Vengeance Isn't Mine

The dramatic moment in a Michigan courtroom a couple of days ago was a reminder of the powerful feeling of retaliation.  As a father was providing the court with his thoughts on his daughter’s attacker he lost his composure (and his control) rushing toward the accused to literally take matters in his own hands.  Honestly, most of us can empathize with his actions.  In fact, many could sympathize with him … and some might even justify what he did.  Yet, the truth is that justice cannot condone that behavior.  Victim-initiated justice (aka vigilantism) is understandable and might even be considered noble by some, but victims make terrible judges.  They have lost their ability to dispense true justice because they are driven by emotion rather than rightness. 
I pray that none of us will ever have to face what those families had to endure in that courtroom, but this principle is not merely reserved for these intense criminal confrontations.  The desire to take matters in our own hands is something that can be triggered by everything from small slights to grand abuses.  From the irritation we experience when we are cut-off in traffic to the feeling of being slighted when we are unjustly passed over for an honor to the deisre to get even when someone physically or emotionally scars us; it is tempting to “extract our pound of flesh”.  Yet, if we are interested in what is right and righteous, we will wait for genuine justice. 
As I reflected on this reaction I got to thinking about the New Testament passage:
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation. Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, ,” says the Lord.  “But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink, for; in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. – Romans 12:14-21
Isn’t it great that God understood the value in forbidding retaliation and revenge?  People are passionate, sometimes to the extent that our emotions get the better of us.  Many victims can’t separate their hurt from what is in the best interest of the one who harmed them so we must be willing to wait on God who knows what to do and when it needs to be done.  It might not be immediate, but we can be sure that it will be appropriate and effective.  

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