Blessing our enemies

When someone is hurting you, and is an 'enemy', it's horrible. But, the idea is threefold:

1. Forgive them (ouch, but do it).
2. Pray for them (again, ouch, but do it).
3. Bless them (mega ouch, but do it).

God will sort them out, and eventually make them see the error of their ways.

The plus side to this (all the ouches) is, that you are able to let it go, and not hang on to the hurt/pain/revenge feelings.

Harbouring anger, hatred, and resentment, is like drinking poison. (Someone, or many famous people have said this). The only person who suffers is you. The other person isn't suffering!!!!! So, do the above and let it go, trust in God, and he will sort them out.
 
How do we bless an enemy who is persecuting us?

this is hard, Because:
I don’t know what to bless my enemies with.
Am I supposed to ask God to bless them with the things I think they lack or just believe they are blessed in general?

Romans 12:17-21...........
"Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good".

Forgiveness doesn’t mean that you naively allow others to repeatedly wrong you—it simply means that you let go of the idea of revenge against the person who wronged you without excusing the wrong. When you forgive, you limit yourself to seeking justice rather than seeking to hurt. That’s an important difference.

IF it sounds so good and it seems to be the right thing to, I wonder why we all have so much trouble doing it?????

I should say..........."Why do "I " have so much trouble with doing it???????
 
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How do we bless an enemy who is persecuting us?

this is hard, Because:
I don’t know what to bless my enemies with.
Am I supposed to ask God to bless them with the things I think they lack or just believe they are blessed in general?

Romans 12:17-21...........
"Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good".

Forgiveness doesn’t mean that you naively allow others to repeatedly wrong you—it simply means that you let go of the idea of revenge against the person who wronged you without excusing the wrong. When you forgive, you limit yourself to seeking justice rather than seeking to hurt. That’s an important difference.

IF it sounds so good and it seems to be the right thing to, I wonder why we all have so much trouble doing it?????

Hello Via;

What a great question! Even the most seasoned Christian still struggle with Blessing our enemies.

An example is when our enemy falls during the worst of times and you offer them a helping hand or a cup of cold water, can go a long way.

In Romans 12:20, 20 To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” - ESV

Aside from applying this Scripture, we still need to let God, not us, do what He will do with our enemy and prayerfully turn them into friends.

God bless you, sister, and your family!

Hello Major;

You make a great point of "letting go of the idea of revenge against the person who wronged you"

When I read this passage in Romans, a thought comes to my heart. How about when we become enemies of our own selves? Example, when I become arrogant or cursing others in my mind when they oppose my sharing with them for Christ, or when at the grocery store (during the Pandemic) the clerk gets upset with me in public for opening a bottle of shampoo to smell the fragrance? In my mind I curse them for embarrassing me.

Point is, don't we also become our own enemy by our conduct? Your thoughts?

God bless you, my brother, and your family.
 
I don’t get it....

why would I want to heap burning coals on their head?
I don’t want them to be any more mean than they already are being.

unless it’s because God wants them to loose their footing, and stumble in their ways so as to get in trouble and have to address the error of their ways.?
 
I don’t get it....

why would I want to heap burning coals on their head?
I don’t want them to be any more mean than they already are being.

unless it’s because God wants them to loose their footing, and stumble in their ways so as to get in trouble and have to address the error of their ways.?
Hello Via;

In my own words, "heaping burning coals on their head" was an Egyptian tradition either in the Old Testament, or in the New Testament as an act of repentance on the enemy's part and turn from their sinful ways. In other words we are doing this to treat our enemies in love.

I hope this helps us to understand a little.

Anyone else?
 
Hello Via;

What a great question! Even the most seasoned Christian still struggle with Blessing our enemies.

An example is when our enemy falls during the worst of times and you offer them a helping hand or a cup of cold water, can go a long way.

In Romans 12:20, 20 To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” - ESV

Aside from applying this Scripture, we still need to let God, not us, do what He will do with our enemy and prayerfully turn them into friends.

God bless you, sister, and your family!

Hello Major;

You make a great point of "letting go of the idea of revenge against the person who wronged you"

When I read this passage in Romans, a thought comes to my heart. How about when we become enemies of our own selves? Example, when I become arrogant or cursing others in my mind when they oppose my sharing with them for Christ, or when at the grocery store (during the Pandemic) the clerk gets upset with me in public for opening a bottle of shampoo to smell the fragrance? In my mind I curse them for embarrassing me.

Point is, don't we also become our own enemy by our conduct? Your thoughts?

God bless you, my brother, and your family.

I don't know if we become our own enemy but one thing I do know is that I am sitting right next to Paul in Romans 7:15........
"For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I."

You see, as humans we are the home for 2 natures. One is the Holy Spirit and the other is Sin. That sin nature can never go away as we live in our body of flesh but it can be controlled. With the help of the Holy Spirit we can say............
TODAY, I am not going to use God's name in vain!
Today, I am not going to steal anything.
TODAY, I am not going to kill anyone.

I think that is everyone was honest with themselves they would say that that is exactly where they are well.

