“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Romans 12:21
While in college, I read a great book called Strength to Love by Martin Luther King Jr. I underlined a quote in that book that spoke to me:
“Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.” -Martin Luther King Jr., Strength to Love
Can you hear the wisdom of God’s word saturated in what Dr. King wrote? He obviously took God’s Word to heart and lived by example amidst fierce opposition and temptation to hate. Instead of giving in to hate, he chose to inspire others to follow God’s example. God had every right to hate us because of our sin. We were His enemies. "Yet God demonstrated His powerful love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Rom. 5:8). God was victorious over our sin and set us free to live a new life with Him. He overcame evil with His powerful love.
At times, this world can downright inspire you to hate. Prejudiced perspectives. False accusations. Misjudgments. Lies. Senseless violence. Abuse. Murder… there are countless reasons to become hateful and vindictive. Yet remember God’s great and gracious love for you. Find the strength to love in His love for you. Look upon others through the eyes of Christ.
Martin Luther King Jr. wisely pointed out that hating others would only add to the hate that is already so prevalent in this world. Doing deeds of darkness will only add to the darkness. It is the love of God that this world needs. We are called to accept one another as Christ has accepted us. We are called to love as Christ has loved us. Does this mean that we compromise the truth? Of course not. But it does mean that we don’t allow the truth to cause us to stop loving others. It may be true that another person is ignorant and hateful. Don’t let that truth stop you from loving them. It was true that we were sinners, but God didn’t allow that truth to stop His love for us.
The enemy of God longs to instigate and fuel the fire of burning hatred. On this Martin Luther King Jr. Day, let us find the strength to love others in the love that God has shown to us. Let us not be overcome by the evils of this world but instead make it our intention to overcome evil by doing good.