So he prepared for them a great feast, and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. And the Syrians did not come again on raids into the land of Israel. 2 Kings 6:23 - It’s rarely easy to show kindness in return to the evil others do to you. Here the Syrians were trying to take out the king of Israel and Elisha, and the perfect opportunity came for Israel to wipe out a massive portion of Syria’s army. Instead though Israel showed them kindness, and let them return home. While we see no more raiders came from Syria, how did the king of Syria respond? By sending a greater army to besiege the city where the king of Israel was. Now not only was evil returned with good, but good was returned with evil. While the choice of repaying someone’s kindness with evil sounds ridiculous, we must understand this is the reality of a world that doesn’t have Jesus as its Lord. Disciples of Christ show love as our response to hate because that’s the example Jesus set for us and called us to follow. This though isn’t the heart of the world, so don’t be surprised and don’t be angry at the Lord, like the king of Israel was, when this takes place. When evil is done to you, return it with goodness. When your goodness is taken and returned with more evil, continue the cycle and return it with more goodness. This though is going to take more from you that you possess on your own. Lean on the Holy Spirit and His spiritual fruit for help. While wildly different than the world will do, choose to respond to evil like Jesus did. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 3072
Question To Ponder: Why might someone return our goodness toward them with evil?
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