1 Peter 3:9: Do Not Repay Evil For Evil Or Reviling, But On The Contrary, Bless, For To This You Were Called, That You May Obtain A Blessing.

 

1 Peter 3:9

[9] Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. (ESV)

There are a lot of preachers today that are preaching that God wants to shower you with abundant blessings. If you were to ask the average professing Christian if they wanted to receive a blessing from God, you can be sure, the majority would say, "yes!" Peter gives a wonderful formula for receiving a blessing from the Lord. You must bless those who treat you in an evil way. Sound good?

The Apostle Peter makes it very clear that the Christian life is radically different from the world. It is our natural inclination as human beings to want to repay evil for evil. If someone does not give us the attention that we think we deserve, or has the audacity to call us a name, we are ready to fire back with the full force of our vengeance and wrath.

As you have already seen in previous verses, the example for our way of life is Christ himself. He calls us to humility. He was the very one who humbled himself unto death, being obedient to the Father. Here, God calls us to not repay evil for evil. Jesus himself, once again, is the example for how to respond to evil people. He was falsely accused. He did not offer a word in his defense (Matthew 27:14).

What do we do when we are reviled? We are to bless! Friend, this is not easy. You will need the Holy Spirit's help. Remember, that to this you were called. This is the way God wants you to treat others. Look for ways to say something positive about the person cursing you. They know they are being hateful. Your kindness will disarm them. You will be blessed.

Has someone treated you hatefully? Ask the Lord to help you respond with blessing. Are you having a hard time with responding the way you were called to? The Holy Spirit will enable you and empower you.