Seize the Moment – Day 1133
Pray for Your Enemies!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Monday, April 24.
Have you ever been upset at a person because he was causing pain and suffering in your life? Of course you have; haven’t we all gotten upset at the malicious or callous behavior of others? Psalm 35 is one of the imprecatory psalms, one in which the author invoked God’s anger and judgment upon his enemies. Verses 4-8 capture David’s imprecation:
Let those be ashamed and dishonored who seek my life; let those be turned back and humiliated who devise evil against me. Let them be like chaff before the wind, with the angel of the Lord driving them on. Let their way be dark and slippery, with the angel of the Lord pursuing them. For without cause they hid their net for me; without cause they dug a pit for my soul. Let destruction come upon him unawares, and let the net which he hid catch himself; into that very destruction let him fall.
How are we to deal with our anger and frustration at people as New Covenant believers? How can we pray Psalm 35 as followers of Jesus, when Jesus commanded us to love our enemies and to pray for those who persecute us (Matthew 5:43-46; Luke 6:27-38)? The key is to remember that there is only one enemy, and it’s never another person – “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12). See the person, or group of people, who you see as evil, or doing evil, and pray for God to rescue and deliver them.
Seize the moment and pray Psalm 35, meditating upon the love of God that covers a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8) – don’t repay evil for evil, but do good by praying for your enemies (1 Peter 3:8-17).
God bless you!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.
Videos are posted about a week after the devotion appears in the blog.