Joel Osteen Podcast - Bless Your Enemies | Joel Osteen

Episode Date: February 13, 2024

When you let go of past hurts and offenses, you’re making room in your life for God to bless you. Learning to bless your enemies is a test of character. Trust God to be your vindicator.  Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of the Joel Osteen Podcast ad-free and a whole week early. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We're believing you guys are going to have a great February and an awesome 2024. I love how you're putting God first place. He sees you taking the time. Thanks for being with us today. We believe this is going to be a great year. Thank you for always being a part of this podcast. Well, God bless you. It's a joy to come into your homes. And if you're ever in our area, please stop by and be a part of one of our services. These are the finest people in all of Houston right here at Lakewood. We'd love to have you come out whenever you can. I like to start with something funny. I heard about this man.

He was on an overnight train. He said to the conductor, I'm a very sound sleeper. Please wake me up in Philadelphia and make sure I get off. I may be groggy. I may tell you no, but I have to get off.

The conductor said, you have my word, I'll make it happen. The man woke up the next morning in New York City. He had missed his stop. He was so upset. He let the conductor have it. A lady watching said, wow, that man was so angry.

The conductor said, if you think he was angry, you should have seen the man we put off in Philadelphia. Say it like you mean it. This is my Bible. I am what it says I am. I have what it says I have. I can do what it says I can do. Today, I will be taught the word of God. I boldly confess, my mind is alert, my heart is receptive.

I will never be the same in Jesus. name. God bless you. I want to talk to you today about blessing your enemies. It's easy to be good to people that are being good to us. It doesn't take much faith to be kind, to show favor to someone that's kind to us. But what about when people do us wrong? They're talking bad about us. They weren't honest in a business deal. They walked out of a relationship. The last thing we think about is being good to them. they don't deserve it. But Jesus said, bless those that curse you. Do good to those that hurt you. Pray for those that mistreat you. One test we all have to pass is being good to people that have not been good to us. Everything in you will say, hold a grudge, talk about them, look for ways to get even.

But your job is not to pay people back. Your job is to bless your energy. You be the blesser and God will take care of your enemies. When it says to pray for those that have done you wrong, that doesn't mean pray that they'll go bankrupt. Pray that that new girl will leave. Pray that God will bless them. Joel, they don't deserve it. They hurt me. It wasn't fair.

You're not blessing them for their sake. You're blessing them for your sake. Without you showing them kindness that they don't deserve, you'll get. stuck. It will limit how high you can go. That person at the office that left you out of the meeting, they did it on purpose. Don't be surprised if you're in charge of inviting people to the next meeting. You'll be tempted to think, thank you, Jesus. Is payback time? I'm going to invite everyone except them. I'm going to invite the cleaning crew, the parking lot attendance, the weekend volunteers. That's a test. They did you wrong. Now, here's your.

your opportunity to be good to someone that wasn't good to you. If you leave them out, it's not hurting them. It's hurting you. Blessing your enemies is a test of your character. They don't need your blessing. God could have somebody else do it. But when you prove to God that you're not bitter, you're not vindictive, you're not holding a grudge, you're big enough to swallow your pride and bless them, then God knows you're ready. You're ready. You're not vindictive. You're not holding a grudge. You're big enough to swallow your pride and bless them, then God knows you're ready to be promoted. But the reason God can't promote some people is they would use that power to get even. They would fire the six people that did them wrong, demote the 12 people that talked about

them, drive by their enemy's house every night in their new car. Look at me now. No, God is not going to promote us to pay somebody back. The sooner you learn to bless your enemies, to be good to those that have done you wrong, the better off you're going to be. And sometimes the way you bless your enemy is by not talking bad about them. They may not even be in your life. They've done the damage and moved on.

They're in a different chapter. You could bring up all the negative, tarnish their reputation, tell your friends how they have no character. They're dishonest. They played around. Instead, you zip it up. You cover for them. you protect their reputation, you just blessed your enemy. You just showed God you're ready to go higher.