Then after Paul tells us what he is he then gives the answer that once again speaks to wevery single person in verses 24-25........
"O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our LORD. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin."
 
Hello Via;

In my own words, "heaping burning coals on their head" was an Egyptian tradition either in the Old Testament, or in the New Testament as an act of repentance on the enemy's part and turn from their sinful ways. In other words we are doing this to treat our enemies in love.

I hope this helps us to understand a little.

Anyone else?

Agreed. It was a type of "Penance" or better said..........Paying for our own transgressions.
 
Who are your enemies?

Is it anyone that's not your friend? Sometimes family members can be enemies.

In my posts here I have made a conscious effort to use the term 'enemy' to refer to Satan. This is bot a reminder to me who our adversary is, and to avoid labeling someone else as an enemy. Once one places a label such as that he ceases to attempt to relate positively to them.

I do not consider those with whom I disagree as personal enemies. There are people that dislike me, and sometimes they do not treat me as I would like them to. In most cases I do not let them dictate my response to them. This is always a work in progress.

Yes family members can be trying. I learn who can be most vexing and I work hard to control my thoughts for the sake of family unity.
 
In my posts here I have made a conscious effort to use the term 'enemy' to refer to Satan. This is bot a reminder to me who our adversary is, and to avoid labeling someone else as an enemy. Once one places a label such as that he ceases to attempt to relate positively to them.

I do not consider those with whom I disagree as personal enemies. There are people that dislike me, and sometimes they do not treat me as I would like them to. In most cases I do not let them dictate my response to them. This is always a work in progress.

Yes family members can be trying. I learn who can be most vexing and I work hard to control my thoughts for the sake of family unity.

Well said!!!!
 
Pray for your enemies and those that persecute you. Jesus said that himself. I pray for people that abuse me to be forgiven, although admittedly its very hard to do this. I want punishment, and revenge, naturally. Jesus did not say we have to take things lying down, he just said do not curse people but bless them. I believe we can address issues with the abusers, if we need to. Most of the time we will not need to address the issues with the people abusing. Walk away, and pray for them later is what i normally do.
 
Is wanting justice the same as wanting punishment or revenge? Just wondering.
I'm thinking of people who's family members are murdered or abused and they want that person put in jail. Wouldn't revenge be you want that person murdered or abused in the same fashion..or doing the same thing back?

What about suing someone or collecting alimony if say they were married to you but were unfaithful. Or is divorce a kind of blessing as it will stop you both from fighting, lying, or wanting to kill each other.
 
Is wanting justice the same as wanting punishment or revenge? Just wondering.
I'm thinking of people who's family members are murdered or abused and they want that person put in jail. Wouldn't revenge be you want that person murdered or abused in the same fashion..or doing the same thing back?

What about suing someone or collecting alimony if say they were married to you but were unfaithful. Or is divorce a kind of blessing as it will stop you both from fighting, lying, or wanting to kill each other.


Yes. When someone is murdered or abused it is only natural that the first thing you want is revenge, punishment and justice. Hopefully, some sort of justice will occur, ie imprisonment etc. But this doesn't make it all better for the victims or the families of the victims as regards their own mental health.

IMO blessing your enemies isn't about blessing your enemies at all. It's about resolving matters in your own head, and being able to move on from that. If you can come to a place where you are no longer angry and vengeful, then you have succeeded in moving on.

If you can truly forgive, and pray for, and bless your enemies, then you can move forward with your life, and not spend the rest of it feeling bitter and sad.
 
I agree^

and revenge fantasies are seductive.
We can hold on for years because of this. It even feels good☹️ it releases Adrenalin and energy that we would not normally have otherwise

and would serial killers consider their victims enemies?
 
Would serial killers consider their victims enemies???????????

I'm pretty certain that serial killers have another agenda, which does not consider anyone else ever...

They surely are psychopaths, sociopaths, people with extremely serious mental conditions. These people are a fascination for psychologists and psychiatrists purely because they have have no 'normal' human responses to their world.

I have absolutely no idea why someone would systematically kill other people.
 
Is wanting justice the same as wanting punishment or revenge? Just wondering.
I'm thinking of people who's family members are murdered or abused and they want that person put in jail. Wouldn't revenge be you want that person murdered or abused in the same fashion..or doing the same thing back?

What about suing someone or collecting alimony if say they were married to you but were unfaithful. Or is divorce a kind of blessing as it will stop you both from fighting, lying, or wanting to kill each other.
In the temporal realm of law, there are (at least) two theories of punishment and imprisonment:

The first is rehabilitation, making the broken or deviant individual fit for his place in society.

The second is sequestration (keeping society safe by eliminating the criminal).

Neither approach is practical in all cases not without drawbacks.

The Lord does not take pleasure in the punishment of offenders but desires that all come to Him.

I came across a new (to me) word this week. It is a word describing a great personal evil.

I encourage us to look up and ponder the word epicaracy.
 
Epicaracy.

Yep, it's SCHADENFREUDE.

Which means taking pleasure from the misfortunes of others.

Other languages sometimes have perfect words for describing something. And the Germans have nailed this one.
 
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