Revenge

By Pastor Bob Rasmussen

It is terrific to be in the house of the Lord this morning! Congratulations again to brother Aaron for his baptism last week. Can we praise the Lord for that for a second? Let us pray.

The title of my sermon this morning is called “Revenge”. Sounds kind of scary but if you will bear with me, I hope that it makes sense. My wife Diana shared for a couple of weeks in bible study called “God’s Deliverance from Domestic Abuse”. I appreciated her honesty as she shared what she went through, how God moved in her life, and how she was able to get through that time.

If I am being honest, it was uncomfortable for me – not because of what she shared about her story – but the villains in her story. I love my wife, and the thought of what some of these people subjected her to, made my blood boil. It made me angry. It made me feel helpless, even though I was not part of her story yet, not yet in her life.

I wanted to be like Michael J Fox and jump in a DeLorean and travel back in time and have some of what I call “The woodshed Ministry” – where I would take them out back and beat them senseless. And then I also thought about our kids and how their father, Dianas ex, would time after time make promises to do things with them and then would not show up. Their hearts would be broken and they cried and we were there to pick up the pieces.

One time, it was Halloween, I think – they were so excited and then again, he was a no show. I felt their pain and I actually went over there and asked him to step outside. I wanted him to feel the pain that they were going through. True story – he wouldn’t come out – which was a good thing in retrospect.And I know that there are many folks in here who have had issues and tragedies, that they too must want some sort of justice.

When Diana and I first met, I remember her quoting a bible verse about how God will get the vengeance and there will be restoration.

• Joel 2:25 And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.

And I was like that’s cool, but how about now? Which reminds me of a book in Romans. When I first started attending another church many years ago, one of the first things that the Pastor of that church asked us to do was transcribe the book of Romans.

It was not a task that I really liked – at first. I don’t know about you but I don’t write very much anymore by hand. I type almost everything, so it was challenging to hand write all those words. But as I continued going through those chapters, that word was written on my heart as it were. I think that taking that time in the word, really helped me in that part of my life. It was when I was really trying to learn more about God.

Romans is a letter to a church that Paul is writing to in Rome. He hasn’t been there, but in Chapter 12 we see that he is instructing the church how to get along. He tells the church how to treat each other. It is pretty encouraging.  It opens with this verse:

• Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

That is a powerful scripture, and a good reminder for us all on how we should respond to a Savior, who did the one thing that we could not – rescue us from the wrath and punishment of God. This was no small thing, it is everything.

No one, not one of us is or could be good enough to save us from the punishment of our sins.And He does not leave us there, no Jesus has made us the sons and daughters of the God most high, he made us royalty, brought us in into the priesthood, by His blood, His perfect sacrifice.

The gift of His Holy Spirit living inside of us, promises us that He will be with us all of our days until Glory – hallelujah and amen!Let me also say this. Brother Aaron, how have you felt this week since last Sunday? Awesome, isn’t it? Now, everything is perfect and no challenges at all, right?There will be challenges, that’s the truth. Jesus told us!

• John 16:33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

And just because He saved us, I think that in a lot of churches you will hear a message taught that Jesus is like a Genie or something. That everything will be good. That you won’t have issues with money, or marriage, or you job – whatever it is.  And the problem with that besides being unbiblical, is that as soon as life happens, people walk away and feel offended by God and leave the church.

There is also one more scripture from Jesus that gives us a glimpse of what a life with Him might happen. We should consider.

• Matthew 10:21 And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death. 22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

Yikes! Pastor Jeff just shared a teaching on the rapture and what things will look like and it was a lot of information, especially chopping heads off. And at times I think I can get a little lethargic looking at the world the way it actually is.

We have it pretty good here in the United States. We are able to meet this morning and worship together, freely. We do not have to worry as much that we will not be attacked as we gather here this morning.  But in Burkino Faso: According to Burkinabe church leaders from two denominations, attacks on Christians by Islamist insurgents are rapidly increasing. Leaders from one denomination say that from January 2024 until the beginning of 2025, 10 pastors were murdered, 220 displaced, 7 abducted, 179 churches closed, 22 churches burned or destroyed, and 177 Christians murdered. Another denomination reports that 797 pastors (70%) have been displaced, 7 killed, and 97 churches burned or destroyed with 946 churches closed and 115 Christians killed.

