Shows Kindness Even To Enemies

Shows Kindness Even To Enemies

A HERO’S TALE

In 2 Kings 5, the Bible tells a short but wonderful story of a little Jewish girl. Her story is so brief, the Bible doesn’t even mention her name. But her heroic act of kindness has been remembered for thousands of years through Scripture.

Life was very difficult for this girl. She lived in the ninth century BC, when Israel was at war with lots of neighboring countries like Aram, Ammon, and Moab.

During one particular raid on Israel, the Arameans plundered an Israelite town and took captives, including this girl. Naaman, the Aramean army’s top general, made this girl his wife’s personal servant.

Naaman was a very powerful man, but he had an awful skin disease called leprosy. The slave girl could have made fun of Naaman or remained silent and simply rejoiced in Naaman’s misery. After all, he was the enemy —the leader of the army that had attacked her country and turned her world upside down.

Instead, the girl did something shocking: she encouraged Naaman to visit Elisha, Israel’s mighty prophet who had miraculously healed others through God’s power, so he could be cured. It was a remarkable act of kindness that probably stunned Naaman.

DECODING THE MESSAGE

Have you ever had enemies? It can seem downright impossible to get along with them. They never seem to do anything friendly to you, so it seems ridiculous to do anything kind to them.

But that’s exactly what the Bible tells us to do. Take the little slave girl’s example. She had every reason to hate Naaman and do everything she could to harm him. Instead, she showed him amazing kindness. She was a girl who did something big for God!

And guess what happened? Naaman put his faith in the Lord! After God healed Naaman’s leprosy through Elisha, Naaman exclaimed, “Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel” (2 Kings 5:15). All because a little slave girl decided to show kindness to her enemy.

God calls you to do the same. Whom can you show undeserved kindness to?

BATTLE PLAN

Make a list of the people who mistreat you. Now, write a kindness you can show them beside each of their names and make plans to do it.