The Three Paths Of Revenge
Contributed by Bios Baptist Church 
Scripture: Genisis 4:8 -15
Tags: Forgiveness General Anger Management
Denomination: Baptist
Summary: When someone hurts us, our natural tendency is payback. We want them to hurt like we were hurt. 

Introduction:
When someone hurts us, our natural tendency is payback. We want them to hurt like we were hurt. We talk about getting even, and settling the score. The idea is that because they hurt us we now owe them some hurt in return. And that’s one debt we’re only too glad to settle. In fact, usually it’s not enough to “get even”. We usually want to add just a little more. Like playing poker: I see your insult and I raise you a poke in the eye! The Bible supports measured justice.
But even if we stay within the bounds of inflicting reciprocal pain, we’re still missing the point. Because our external conformity to the demands of justice is often masking an internal problem: we want revenge. And revenge is sin. So Jesus says, Matthew [5:38-39] "You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.' [39] But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person.
When we are hurt, we want payback. But Jesus says, “Don’t fight back.” The word “resist” means “to oppose, set one’s self against” Stand plus Anti. “To be hostile towards” The idea is not so much about non-resistance as it is about not facing off. This is not pacifism (a refusal to meet evil with violence or war). There seems to be plenty of room in the Bible for self-defense. But this is clearly not aggressive, either. This verse is a specific warning not to take personal retribution. Don’t escalate the situation by “getting even”. Rather, de-escalate. Diffuse. Lower the stakes. Pacify (quell the anger, agitation, or excitement of). Endure(suffer something painful or difficult patiently). Forgive(stop feeling angry or resentful toward (someone) for an offense, flaw, or mistake).{8 And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. 9 And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper? 10 And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground. 11 And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand; 12 When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth. 13 And Cain said unto the Lord, My punishment is greater than I can bear. 14 Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me. 15And the Lord said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.} (ALL THIS OVER A BIRTHRIGHT)
So that we understand this whole issue of revenge and seeking to avenge wrongs, let’s consider the three types of revenge that I have found in the Bible, and how they apply to you: 
I. THERE IS GOD’S REVENGE
        The first mention of God’s revenge is found in Genesis 4.15, where God promises to revenge Himself upon anyone who kills Cain.  Thus, God declares His right and His intention to inflict punishment upon any wrongdoer, even a wrongdoer who may think God hasn’t punished another person severely enough for his wrongdoing. Lest anyone be confused about God’s right to punish to wrongdoers in order to avenge Himself, let me read some selected verses that serve to bring the issue into very sharp focus: From Deuteronomy chapter 32, I read verse 35, “To me belongeth vengeance, and recompence; their foot shall slide in due time,” verse 41, “. . . I will render vengeance to mine enemies, and will reward them that hate me,” and verse 43, “. . . he will avenge the blood of his servants, and will render vengeance to his adversaries, and will be merciful unto his land, and to his people.” Micah 5.15:  “And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury upon the heathen, such as they have not heard.”  Here we begin to realize the ferocity of God’s revenge. In the short book of Jonah we read of God’s great grace poured out on the Assyrian city of Nineveh.  But 110 years later, after Nineveh and the Assyrian empire turned away from God, we read of God’s intention to seek vengeance.  I read Nahum 1.2:  “God is jealous, and the LORD revengeth; the LORD revengeth, and is furious; the LORD will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies.” I could cite many more passages like these to you, but the principle is established that God avenges Himself against wrongdoers.  Let me establish two more aspects of God’s revenge; first, when His people are wronged.  What happens when God’s people are persecuted?In Luke 18.7-8, I read the words of the Lord Jesus Christ:  “And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?  I tell you that he will avenge them speedily.  Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth? ”Romans 12.19:  “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.” Hebrews 10.30:  “For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord.” There is revenge that God gets during this lifetime, and then there is revenge that God gets throughout eternity. “Is God unrighteous who taketh vengeance?” Paul asks in Romans 3.5.  Would anyone challenge God’s right to seek revenge when He sees fit, or His right to forbid His people from seeking vengeance ourselves when we are unjustly wronged?  No.  God is God and He is right in whatever He does, and in whatever He forbids us to do. And should you question the authority and propriety of a government punishing criminals, turn to First Peter 2.13-15, where you will see that the punishment of evildoers is one way God gets revenge, with the Greek word for “revenge” translated “punishment” in verse 14:  “13 Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme; 14 Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well. 15 For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men.”  Vengeance is God’s.  Sometimes He gets revenge directly.  Sometimes He gets revenge through means, such as human government. 