There's an organization that holds large conferences and training seminars for leaders and pastors. A few years ago, when I came along, started doing the nights of hope and having big events, they didn't like it. They thought I was taking some of their audience. They started trying to discredit me and saying things that weren't true. I didn't. I didn't. didn't know any of them and really didn't even pay attention to it. But a couple years ago, they wanted this man to come speak at one of their big conferences. He's an influential man. It would be a big boost to their attendance. But he told them that he was my friend and he would have to check with me to see if I would recommend him coming. Well, I was the last person they

wanted him to check with. They knew they had been vocal against me and said. And, things that put me in a negative light. You can say things that are true, but if you don't put it in the right context, if you don't tell the whole story, then technically it may be correct, but it's not being honest. That's what they had done to me. And the man called and asked me if I thought that he should do it. My first thought was, Lord, you are good. Now I can show them how it feels to have somebody trying to disrespect them, to make them look bad. But Deep down, I could hear the still small voice saying, Joel, be the bigger person. Bless your enemies. Be good to those that have done you wrong.

I didn't feel like it. They didn't deserve it. But bottom line is they have a good organization. So I swallowed my pride and put in a good word for them. Didn't bring up any of the negative. When the man told them that I recommended him to attend, they nearly passed out. A couple of months later, I received the letter from the head of the organization. He said, Joel, we want to apologize. We were jealous. We knew we said things about you that weren't true. We can see you're the bigger person.

Proverbs says, if your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat. If he's thirsty, give him water to drink. In doing this, you will heap coals of fire on his head. and the Lord will reward you. When you do good to those that have done you wrong, it may feel like you'll being weak. You're letting them take advantage of you.

The truth is, that's putting coals on their head. And that doesn't mean they're going to burn up. It means, some of you're thinking, I know what to do now. It means that is more effective than trying to pay people back. My brother Paul was overseas earlier this year operating on people that had been injured in the war. There's a group trying to harm

innocent people doing so much damage and causing so much heartache. And Paul didn't just operate on the innocent people. They would bring soldiers in from the other side, the ones causing all the trouble. After an operation, two of these men were talking. They didn't know Paul was around the corner with an interpreter. One said to the other, why are we trying to kill these people? They love us. They treat us with respect and kindness. What they felt that day was more powerful than any machine gun, any explosive. Love is the most powerful force that we have. Will you be good to someone that's done you harm? Will you let go of the anger, the bitterness, the resentment, and give your enemy food? when he's hungry? When you're merciful, you're not listening what they did. They may have hurt you.

It wasn't right. You're not excusing their actions. But when you're the bigger person, when you're kind, even though they don't deserve it, not only does that have a great impact on them, but that frees you to go to a higher level. This is what Joseph did in the scripture. His brothers were so jealous of him. They threw him into a peasant. hit. They were going to leave him there to die, but this caravan of Ishmaelites came by. And they sold Joseph as a slave to a man named Potterfer. Joseph's whole world was turned upside down. His dreams, his goals, seeing his family, having his freedom. It was all because of his brothers. He ended up spending years in prison for

something that he didn't do, going through lonely nights, times where he felt like God had forgotten about him. Finally, 13 years later, after all the heartache and pain, he was vindicated and put in charge of the food supply in Egypt. He was second in command of the whole nation, one of the most powerful people of that time. There came a great famine in the land. One day, Joseph's brothers, the same ones that threw him into the pit showed up at the palace looking for food. They had traveled a great distance from a foreign land and they were right in front of Joseph. It had been so long they didn't recognize him, but Joseph knew exactly who they were. This was his big chance to get even. After all the years of heartache, pain, injustice,

