1 Peter 3:8-9

Finally, all of you, have unity of spirit, sympathy, love for one another, a tender heart, and a humble mind. Do not repay evil for evil or abuse for abuse; but, on the contrary, repay with a blessing. It is for this that you were called—that you might inherit a blessing.

You are called to repay evil with a blessing, why???

Because you yourself are called to inherit a blessing.

Contemporary Christianity has, I believe, overused the word "blessing" to the point that we may have lost its meaning. We are used to talking about the "blessings" we have or how "blessed" we are - often using the word in the same way we'd use the words "lucky" or "fortunate."

But blessing in scripture is far deeper and much richer a word. It is also very much verb I think, more than a noun.

Blessing is not an ending point for us. It is a beginning point for us.

We are called to "bless" our enemies by Peter here in the same way we are called to "love" our enemies by Jesus.

It's an active thing to bless someone. It means to not only wish well for them but to speak words calling for their wellness. To decisively move toward them in a joint wellness.

Bless our enemies not simply because we are called to, but because in blessing them, we ourselves have blessing given to us. 

It is our inheritance.

God's wish for us is to share in the state of blessing.

God's wish is for blessing to pour out abundantly through us and to us and using us as a source of that blessing.

How can blessing our enemies bless us in return?

Only one way to find out...

Lord let me be a blessing to all. Amen.