Sermon 1 in Loving Our
Enemies: Jesus’ Third Way Series
Imagine the world surrounding Jesus
as he lived and ministered in the northern Israeli province of Galilee. Roman occupying forces abuse and demean the
local population. Taxes are abusive and
exorbitant. Religious revolutionaries
called zealots gather followers to fight guerrilla warfare for freedom. Roman occupying forces crucify these revolutionaries
and their families by the hundreds.
Roman law allows these occupying forces to conscript the local Galileans
to carry their military packs for a mile.
Occupying forces can commandeer farmers working in their olive groves,
shepherds tending their flocks, and merchants selling their wares, and
carpenters crafting a piece of furniture.
Now imagine these same individuals sitting
together in an expansive, mountain field.
How would they hear these, upside down words from Jesus recorded at the
end of Matthew chapter 5:
“You
have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I
tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you
may be children of your Father in heaven.
In
the verses, Jesus outlines what many commentators call his most radical and
characteristics commandment: “Love your
enemies.”
Love
your enemies: the Roman Centurions, the
pagans, the Tax Collectors, the Jihadists, the atheists, and the
secularists. The very thought turns our
stomach, don’t you think it would have turned theirs too?. Love God – sure we can do that. Love neighbor – harder, but yeah, we can make
a stab at it. But love our enemies, come on, God?
We
gush when Paul describes love in 1 Corinthians 13. Cross stitched art decorate bathrooms around
the South with the words: Faith, hope,
and love – these three remain, but the greatest of these is love.”
In
all my years of visiting bathrooms in wonderful homes of good Christian folks –
I’ve never seen a cute, country sign or plaque or art work with these
words: “Love your enemy and pray for
those who persecute you.” Yet – here in
Matthew 5 Jesus commands us to do just this.
Over
the next three weeks, I want to invite us to explore the harder parts of love. Let us absorb the words of Jesus and release
our imaginations so that we might discover how the command to love our enemies
might be lived out in today’s violent, partisan, passionate, and divided
world.
To
wrap our minds around how this might be possible – I will be building my
sermons off an essay by Paul Alexander called “Making Piece.”
Today,
we begin with our exploration with the first of the illustrations Jesus uses to
introduce how to love our enemies. Look
at v.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. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn
to them the other cheek also.
When we look closely at this passage
on turning the other cheek we gain a vision of Jesus’ third way that makes loving
our enemies possible.
Restraint
To help us understand Jesus’ vision
of a third way – we need to understand how disputes where handled before. I’ve asked Jay Reed to serve as my
illustration this morning.
Now - Imagine that Jay and I live in
the ancient near east – long before Abraham came from Haran. Jay and I are out clearing trees to plant
crops one day to keep our families from starving. Being the Stone Age, we have tied sharpened
rocks onto the ends of sticks to serve as axes so we can cut the trees. Without warning, my rock flies off my ax as I
swing and hits Jay’s face. The stone
crushes the left side of his head. It’s
really bad. I carry him back to our village.
His family bandages it as best as possible, but it will be forever
scarred.
A few days later, with my repaired
ax, I make it back out to the field to continue clearing the trees. I meet Jay with his severely damaged face and
his 2 brothers. They ambush, beat and
eventually kill me. The justice of the
time demanded 7-fold retribution – 7-fold payback. Thanks Jay.
You lost the side of your face – I lost my life.
After a few weeks, though - my
brother, a few cousins and a really big aunt sneak into your tent – and
retaliate against you – this time they kill you and the others in your
family.
Before long – the conflict embroils
our entire clans – sides are drawn and war ensues.
To restrain this 7 fold retributive
justice – one of the first laws developed in the ancient world was called Lex Talionis = “Law of
Retaliation.”
Our students probably remember this
from their world history classes – the lex
talionis was included in the law of Hammurabi. It also found its way into the Hebrew
scriptures in places like Leviticus 24:17:
“Anyone who takes the life of a human being is to be put to death …
anyone who injures their neighbor is to be injured in the same manner.”
This law of retribution was the
Hebrew scripture’s attempt to limit violence and justice. We often hear the words - Eye for eye, and tooth for
tooth – as a barbaric
practice from ancient days. Instead – the
one fold retribution found in the Old Testament was a radical form of restraint
for its time – a call for less retaliation rather than more.
Turn the other cheek
Okay – Jay – are you still with me?
Let’s move forward in history a
bit. Think again about the world in
which Jesus lived. Those men and women
who surrounded him out on the mountain lived in a territory occupied by the
mightiest military of the ancient world – the Roman army. In this world, people were often tortured,
murdered, raped and crucified. These
individuals were familiar with both the ancient 7 fold retribution as well as
the Mosaic one fold limitation –an eye for an eye.
Some of the people in that crowd
were willing to act violently to end the suffering of their people – in fact,
some of them may have even been planning a violent response that day. Others in the crowd – wanted to ignore the
suffering and humiliation in order to survive to live another day. To all these points of view Jesus says:
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. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other
cheek also.
This NIV translates verse 39 misses
the nuances of the first half of v39.
Based on the most common uses of the Greek word for resist, a better translation would be – “do not violently resist an
evil person.” Jesus is not supporting
passivity or nonparticipation. This
translation brings to mind Paul’s phrase “do not return evil for evil.”
The mistranslation of the first part
of v. 39 has often led us to misunderstand the second part of the verse – the
concept of turn the other cheek. Often,
when we use this phrase, we assume a degree of passivity. We think, “I've been hurt, embarrassed,
betrayed, violated, but to follow the words of Jesus, I need to turn the other
cheek.” We make this teaching a lesson
in passivity – and in turn, heap grief upon the shoulders of victims.
Walter Wink offers us another way of
looking at this teaching that in turns highlight’s Jesus’ Third Way.
