.) So what should you do? Be prepared to act contrary to your instincts! The Bible says, ‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink…overcome evil with good’ (Romans 12:20-21 NIV). Will that change your enemy? Maybe, and maybe not. But it will change your attitude, and God will bless you for it.
