By Theodore Epp

      Romans 12:14-21

      It is not our business to repay people for what they do to us. Vengeance belongs to the Lord, even as it is indicated in Deuteronomy 32:35.

      Since vengeance belongs to the Lord, we would be presuming to take the Father's business out of His hands if we tried to repay evil with evil. He takes into full account every injustice done to us, and He Himself will settle the account.

      We are to keep on loving with the love with which God has loved us. That love is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit (Rom. 5:5).

      When we are misunderstood by others, we need to draw on the Word of the Lord for strength and encouragement.

      A passage that Mrs. Epp and I have both found extremely helpful over the years is Psalm 37:5,6: "Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday."

      From this passage we see that our responsibility is to commit the whole situation to the Lord. If we have been falsely accused, we can count on the fact that God will eventually bring the true situation to light.

      I have applied these verses to my life many times, and I know from personal experience that they work. God said it; that's why it works.

      Love and forgiveness returned for the evil done to us will often bring a person to his knees and will "destroy" him as an enemy, but it will not destroy his character.

      "For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord" (Heb. 10:30).