In Ethiopia: A Christian convert from Islam was killed for sharing his faith with other Muslims. Ibrahim Mohammed became a follower of Christ in 2021 and immediately began sharing the Good News with others in his predominantly Muslim community in the Oromia region of Ethiopia. In one year, he led 80 Muslims to Christ, and he devoted himself to discipling the new believers. Because of his bold witness, Ibrahim began receiving death threats from local Islamists; still, he remained determined to share about Christ. On May 15, 2025, he was witnessing in a rural area when someone wearing Islamic dress approached him, told him it would be his last time to evangelize and shot him. He was rushed to the hospital, where he died from his injuries three days later. 

Every day, an average of more than 12 Christians are killed for their faith. That’s two Christians every hour … murdered because they follow Jesus. This is the Open Doors project data from 2024.

Other numbers are just as horrifying. 7,679 churches or public Christian properties were attacked or forced to close. 4,744 believers were arrested, imprisoned, detained without trial or sentenced—just because of their faith. 3,775 followers of Jesus were abducted. 3,944 Christians were sexually assaulted, sexually harassed or forcibly married to non-Christians. Nearly 55,000 believers were mentally or physically abused for their faith, and 28,368 houses, shops or businesses belonging to Christians were attacked. And finally, nearly 210,000 followers of Christ were forced to flee their homes.

These are our brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus, experiencing what Jesus warned us all about in His Word! Now Paul, when he was writing this, he wasn’t writing from a place or a time we live like we have now. But back in his time, they were persecuting Christians as well. They were not just persecuting them, they were feeding them to the lions, literally!

Christians were beheaded, Christians were beaten, Christians were crucified and were subjected to all manners of treachery. And so now we have some context to read these scriptures.

And so let’s go back to Romans. Paul changes gears starting in verse 16. I am going to read all of the verses first and then share some thoughts on this powerful scripture. Romans 12 starting at verse 16.

• Romans 12:16 Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits. 17 Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. 18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. 19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. 20 Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. 21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.

I am going to use the Amplified version for verse 17.

• Romans 12: 17 Never repay anyone evil for evil. Take thought for what is right and gracious and proper in the sight of everyone.

That is not my natural response as I alluded to earlier. How about you. What is your natural response? Paul writing under the hand of the Holy Spirit is telling us that we are not to repay evil with evil. He is seeing evil, he is seeing brothers and sisters in Christ being killed, and he says not to repay evil.

Revenge is natural. Retaliation is natural. And what I don’t like about this scripture, or to be more clear, what challenges me is that Jesus knows that we will be subjected to some of these things.

My natural response is not grace, it’s grievance. My response is not love, it’s lashing. My response is not proper, its punishment. I am not talking about being eaten by lions and tigers and bears, oh my! But hurt by people. And people are what? They are messy!

So what is a gracious and proper response? How do we respond and still maintain a witnessable life? Silence. Sometimes that is the best response. It may go against every fiber of my being, but sometimes the best response is nothing, amen?

I know it is hard, but sometimes I need help in what I am supposed to do with what I am going through, and I look to the Word for guidance. Sometimes I think the proper response is distance. Separating from that person, and not engaging. Taking them out of the equation.

Me plus that person equals drama. Take them out of the equation and then it is just me. And when it is just me, what can I do. What is gracious and proper? I can pray for them!

I have shared this before, but my initial prayer was, Dear Lord, don’t let them get hit by a bus”. And you know what, if that is where you have to start, that is OK. It is a journey, amen.

But now, through the Holy Spirit I can pray more fervently. I pray for that person’s salvation; I can pray that God will bless them. I pray that He would put people in their lives to know Him. By doing this I get something unexpected. I get freedom!

• 18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.

Peace is a wonderful thing. But there are times we are not at peace –  especially this morning as the United States is engaged now with Iran. I do not know where that is going to go. Live peaceably with all men and women. However, I like that Paul says if possible. Sometimes that is not possible, amen?

We are not to be door mats. To live peaceably, if possible, does not mean we stay in abusive situations. If possible tells us that we do not have to stay where we are not safe, amen? That “if possible” is also a challenge. If possible, live in peace with what? Your ex. If possible, live in peace with that person at work who annoys you. If possible, live in peace with that family member who rubs you the wrong way.

If possible is a challenge to stop avoiding them and live in peace with them. Easier said than done, but that is what the Word says to me. Paul is saying that if there is not peace, do not let the reason be you.

Push yourself to make peace, even if the other person is a challenge.

• 19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

I love how this is written. Dearly beloved. That is a signal that what the Word is about to say, is going to be hard. Dearly beloved, means that what I am about to say is not what you want, but what Jesus wants. That will always get my radar up!

Dearly beloved reminds us that we have a heavenly father, a Savior who is seated in heaven, amen? A Father who loves us absolutely who has redeemed us.