God brought the people that caused it right in front of him. Most of us would be thinking about payback, but the reason God could promote Joseph, the reason he could give him incredible influence and favor, is God knew he could trust Joseph to handle the power correctly. Joseph had proved he would do the right thing and be good to people that had done him harm. Joseph looked at his brothers. Instead of getting revenge, the scripture says he threw his arms around them and wept, kissing and embracing them. He invited them into the palace and served them dinner. He had them go home and bring their father and the rest of the family. He gave them land and a place to live where he could watch over them. When you can do like Joseph and be good to someone that's caused you pain,

when you can embrace someone that's betrayed you, show kindness and respect, even even though they don't deserve it, there's no limit to how high God will take you. Joseph, being betrayed by his brothers, that was all a part of God's plan. God knew years down the road there was going to be a great famine. He needed somebody on the inside of Egypt where the food would be stored so the Israelites could survive. He had to find somebody that could handle being mistreated and betrayed without being vindictive. If Joseph would have tried to get even,

put his brothers in prison, then the Israelites could have perished during the famine. Everything that happens is a part of God's plan. We can't see it at the time. Having a family member betray you, that doesn't make sense. A friend walk away, don't be bitter. Don't hold a grudge.

Be a Joseph. Be good to those that have done you wrong. Let God take care of the people that have hurt you. You don't have to pay them back. You're not the judge. You're not the jury. Leave it in God's hands. Years ago, there was a pastor in another state.

We had been friends with him our whole life. But there was this political issue that he felt strongly about. It was his new mission. He wanted me to get on board and help him. Well, my plate was full doing what God's called me to do, but he didn't understand it. got so upset it with me. They interviewed him in his paper back at home, and he spent half the time talking about how I wouldn't help him and I wouldn't be involved on and on. It's one thing to

disagree, but another to start blasting somebody in public, especially somebody that's been your friend for years. Of course, I wanted to respond, set the record straight. I've learned it's better to let God fight your battles. Let God be your vindicator. A couple of years later, one of his staff members sent a request asking me to make a video for his 25th anniversary of being at his church. It was a surprise. They were going to play it in front of the whole congregation. This staff member obviously didn't know that the man had made all these negative comments about me. My first thought was, yes, I would love to make a video. I have a lot to say about him, especially in front of his congregation. But seriously, I thought God making a video,

that's too much. I'll bless him in private, but not in public. God, you didn't say anything in the scripture about having to do it in front of people. He didn't deserve it. He had tried to make me look bad. Now they wanted me to make him look good. This is what Joseph faced. God, here are the brothers that did me wrong. You want me to do what? Invite them into the palace. Give them a place to live. Use my influence to give them land, give them food. Get behind me, Satan. That could not be God. I didn't feel like doing it. But I knew this was a chance to bless somebody that had done me wrong. I made the video congratulating him on 25 years and thanking him for all of his meanness. I mean, all of his faithfulness. A friend of mine was at the event when the video played. He said, when I came on,

this pastor put his head down and started weeping and weeping. Blessing your enemies, not only shows God that you have the character to go higher, but it shows people who you really are. It's easy to be good to those that have been good to you. But when you can be good to people that have done you wrong, You're an exceptional person. You're a Joseph. You're the kind of man, the kind of woman that God can entrust with greatness. He can use you for his highest purposes. We see this same quality in David.

When he defeated Goliath, King Saul loved him. So much so, he brought him to the palace. David would play the heart for Saul when he wasn't feeling well. But David began to get so much recognition, so much popular. that Saul became jealous of David. And one day while he was playing the harp, Saul took a spear and threw it at David, barely missed him. This happened time and time again.

Saul was wrong. He was jealous, but you will never read where David tried to pay him back. Despite Saul trying to kill him, what did David do? Played the harp for him. Tried to make his life even better. Fast forward years later, Saul had been killed in a battle. gone for a long time. David had been the king, won many victories, had incredible success.

Now he was later in his life, not out fighting battles, but enjoying the blessings and favor that God had given him. One night sitting around the palace, David said to his men, is anyone still alive from the house of Saul that I can be good to? I can imagine his men saying, excuse me, David, are you feeling okay? Do you remember Saul was trying to kill you? He chased you through the desert, made your life miserable, threw spears at you when you were being good to him? David said in effect, yes, I know who he was, but I want to bless my enemies. I want to do something good for his family, despite what he tried to do to me. No wonder David is called a man after God's own heart. My prayer is God, help us to grow to the place where we're not looking for ways to get revenge

on our enemies, but we're looking for ways to bless our enemies. Well, Joel, you're too nice. I believe in standing up for myself. I believe in paying people back. The scripture says you overcome evil with good. You don't overcome evil with more evil. If you do the same thing to them that they're doing to you, They lied about you, so you lie about them.

