Retaliation (Matthew 5:38-42)

February 9, 2020

We have all been mistreated in one way or another. Some of us are mistreated every day as we are surrounded by people who want to make our lives difficult. We have people talk bad about us behind our backs, take advantage of our kindness, lash out at us for no apparent reason, manipulate us to make us do what they want us to do, and many other hateful acts. Isn't that depressing? It is depressing to have someone mistreat you once, but we endure this kind of treatment many times every year. How do we typically respond when someone mistreats us? Today we will be looking at the response we often have to abuse and the response Jesus wants us to have.

"You Have Heard"

Matthew 5:38 (ESV) --- 38 "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.'

The scribes and Pharisees are teaching something that is written in the law. When someone hits someone else hard enough that it damages the other person's eye, justice according to God's law demands that the person who has a damaged eye can receive a payment that is equivalent to the value of an eye. God has instituted this as a law in several places of the OT. In Exodus 21, we see that a judge is to fine anyone who hits a pregnant woman in a way that forces premature labor. If the baby is harmed, the fine will be equal to the amount of harm done.

Exodus 21:22--25 (ESV) --- 22 "When men strive together and hit a pregnant woman, so that her children come out, but there is no harm, the one who hit her shall surely be fined, as the woman's husband shall impose on him, and he shall pay as the judges determine. 23 But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

This is also the case in Deuteronomy 19. If a man falsely accuses a man to cause him harm and the judge determines that the witnesses are lying, that witness will have to pay the price of the crime that they are accusing.

Deuteronomy 19:18--21 (ESV) --- 18 The judges shall inquire diligently, and if the witness is a false witness and has accused his brother falsely, 19 then you shall do to him as he had meant to do to his brother. So you shall purge the evil from your midst. 20 And the rest shall hear and fear, and shall never again commit any such evil among you. 21 Your eye shall not pity. It shall be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

This does not typically mean that they would actually pluck out the eye or cut off the hand. These laws were in place to help a judge determine how much to fine a person for punishment. As the value of money would change, this would give them a consistent basis for measuring the fine. It also made sure that the penalty was equal to the crime. The judge was not to punish less than the crime deserved. If an eye was damaged, they shouldn't fine the person as though there was no harm done. They should owe the value of an eye. But on the other hand, a judge does not need to take vengeance, thinking, "I will make sure that he doesn't do that again." He cannot fine him double the damage that he has caused. The courtroom is not a place for pity or a place of anarchy. It is a place of order that is intended to preserve society. This was a way to keep things from spiraling out of control because both parties are subject to the law and would be forced to pay under the judicial system when they break it.

Courtroom Relationships

What is happening here? The Pharisees and the scribes were taking these laws and making themselves judge and jury in every aspect of life. Essentially, they were stating that the one who does me wrong deserves equal punishment. If my coworker talks badly behind my back, I get to come up with something to harm them that is equal. If my neighbor's kid breaks our trampoline, I get to say, "Alright, what do you value as much as I value my trampoline you broke?" They were taking the commandments that govern judgments of law and applying them to their individual relationships. They would not go beyond what was equal, but they would expect no less.

Can you imagine having a relationship like that with our spouse? None of us want to have relationships with people who operate like a courtroom because they leave no room for forgiveness and growth. But this method of handling issues is so prevalent in our day. How many of us have accidentally cut someone off on the road? When I have done that in the past, they let me know how they feel about it. They don't typically smile and wave in a forgiving or loving way. They might lay on their horn, ride close to my bumper, and cut me off for good measure. We often feel as if their judgments are too harsh, but how many of us have reacted the same way?

Don't Resist Evil?

Matthew 5:39--42 (ESV) --- 39 But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40 And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. 41 And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. 42 Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.

Jesus responds radically in this text. I was speaking to preachers about my plans to preach about this today, and they responded, "It's unreasonable." I think that is probably the best way to understand all of this. Jesus' demands of his people are unreasonable. Do not be angry. Do not lust. That's unreasonable. Here he says, "Do not resist the one who is evil." What does that mean? There have been several debates about what this means.

If we want to take this out of context, this is our golden text. We can use it to say that we should not resist those who are evil when they tempt us. We should give them what they desire. That is ridiculous. What is Jesus trying to say in this context?

Jesus wants them to stop acting like they are in a courtroom and being so harsh with their brother. He wants us to stop taking vengeance and start showing love. As Leviticus 19:18 says, "You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord." Not resisting an evil person is really saying that we must love our neighbor, who has sinned against us. As we see in the next four examples, Jesus is referring to taking vengeance on a person who has wronged you in specific ways. Vengeance is what the Jews were involved in with their "eye for an eye" judgments, and it was condemned in the law.

