DEVOTION – DAY 510

Romans 12:21 “Overcome Evil With Good”

Romans 12:21 “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

How does one overcome evil with good. The Bible gives us a good example from Genesis 37-47 that gives us an account of the life of Joseph. Joseph’s brothers sold him to slave traders out of jealousy. They then told their father Jacob that Joseph was attacked and eaten by some ferocious wild animal (Gen.37:32). Meanwhile, the slave traders took Joseph to Egypt where he was sold as a slave. He endured much hardship and injustice but God was with Joseph. Despite his hardship, God enabled Joseph to shine in all his labors. Through God’s providence, Joseph rose to become the most powerful leader in Egypt serving Pharaoh. 

Pharaoh had a dream and with God’s help, Joseph interpreted Pharaoh’s dream. Joseph advised Pharaoh that a terrible famine was on the horizon and the nation must store up its harvests in good years of plenty to offset the years of famine. As a result, Egypt was well prepared when the famine came. But Jacob and his family were desperate. Jacob sent his sons to Egypt to try to buy some provisions. Joseph’s brothers arrived in Egypt and they sought the help of the Egyptian official, not realizing that he was their brother Joseph. Joseph had an opportunity to take revenge upon his brothers. But instead of punishing them, he helped them by giving them food and provisions to take back to Jacob and their families. Joseph chose to overcome evil with good. In the process, he became a blessing to his people. 

We know a woman whose husband was killed in a motor accident. Her husband was at a road junction. When the traffic lights changed to green, his car moved forward. Unfortunately, a bus in a side road tried to beat the traffic lights and hit this man’s car. The accident led to his death. His widow was devastated. The police charged the bus driver for dangerous driving and manslaughter. At the trial, the woman met the bus driver who caused her husband’s death. She could have vented her anger and hurt at the bus driver. But she knew that it would not bring her husband back from the dead. Instead, she chose to forgive him. She chose to overcome evil with good. The bus driver was overcome by her unexpected offer of grace. This caused him to seek for her forgiveness, and to fully co-operate and to show genuine remorse and sorrow for his actions. It caused him to turn to God for forgiveness. It is not easy to overcome evil with good, but that is what God wants us to do. When we obey God, the outcome can be amazing because overcoming evil with good is so counter-intuitive. We can only do so with God’s help and He will honor us when we do so.

Let us pray: Heavenly Father, we worship you because you are wise and full of grace. Please help us to obey and follow your Word, to overcome evil with good, and to trust you with its outcome always. We humbly pray in the gracious name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Questions

  1. What would be your normal reaction and response when you are confronted by an evil action? 
  2. Will you be able to overcome evil with good, if something evil happens to you? 
  3. Will you seek the Lord for His help, and His wisdom before you respond to an evil action done to you? 
  4. Why do many people resort to taking revenge when something bad has been done to them? Why must Christians not resort to taking revenge?