“And he said to David, Thou art more righteous than I: for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil. And thou hast showed this day how that thou hast dealt well with me: forasmuch as when the LORD had delivered me into thine hand, thou killedst me not.”-1 Sam. 24:17-18
Although far from perfect, David was a great man. We see his greatness in many ways, but one of the best examples is found in our text. Here we see him giving good for evil. When Saul, who was on a mission to kill David, entered the cave to attend to his needs he had no idea that David and his men were hiding there. He was at the mercy of the man he wanted to murder. But, although urged by his men to kill Saul, David spared him — cutting off a piece of his robe to prove he had done so. Not until later did Saul realize that David had shown him mercy.
What David did was God-like. Rom. 5:8 says, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”. To be like Jesus we must do the same. To return evil for evil is beast like. To return evil for good is devil-like. To return good for good is man like. To return good for evil is God-like. Who are you like? David did many things that we can’t do, but returning good for evil is something we could and should do. Although you can’t kill a lion, a bear, or a giant as David did, you can overcome evil with good.
If you are plotting evil against someone who hurt you stop it. Instead, do to them as God has done for you. Return good for evil ( Rom. 12:17-21). It might be contrary to what you want to do or what others tell you to do, but do it any way. That’s the only way to justify the hope that things will get better. This could save your marriage, keep you employed, make a friend, spare you harm, strengthen your testimony, give you peace, and help others. Most of all it will please God and that makes it important. Goodness is the only weapon that can overcome evil. Use it! — HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346