II. THE CHRISTIAN’S REVENGE
      Though it is very clear in God’s Word that God does not want His people to seek vengeance against those who wrong us, those who ridicule us, those who persecute us, those who hinder our service and ministry to the cause of Christ, this does not mean that we have nothing to do with revenge. In Second Corinthians 7.11, Paul commends the Corinthians for responding so well when he corrected their sinful behavior.  How did they correct their sinful behavior?  By getting revenge.  Turn to that verse and let’s read:  “For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge!  In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter.” Let me give you some background.  In First Corinthians 5 Paul strongly rebuked the congregation for tolerating in their midst a man guilty of a terrible sexual sin.  This verse shows us that the congregation responded properly to Paul’s sharp rebuke and followed Paul’s directions to deal with that sin after the decisive fashion described by the Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 18.  The result?  They excommunicated the wicked unconverted Church member and put him out. When Paul describes the Corinthian congregation’s repentance, in Second Corinthians 7.11, he listed the behavior that convinced him that their repentance was real and their obedience was genuine.  And part of what convinced Paul was their willingness to seek revenge against the one who brought such wickedness into their Church by expelling him from the Church. But there is more, in Second Corinthians 10.6:  “And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.”  Here we see that Paul, too, is ready and willing to seek revenge, which is to say, to punish wrongdoers who will not repent of their destructive and evil deeds. So, Christians do seek revenge when they are directed to do so in God’s Word.  But it’s only as a congregation acting in concert to root out sinful practices that threaten the well-being of the entire congregation that Christians should be involved in getting revenge.  It’s never to fulfill a personal desire to get even or to pay someone back. 
III. MAN’S DESIRE FOR REVENGE
 Of course, we find the wicked man’s desire for revenge first mentioned in Genesis 4, in connection with Lamech.  And we will return to that episode during this morning’s sermon.  But there are several other mentions made of revenge that I would like to draw your attention to. People love revenge which is wrong especally when they are in power and can make it look like a simple accident look at this: (While checking his bags at the airport, a man became indignant with the employee who handled luggage. For several minutes he belittled the young man and criticized his every move. Surprisingly, the curbside porter didn’t seem troubled by this man’s verbal abuse. After the angry man entered the airport, a woman approached the luggage handler and asked, “How do you put up with such injustice?” The young man said, “It’s easy. That guy’s going to New York, but I’m sending his bags to Brazil.) ”Solomon predicted revenge in Proverbs 6.32-34 as a jealous reaction to adultery.  If a man discovers that his wife has committed adultery he will be provoked by jealous rage, we read, and “will not spare in the day of vengeance.”  In other words, it is likely that a husband so wronged will try to get revenge in one way or the other if he ever gets the chance. Ezekiel chapter 25 predicts God’s revenge against both the Edomites and the Philistines.  The reason?  They both were provoked by the desire for revenge to attack God’s covenant people.  God’s response for laying hands on His people?  Ezekiel 25.17:  “And I will execute great vengeance upon them with furious rebukes; and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall lay my vengeance upon them.”  Their revenge against the Jews resulted in God’s revenge against them.  Finally, in Acts 7.24, Stephen tells us why Moses was provoked to kill the Egyptian:  “And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian.”  Moses was seeking revenge because the Egyptian had done a fellow Jew wrong. 
 IIII. MOTIVE FOR REVENGE IS PRIDE
