Reading Romans 12:20, I was struck by the idea of ‘heaping burning coals’ on your enemies’ heads. On the face of it, this doesn’t sound very loving! But burning coals come from the altar in the Temple; they are pure, holy, cleansing, and consume the sacrifice placed on the altar. Food and drink for a hungry, thirsty enemy are like the fire from the altar. They are pure, holy, cleansing things.
Sin is covered by sacrifice. This is at the heart of what Yahshua did for us, he offered a sacrifice for sin – his own body – while we were still against him and the cause of his grief and suffering. By his love, he bought not only our lives but our love. And by love we must buy our enemy’s love in the same way. We don’t give our enemies the necessities of life in order to hurt them, but because of love and in order to provide an opportunity for them to change. That’s why Paul writes, ‘Don’t be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good’.
Great post, Chris. Paul wrote that it’s God’s kindness that leads people to repentance (because the arrows of condemnation just bounce off hard hearts and create a lot more collateral damage).
Psalm 25:15 “Through patience a ruler can be persuaded, and a soft tongue can break a bone.”
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Thanks for your support, Terry. Since Paul and the psalmist both knew this to be true thousands of years ago, how come it often takes our thinking so long to catch up? So many people still don’t get it!
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