Proverbs 24:17 Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles,
Proverbs 25:21-22 21 If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat, and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink,22 for you will heap burning coals on his head, and the Lord will reward you.
SOAP – Proverbs 25:21
God has much to say about our relationship with our enemies. Believers are not simply called to forgive those who have hurt us, but also to bless them. God established a new standard for relationships which separates godly love from worldly love. A believer’s love must transcend the behavior of the recipient, just as God’s love for us transcended our behavior. Although blessing our enemies may feel impossible, God has empowered believers with the Holy Spirit. Though the flesh may be weak, God’s Spirit is strong and can do the impossible.
In what circumstance are you struggling to bless your enemies? God’s standard for love for His people is much higher than the world expects. When He commands what feels impossible, He will surely empower us to carry it out through the work of the Holy Spirit within us.
Father God, I stand in awe of Your love for me. Lord, free me from anger and bitterness. Help me to forgive and bless those whom I have forgiven. Teach me, Lord, to see Your face in the faces of my enemies so that I may learn to show them the same measure of overflowing love, grace, and mercy that You have shown me. In Jesus’ name.