They betrayed you, so you betrayed them. Not only will you have a bigger problem, more conflict, but you'll get stuck. It will keep you from rising higher. David found Saul's grandson. He was crippled. They brought him to the palace. David gave him all the land that belonged to his grandfather. He said to him, from now on, you will sit at my table and have dinner with me every night.

You imagine having the grandson of the man that tried to kill you eating dinner with you every night. That takes a big man. That takes somebody of great character. You may have had people do you wrong. We all have. Don't be bitter. Be a David. Overcome the evil with good.

During the Korean War, a father was arrested by the communist. When they found out he was a follower of Christ, he was ordered to be shot. But when this young communist leader that was about to carry out the execution learned that this father was the head of an orphanage, he decided to spare his life and instead take the life of his son. Right on the spot, they lined up his 19-year-old son and executed him. Years later, when the war was over, peace was restored. This young communist leader was put on trial by the United Nations.

he was found guilty and sentenced to death. Before the sentence could be carried out, this father whose son was murdered pleaded with the court to spare his life. He argued that he was too young that he didn't really know what he was doing. He told the court, I'll take him into my own home. I'll be responsible for him.

I'll make sure he lives a productive life. Against all odds, the United Nations granted this unbelievable. request. This father took the murder of his son into his home. He loved him. He cared for him. That young man gave his life to Christ. He ended up becoming the pastor of a church. But most of us will never have to face anything that traumatic. But you may have a co-worker that's jealous, tries to keep you from a promotion. You may have a friend that walks away, a relative that's not honest. It's easy to hold onto the hurt and look for ways to pay them back. Why don't you try a

different approach and bless your enemies. Be good to those that have done your wrong. Living vindictive, angry, bitter, it only poisons your life. I know the pain was real. What they did hurt. It wasn't fair, but holding on to it doesn't make it better. If you will let it go and live out of a place of forgiveness, a place of wholeness, you'll not only feel better, but that's what allows the creator of the universe to go to work. It may have been meant for your harm, but he knows how to turn it around and use it to your advantage. In the New Testament, Book of Phileman, Paul was in prison. He was an old man. His life was coming to an end, and he wrote a letter to a man named Phileman. He was like a son to Paul.

Philemon was a wealthy man. He owned a large estate and he'd come to know the Lord through Paul. Paul was writing to him about one of his runaway slaves named Anissimus. Anissimus didn't just run away. Commentaries tell us that he stole something from Philemon and then he took off. This runaway slave met up with Paul in prison. He gave his life to Christ. He too became like a son to Paul. Paul was in his own. in a predicament. Anissimus had done wrong to Philemon. He'd stolen from him, but now

he was changed. So Paul wrote Philemon a letter on Anissimus's behalf. He said in verse 10, something like this, I appealed to you for my son, Anissimus. Formerly, he was useless to you, but you

will see he has changed. I am sending him back to you not as your slave, but as your brother. welcome him as you would welcome me. If he owes you anything or done you any wrong, put it on my account, and I give you my word, I will pay you back. Paul was saying in effect, Philemon, I know Ennisimus has done you wrong.

I know he's stolen. I know he ran away. You have a good right to be angry, to be vindictive. When he returns, you could imprison him, make his life miserable. But something has changed. he's no longer your slave, he's your brother. This was a test. Would Phileman receive him back?

Would he forgive him, be good to him, treat him like a brother? Or would he hold on to the hurt? Be angry, try to get revenge. The scripture doesn't tell us how the story ends. Did he put him in chains? Did he send him to prison? I believe that Philemen took Paul's advice and received him back, not as a slave, but as a brother.

