Do Not Be Overcome

Romans 12:21 (NIV) says, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Easy to say, hard to apply. Our first reaction to a statement like this might be something along the lines of, “yeah, but…”, There are many reasons to believe we are incapable of overcoming evil, but scripture does not give us empty promises. If God commands us to overcome evil with good, he will empower us to do so.

The truth is that Satan is already defeated. Jesus crushed the head of that serpent. He overcame death and the grave and, as we learned yesterday, condemned sin in the flesh. His resurrection power is released to us even today.

Because Satan is defeated, his only strategy is deception. He wants you and me to believe that we are the exception to the rule. Maybe others can overcome, but not me!

He lies for a living.

Philippians 2:13 says, “for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” When we come into God’s family, His Spirit abides in us. This presence is filled with glory, wonder, and excitement, but his Spirit serves a greater purpose than mere enjoyment.

His Holy Spirit empowers us to overcome evil with God. As we surrender to the Lord, he begins to author things in our hearts that we never thought possible. I have friends who could not feel empathy until they gave it to Go,d and he supernaturally transformed their hearts. God can take a drug addict and make them sober, so he can certainly take your anger and make it peace. He can undo hatred, abuse, and fear and put in its place genuine love, gentleness, and hope.

Romans 12:9-21 gives us a closer look into the life of a renewed believer. I encourage you to read through it and ask God to show you where you need a heart shift to be more like him.

Amen.