Partakers Christian Podcasts

Romans 12: Living Life Study 21: Bless and pray v14 Bless those who persecute you. Don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them. Paul here seems to have had some teaching about what Jesus taught for here he echoes Jesus, who is now His master. (Matthew 5:43-44 and Luke 6:27-28.) To bless means to show kindness and love. Do you have enemies – people who don’t like you or loathe you because you are a Christian or for some other reason? I know some people who have been totally disowned by their own families because they became Christians. How are we to react? Paul here, echoes Jesus, commands that we are to show kindness and love. That is what bless means here - seeking the welfare of those that would cause us harm. It is a challenge to us because our natural reaction is usually to fight back or to ignore - that is curse. But we are challenged to pray for those who would wish us harm. Praying for their welfare is showing love for those who wish us harm. How can this be done? It can only be done us