Jay – can you come up here with
me?
In
the domination system of the first century, a strike on the right cheek would
have been a backhanded, insulting, violent strike by the right hand of another
person.
Stand here with me, Jay.
For
me to strike Jay on the right cheek, I need to raise my right hand – the hand
of oppression – and backhand slap him. Since
most people are right handed the right hand became the hand of oppression. It was used to put people in their place who
are beneath them in society – slaves, servants, foreigners, poor people,
children and women. The left hand in
ancient society was considered dirty, a hand reserved for the bathroom.
Because the oppressor hits the oppressed
on the right cheek – the right cheek becomes the cheek of insult, rejection,
and inferiority. Right hand to right
cheek = superior to inferior.
Notice that Jesus says – “if someone slaps
you on the right cheek.” If someone
treats you as inferior, if someone insults you, if someone rejects you – then –
turn the other cheek.
The
other cheek is the left cheek. When two self-perceived
equals fought – they would strike either other with a right handed fist. Notice – if I were to strike Jay with a fist
– I would strike him on the left cheek.
Because
of this – the left cheek becomes the cheek of equality, dignity, and
respect. If Jay and I are equals – then
backslapping him – hitting his right cheek – would have been punishable by Roman
or Jewish laws with stiff fines. Damages
of indignity were paid to equals – not slaves.
2 Common Sense Responses:
In Jesus’ day and ours – the two
most common responses to conflict are fight or flight. When we are struck, insulted, or attacked –
our first response is to fight back – to go for the jugular, to destroy the
other. Fighting back is logical, it
makes sense.
The other option we have when we are
attacked is to flee, to run away, to passively take the insult or the
betrayal. Sometimes, the road ahead is
so hard and the pain so intense that flight is the preferred path. We can survive to fight another day. Flight is also logical. Flight also makes sense.
Jesus, though, offers us a third
way. What does Jesus say to do when
someone strikes our right cheek, when we are insulted, put down, betrayed – he
says turn the other cheek.
Okay, Jay – Let me have you stand
here one more time.
When Jesus says, turn the other
cheek – he is inviting us to turn the right cheek of inferiority, pain,
betrayal and fear – and offer our aggressors the left cheek of equality,
humanity, and respect. If Jay were to
strike me on the right cheek – Jesus says stand up, dust yourself off, and
offer him your left. It would look
something like this. When I turn my head
this way, I am offering Jay my “made in the image of God” cheek. My oppressor cannot reach my right
cheek. Now I am facing him – as an equal
in the Kingdom of God.
Notice – this third way of Jesus,
contrary to our normal understanding - is action. It does not fit our traditional
expectations. Turning the other check
does not flee – it refuses to leave the aggressor with his or her allusion that
they are superior. Turning the other
cheek also does not fight back. By not
hitting back, we communicate we not you, the aggressor; you are worth more than
that. Thanks Jay!
Opportunities
When
we turn the other cheek, when we choose the 3rd way of Jesus, we
create new opportunities for situations that once seemed blocked.
1.
Equality
– the first opportunity this provides is the opportunity of equality. If, when we turn the other cheek, the
aggressor chooses to strike again - he or she is striking us as an equal. They are striking our “made in the image of
God” cheek. They are forced to accept us
for who we are. This equality liberates
both the victim and the oppressor because as equals we now have new
opportunities to discover ways forward that did not exist before.
2.
Dignity – the second opportunity turning
the other cheek provides is the opportunity of dignity. If, when we turn the other cheek, the
oppressor walks away from the conflict – we regain our dignity. Whether the oppressor walks away in disgust
or frustrated at our audacity or even confused at what just happened – a crack
has opened for God to move. This is now
a new world, where the victim has discovered and displayed the dignity that
comes from being created in the image of God.
3.
Transformation – finally, there is a third
possible response when we turn the other cheek.
I know it will sound absurd, far-fetched, and maybe even a little to
spiritual – but when we turn the other cheek – because God is in this – there
is the possibility of transformation. It
is just possible that when we turn the other cheek – express our dignity and
humanity – that the other could actually see his or her action as oppressive,
exploitive, or painful. With God
involved there is always the possibility of transformation.
By
turning the other cheek – we have created a redemptive story where God can now move. We have actually created the potential for
the enemy to become a friend.
Our Response
There is nothing about any of this
that is easy. Jesus does not call us to
an easy life. Jesus calls us to take up
our crosses and follow him.
I don’t know why any of us need to
hear this challenge from Jesus this morning – or even what you are supposed to
do with it.
·
Maybe
there are challenges you face at school with a bully, a teacher or a painful
circumstance – Jesus says – Turn the other cheek.
·
Maybe
you have faced a situation in your family for a long time and you have never
quite figured out the correct response – Jesus says – Turn the other cheek.
·
Maybe
you face a circumstance at work where you have been belittled, put down or hurt. Jesus says, turn the other cheek.
·
Maybe
you are the victim of evil or an aggressor – as you struggle to find healing,
Jesus says turn the other cheek.
·
Maybe
you are discovering the need for justice in our community and world – upset
that we always find ourselves fighting – and you are looking for a new to
relate to the bitter sides. Jesus says –
turn the other cheek.
·
Maybe
the world needs you to become an advocate for the third way of Jesus – in our
community, in your family, in the business world, in the legislature or the
around the world - Jesus invites you to invite others into the way of Jesus and
to turn the other cheek.
The
way of Jesus is counter cultural. It
forces us to no longer think in turns of denominations, political parties,
regions or countries. Instead, it
invites us to life in the Kingdom of God where when we are struck or hurt or
belittled we dust ourselves off, turn our head, and offer the other cheek. This is a Kingdom life that will change the
world. Thanks be to God! Amen.
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