      The motive for revenge is pride. The best illustration of revenge in action is the first example of revenge in action, Lamech, whose story is told in Genesis chapter 4.  Looking at Genesis 4.23-24 again, try to imagine the tone with which these words were spoken so long ago:  “Hear my voice; ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech: for I have slain a man to my wounding, and a young man to my hurt.  If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold.” Is not this the voice of pride and arrogance?  Is not this the opposite of humility and meekness? This man has highly esteemed himself.  He so highly esteems himself that he feels himself perfectly competent to act as prosecutor, judge and jury to indict, convict and execute a man for wronging him in some way. If God hates a proud look, Proverbs 6.17, which so often accompanies the feeling of being wronged that leads to a desire for revenge, imagine God’s attitude toward the “heart that deviseth wicked imaginations” to plot and scheme in order to get revenge, Proverbs 6.18? Do you plot and scheme and connive to get back at those who do you wrong?  Do you hold grudges?  Then you have a heart that God says He hates.
IV. MOTIVE FOR REVENGE IS IGNORANCE
       Consider Romans 8.28, which declares “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” This is what the child of God knows when something happens to him, even at the hands of a persecutor who seeks to hurt him for no rational reason. The avenger, on the other hand, doesn’t know this.  Whether he is an unspiritual Christian or an unconverted man, for him to operate in his tiny and closeted universe of getting revenge for being wronged he has to be ignorant on two counts:  First, he doesn’t know why the event that angers him and motivates his desire for revenge happened.  He is completely clueless.  And second, he is completely ignorant of how wrong it is for him to seek revenge against anyone for any reason. So, however you look at it, when you try to get even when you feel you have been wronged, when you try to get revenge and make someone feel sorry for what he did to you, when you hold a grudge against someone who has offended you, you are the loser for it. Even unsaved politicians recognize this truth.  In his book, Hardball: How Politics Is Played, told by one who knows the game, Christopher Matthews cites former Illinois Republican senator Everett Dirksen as the author of the line, “Don’t get mad; don’t get even; get ahead.”[4]  So you see, it doesn’t take spirituality, really only common sense and the wisdom born of experience, to see that revenge never benefits anyone unless it’s revenge taken by God or at God’s direction to fulfill His holy purpose and plan.  Whenever you contemplate revenge there is terrible sin and wickedness involved. 
IIV.WHAT IS THE METHOD FOR REVENGE?
        Is it not obvious that someone who tries to get revenge is usurping God’s position in his own life, as well as the life of that person he thinks needs to be punished for wronging him?  God has reserved to Himself the right to get revenge Himself, or to direct men how they are to seek revenge in the form of governments punishing law breakers and congregations punishing sinning members.  So, clearly, anyone who tries to get revenge shows himself unwilling to allow God to be God in his own life and in the life of the person he wants to get even with.  And that makes him worse than the person he wants to get revenge from.  So, the first method in getting revenge is usurping God’s position.The second method for getting revenge is remembering every offense and wrong done against you.  The reason some people remember everything that’s happened to them, in the most minute detail, is that they are revenge seekers who make an effort to remember every wrong done to them, every slight no matter how small, so they can get revenge.  How harmful that is, in light of the Scriptural admonition whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
CONCLUSION:

1.   The great majority of the references in God’s Word to vengeance and revenge describe God punishing wicked men for committing various sorts of sins against Him.  And when God gets revenge the result is usually death and Hell for that individual or that nation.

2.   Generally speaking, God forbids vengeance by people against other people.  But the two exceptions to this rule are when governments punish law breakers and when Churches punish unrepentant sinners.  And the word “punish” is the correct word to use, because revenge has nothing to do with chastisement.  Chastisement seeks to correct future behavior, while revenge results in punishment for past behavior.

3.   Think about this:  In Scripture we see nothing about a government correcting the future behavior of a law breaker, only punishment.  And when an offense serious enough for excommunication to be considered has been committed by a Church member, once the opportunities to repent and make restitution are exhausted, the revenge sought by the Church is not for the purpose of changing that person’s behavior, but for the purpose of removing that person from the congregation.

4.   What’s to be said, then, about that fellow who seeks personal revenge?  What’s to be said about the guy who is out to “get even,” which is another way of describing revenge?  Just a few words are to be said, after brother Isenberger comes to lead us as we stand to sing.