Today’s Reading: Proverbs 25

21 If your enemies are hungry, give them bread to eat, and if they are thirsty, give them water to drink, 22 for you will heap coals of fire on their heads, and the Lord will reward you.
Proverbs 25:21-22

Be kind to all, even your enemies. 

Proverbs asks of us a high thing: be kind to those who have wronged you, done harm, caused offense, or otherwise become an enemy. Paul, in Romans 12, quotes just this verse as he admonishes the church in Rome to be kind to all, even those who persecute them. He ends that discourse with this famous verse: “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:21)

Jesus famously tells us to turn the other cheek. That phrase led to Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous concept of nonviolent social change, placing enemies in impossible situations through kindness and nonviolence, seeking social change. But for us today, when we consider our enemies, what is our impulse? 

Probably to return in kind what was done to us. In my own life, I have often faced the temptation to do to others what was done to me, an inverse golden rule! But Proverbs says to “heap burning coals on their heads.” Consider a use of fire, specifically a coal fire: it purifies. In the ancient time when Proverbs was written, to heap burning coals on the head would be to purify that enemy; through kindness, we create the opportunity for God to purify that person. 

Kindness, goodness, gentleness, these fruits of the Spirit when applied to enemies create opportunity for God to purify that person, help them see the error of their ways. We cannot do that. As much as we might want to show someone who wronged us how wrong they were, we cannot change that person’s heart. Only God can do that. But in being kind, we create additional opportunity for God to change their hearts. 

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Think
How can I show kindness to an enemy today? 

Pray
Ask God for a blessing upon the enemy brought to mind.

Do
When someone has wronged or offended us, even perhaps in traffic, find a way to show kindness.

Think, Pray, Do. As we respond in faith to scripture, God moves in power through our minds, hearts, and bodies. We are the people of God. Thanks for reading today. Go in peace. Amen.

Think, Pray, Do devotionals by Ted Goshorn follow the suggested bible reading plan from his website and book, Prayer Changes Us. Find this Bible reading plan at tedgoshorn.org/biblereading. If you have found today’s devotion helpful, don’t forget to subscribe for daily emails at tedgoshorn.org and share with others that we may think, pray, and do faithfully.