Your Enemies: How God Uses Them to Bless You
“They will seize the spoil of those who despoiled them, and plunder those who plundered them, declares the Lord God” Ezekiel39:10b.
This chapter is about God’s judgment of Israel’s enemies. Among other things, God will bury them in the land of His people. To read the passage for context, click here.
There is a powerful spiritual principle in these verses. Everyone who has been plundered by their spiritual enemy, the devil, will have an opportunity to return the favor. Joyce Meyer, my hero in the faith, is a perfect example of this.
It is precisely because of the hell she’s been through at the hands of her father, who was animated by the devil, that she’s able to be such a powerful source of encouragement to others who’ve been plundered. As she has said she is “sure the devil regrets ever having messed with her”.
Genesis 3: 15 says “he [the devil] shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel”. And who’s going to be more motivated to crush Satan’s head than the one who’s heel has been struck repeatedly and painfully?
I think it’s safe to say that the more someone’s heel has been struck, the more full of fire they will be to kill that serpent. In other words, he will despoil and loot the one who has despoiled and looted him.
Your Enemies that Drive You
This idea is even bolstered by science. A study put out by the Wall Street Journal revealed that people who achieve great things in their field of endeavor have often experienced some trauma in their childhood that drives them.
The prodigal son was “despoiled and looted” in a sense (Luke 15: 11-32). He was robbed of months or years of his life, he squandered his wealth, he experienced need, pain and suffering. But, when he ultimately returned to his father, and he received things the elder, obedient brother didn’t.
Not only was he restored to his former estate, but he was also given the best robe, the fatted calf, a feast and a party. These are blessings he received because he had been despoiled and plundered.
As a result of the fact that he had been “captured by him [the devil] to do his will” 2 Timothy 2: 26b.
God Will Make Your Enemies Pay You Back
In the same way, when we suffer harm and loss because of sin (others or our own) if we respond in the right way, repent if necessary, and walk in faith and obedience, God will compensate us for the hell we’ve been through.
And what the devil meant for our harm, God will use for our good (Genesis 50: 20). We will have gained experience, wisdom, strength, and maturity because of what we’ve been through. And this will benefit ourselves and others.
My father abandoned me when I was less than a year old. He left me in the care of a woman who was mentally ill, and couldn’t even take care of herself, much less a helpless infant.
As you might imagine, the consequences of this were predictable. I was traumatized over and over again as a child. And I ended up calloused, out of touch with my emotions, and mentally ill by the time I reached adulthood.
Unintended Positive Consequences of Loss
But also, as a consequence, I became a Christian at an early age. And one that desperately needed to be close to God every day in order to feel okay. God has healed me emotionally, perhaps to a greater degree than if I had I had a more stable childhood.
And God has given me insights that He is using to help other people. This isn’t merely because I’m a Christian. I received many of those revelations during a period when I was reliving my father’s abandonment years after the fact.
The devil despoiled and looted me when he incited my father to leave me. But I am returning the favor because God is using my devastation to bless others.
To read another post related to Your Enemies: How God Uses them to Bless you, see Endure Through the Pain to Become Strong – Don’t Waste Your PAIN.