Bless Our Enemies

Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.

Romans 12:14

Opposition must never be a surprise to a Christian walking with God.

For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only yo believe on  him, but also to suffer for his sake
Philippians 1:29

It is therefore to be expected in the life of a Christian. When a Christian has been dragged before the courts to be judged for his faith or ostracized simply for being a Christian, it is important that we understand biblically what and how we are to respond. What is Paul’s admonition to us when we face persecution and opposition from our families and friends simply for trusting Christ as our Saviour?

When we are being persecuted, God wants us to

Bless our persecutors: “bless them which persecute you”. It is easy to bless our friends, it is harder to bless someone who appears to be our enemy, and want your reputation ruined or some hurt to come upon you. The word “bless” means to ask the blessing of God on this person’s life, speaking nice things about him and helping him whenever we can. How many of us would shun away from this teaching because it is impossible for any human to do this? Who would want to serve someone who hates him and wishes him poor and to be injured? Is it not true that history is filled with people with unforgiveness in their hearts when evil was done against them? God tells us to bless our persecutors. It also refers to wishing them well and that God’s peace be upon them.

Paul inserts another time, the world “bless”. When one instruction is repeated twice in the same verse, God meant it as a reinforcement to His will and work. It is therefore an important will of God that we bless and not withhold this work of blessing and saying kind things to the individual. This is an important principle to follow. When Paul was writing to the Roman Christians, the persecution was hard, the pain was real, the prisons were cold and the guards were cruel. When Christians were captured, they were almost certain to end up in the amphitheater to be thrown to wild beasts, or burnt at the stake. Yet, in the midst of this threat, and when their innermost thoughts would reject the reasons for blessing their enemies, the Lord’s Word came to remind them to bless, and continue to bless.

The natural opposite reaction to the harsh cruelties of persecution and opposition is to curse and wish ill to the offenders. The word curse has the idea of wishing absolute evil on the individual, to the extent of wishing eternal damnation if possible. If it is possible for the one who cursed to do the deed, he will. However, if he is powerless to cause the ill on the other, he would ask God to do so. It is never the Lord’s will to wish evil and hell on anyone. It is therefore not the will of God for any of His child to do so.

In times of distress and pain, sometimes inflicted by men, when the natural tendency is to curse and to wish sinful and evil thoughts on the individual, the Lord’s teaching is to continue to bless, and not even think about cursing the individual. All unkind words, wrong thoughts and evil intentions are to be put away from the heart of the believer. It is sincerely believed by this author that none of us would ever wish ill upon another, to cause another to suffer or go through pain. May the Lord be pleased to make us a people of blessing: that we will receive the blessings of God, and also to be a blessing to others.