I believe he passed the test that he showed him mercy. Sooner or later, Anissimus is going to show up at your house. Somebody that hurt you. Somebody that did you wrong. Somebody that betrayed you. You have a right to be angry, to be bitter. That's a test. Are you stuck in what used to be trying to get revenge, vindictive,

or have you grown? Have you come up higher? Have you gotten past the hurt where you can show them mercy? Where you can be good to those that have done your wrong? Where you can even bless your enemies. Anissimus showing up is not a coincidence. That's God seeing if you're ready to go to a new level. Joel, they don't deserve it. You don't know what they've done to me. I am not going to forgive them. what they owe you, God is saying, put it on my account. What they took from you, I'll pay you back. They may have hurt you, but if you'll do your part and receive them back, God will make it up to you.

Think about the mercy God has shown you. When you didn't deserve it, he forgave you. When we got off course, on purpose, he protected us. When we got in trouble, he rescued us. why don't you take some of that same mercy, that same goodness, and show it to the people that have done you wrong? You have to give people the grace to change. Don't judge their whole life on one season, on one mistake. They may have left you a slave, so to speak. They hurt you. They made mistakes. They did you wrong. But now they've changed. Now they're your brother. The mercy you show them is the mercy God's going to show you.

you. What you do with Anissimus will determine what God is going to do with you. If you're angry, bitter, vindictive, you'll get stuck. And I'm not saying you have to befriend them and allow them all access. But you should get past the offense, past the hurt where you can treat them with kindness, treat them with respect. Life is too short to live vindictive, angry, trying to get even. Turn that over to God. put it on his account. People can't pay you back. They can't make it right. But if you'll go to God, he'll make up for what people cannot give you. Anissomis is coming. Joseph's brothers are coming. I'm asking you to pass the test. Show God you can handle a new level. Bless your enemies. Pray for those that do your wrong. Do good to the people that have hurt you. If you'll do this,

I believe and declare. You're going to see new levels. of influence, new levels of favor. God is going to pay you back for the wrongs, heal the hurts, and take you to the fullness of your destiny. In Jesus' name. And if you receive it today, can you say amen? I'd like to give you an opportunity to make Jesus the Lord of your life. Would you pray with me? Just say, Lord Jesus, I'll repent of my sins. Come into my heart. I make you, my Lord and Savior. If you prayed that simple prayer, we believe you got born again. Get in a good Bible-based church and keep God first place.

Breathaking, that's what you feel when you look out at majestic mountain peaks. Yes, God's creation truly is a masterpiece. But even as you consider his handiwork, you might also feel less that, not good enough or not valuable. The image before you is incredible, but the confidence inside is lacking. How do you overcome this? The opinion you have of yourself is your most important opinion. Too often, we see ourselves as ordinary, not talented, unattractive. That wrong self-image is setting the limits for our life.

The key is to get an agreement with who God says you are. He calls you a masterpiece, strong, talented, valuable. If you'll have the right image of yourself, you'll rise higher and become who you were created to be. We have a new resource that will help you do just that. It's called You Are a Masterpiece. It's filled with inspiration and encouragement that will remind you who you really are. Gifted, chosen, approved. It will help you get rid of the wrong self-image and start seeing yourself as the masterpiece God created you to be.

As our thank you for your gift of any amount to the ministry this month, we want to send you Joel's inspiring new book. You are a masterpiece. God made you unique with a divine purpose and a bright future. As these truths sink down in your spirit, the majesty of God's glory will arise within you. Yes, God has breathed his life into you. He approved you, equipped you, empowered you.

stop believing the lies about you and start hearing what God says about you. Thanks so much for being a part of the ministry. Victoria and I pray for you and your family every day. Believing it's going to be a favor-filled 2024. We appreciate your prayer and support. Your generosity is impacting people around the world. Remember, you can watch the services live online Sunday mornings, see all the music and ministry.

Download our daily podcast. Until we meet again, may the Lord bless you and keep you. Be sure to request your copy of the You were a Masterpiece Today. Visit joelowstein.com.