• Vengeance is mine; I will repay,

 

This is so hard sometimes, isn’t it? You were hurt, you were abused, you lived in pain for so long and now your out of that situation, and all you want is for them to pay. I get, I’m the same way.

But hold your peace, and trust that Jesus will take care of it. They will not get a free pass; there will be justice. There will be a cost for how they treated you, but it is not up to us to make them pay.

None of them will get away with it, I hang on to that. Because, truth be told, we are all flawed. We all have some issues, if we don’t believe that, we are lying to ourselves. But know, they will pay!

We are not perfect, He is. So we are not worthy to sit in that seat of judgement, only He is. Have faith that He will take care of business. He knows their heart, He knows the whole situation, He knows what you went through – and they will have to pay – either they will see their wicked ways and repent and are freed by the Blood of the Lamb or, they will be paid with the wrath of God, plain and simple.

That is a promise from God, and I love that I do not have to walk around with all that hurt and anger and wrath in my heart. I can lay it at the altar knowing 100%, that Jesus will keep His promise and He will repay, amen?

• 20 Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.

Does that mean I need to get the person a Whopper combo meal? No, it means that whatever this person is doing, I am to respond in love. I am to respond in kindness. My greatest hope is that when someone asks that person about my behavior, the response is – it doesn’t make sense.

He was nice to me, he treated me respectfully. He prayed for me? He’s weird! I will take weird! Because what Jesus is telling us to do is so against the way that we want to respond. Respond in grace, and love, respond in kindness is the exact opposite of the way I want to respond. But look at what it says here:

• for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.

My study tools says there are several meanings here, but I can discern those coals of fire are one of two things.

• One, that the grace, mercy, and kindness we show will cause some sort of shame or guilt. That our response will make them evaluate their behavior and they will have a burning feeling of guilt, amen?
• Kill them with kindness is the words I have heard in the past.
• Whoever it is in your life, do the unexpected and treat them like you want to be treated. Treat them with the same grace, the same kindness, the same love that you expect and maybe they will be convicted of their behavior.
• They will feel guilty, they will feel ashamed of how they treated you. I am not saying that it will happen, I am just saying what the Word shows us how to respond.
• The other meaning is that when we respond that way, in love, if they are unrepentant. If they keep doing stupid. If they will not change, those coals will be judgement from God.

 

I get comfort from that as well. They are God’s kid, I’ll let God take care of them. I have my own kids to worry about. If they will remain unrepentant and I did my best, well they are the ones that have to go before God with a bag of coals of unrepentance, anger, hatred, and evil – all the things that God hates – and I don’t want to be them, for sure!

• 21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.

That word conquer in the greek is nikaō – which means to conquer, to overcome – which means it may be a battle. It will not be easy, it may not be what we want. That means that when people hurt us, it is natural to want to hurt them back, right?

• Well Mary said this about me so I am going to say things about her.
• My wife hurt my feelings so I am going to post some passive aggressive social media meme.
• He or she did this or that so I am going to this or that

How about if instead of responding in anger or hurt – in evil, we just got down on our knees and prayed. Pray for the strength to respond in good.

• Psalm 34:17 The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. 18 The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

It is a very real battle to overcome evil, but Jesus is there, in that very moment if we would just pray and cry out for Him. He will not fail you, He will give you the strength.

 

I think that the best revenge we can have is responding with goodness. Because when we are aligned with the Word, and when we respond in grace, mercy and kindness – that person may not change, but we get freedom from them.

Sometimes, forgiveness is what is needed. You may say no way, what they did, I could never forgive them! They are too bad of a person. Take a minute, and look in the mirror – we did not deserve forgiveness, but Jesus made a way for us to be forgiven. Righteous revenge is forgiveness. It seems contradictory, but the person that it will free is you.

I love a song by Matt Redman called Forgiveness. I would have asked Dave and Dana to do it but I did not have enough  of a sense of my sermon.  The story behind the song is that a mother, whose daughter was killed by a drunk driver, forgives the man who killed her daughter. And these are some of the words.

• Help me now to do the impossible
• Forgiveness
• It’ll clear the bitterness away
• It can even set a prisoner free
• There is no end to what it’s power can do
• So, let it go and be amazed
• By what you see through eyes of grace
• The prisoner that it really frees is you
• Forgiveness

I don’t know who needed hear this, but I know I did. It is so easy to get in that feeling of anger and bitterness. We can be involved with someone and there is hurt and pain that we just respond naturally, with the same behavior that is being given to us.

If there is someone you need revenge on, I challenge you to bring it to Jesus and pray for them, heap coals of goodness and mercy  on their head, and loose some forgiveness – set yourself free from all of it. If you need prayer for that, We’ll pray with you.