1. Insults

First, he points to someone insulting us by slapping us on our right cheek. In that time, a backhanded slap would have been extraordinarily disgraceful and demeaning. That would have been a way of saying that you are a "nobody," and everyone would perceive it as extremely dishonorable. This has more to do with an insult than an actual beating.

Does anyone deserve to be treated in a demeaning way? Maybe the most degrading thing someone could do today is spitting in your face, use insulting words, post a photoshopped picture of you around town, or put a meme on social media to make fun of you. Suppose someone were to come in here and insult me in the middle of my sermon. How would you feel if you were me? What would resisting the evil person look like in that situation? It would look like trying to defend myself and my honor before everyone. I would feel a deep desire to call them something or have them treated in a way that is going to punish them for what they have done.

So what should we do in response to insults? Jesus says, "Turn to him the other also." What if, instead of fighting with the man, I agree with any truth that he states against me and try to make peace (I am not Jesus)? What Jesus is telling us to do is give up our craving to be well thought of by others and let the insults come. We are not as great as we want to believe we are anyway. If they are false insults, we are to be seeking reconciliation. So maybe we remain silent. Perhaps we should let our reputation for good works speak for us and find our self worth in the fact that Jesus died for us to be children of God. We realize that we don't need to be well thought of by others to be well thought of by God. The creator still more loves us than we could ever imagine. So we leave ourselves open for that person to insult again or to kiss our cheek and seek reconciliation.

2. Accusations

The second area Jesus spoke about is someone accusing us of wrongdoing. They sue us for our tunic. A tunic is a shirt that would be commonly worn under a cloak. It would have been a valuable thing in those days, so it could be used as collateral or to pay off a small debt that was owed. The other person wants to accuse us to defame us with evil intent. Should we just let the people accuse us of evil? Who likes that idea? But Jesus calls for us to give our shirt and our cloak as well. The cloak is a piece of outer clothing that would never be required of anyone by God's law. (Exo 22:26-27)

No one wants to be taken to court, accused of wrongdoing, and have their possessions taken away like that. Again, it makes us look bad. We feel as though our property is ours, and we would need our shirt. Can you imagine someone accusing us of evil and taking us to court? How many of us want to stand up against this person, proclaim our innocence, fight against them, and try to hold on to our possession at all costs? We feel as though we have to fight for what is ours. It will be a great injustice if this person is rewarded for the evil they commit. We cannot let that happen. But Jesus says to let the tunic go and give him more than that. Giving a cloak would be going above and beyond what they might feel is deserved. It would leave you almost naked. But it would also make a bold statement that we want to show them love with humility rather than pride and a desire to keep our stuff.

3. Forcefulness

The third example is of someone forcing us to do something we do not want to do. In Rome, during the first century, a Roman officer could force a citizen to carry his load for up to one mile. It would be a huge inconvenience. We would have plans for that day. Instead of fulfilling our responsibilities, we would have to walk two miles out of our way, carrying a heavy load on our back for one mile, and then backtracking to where we started.

We enjoy all kinds of freedoms in this life. But there are times when people ask us to do something we do not want to do. How do we feel about that? Do we say, "I won't because it is a major inconvenience?" Imagine if they were evil, and they have the authority to make us do it. Wouldn't we resent the work we are given to do? At work, if we are asked to do the jobs that no one wants to do, do we resist? Jesus tells us to go the extra mile. We may not have a smile on our face as we carry a soldier's load two miles, but we make a statement about our love and our desire to help them see what is right.

4. Taking Advantage

The final example is of someone who is seeking to take advantage of us by begging or by wanting to borrow money. It is Jesus' teaching on this subject that has caused us so much pain and heartache. How many of us have seen someone come in here off the streets asking for money? They are young, able to work, they have a fairly nice car, and a nice cell phone, but for some reason, they are not able to keep a job and provide for their family. Some horrible event has always happened to them that caused all of this to take place. We know their story because we have heard it hundreds of times by now. Their daughter is in the hospital. They just need to get enough money to get back home. They are going to lose power if they can't pay their power bill. All the while, they smell like cigarettes and alcohol, so you know that they have spent their money on those addictions.

Do you think they know this verse is in the Bible? What about Matthew 25:42-43? Of course, they know those verses are in there, and they want to take advantage. We know that 98% of these people do not have a real need. They are con artists with evil intentions. But notice what Jesus says at the beginning again, "Do not resist the one who is evil." Maybe we are tempted to say, "No! Get to work like the rest of us," or "You aren't taking advantage of me." But all of these people have a real need for the gospel. So we can't retaliate against them. Jesus wants us to give to them. If we sense that they are conning us, we may not give them as much as they would like. The more money, the more scrupulous we need to be. We don't have to fulfill every wish or want that they have. We love them and want to show compassion toward those who would take advantage of us, but we are also called to be good stewards of the blessings we have received. Regardless of how much I give, I do not lash out at them or retaliate against them for being evil against me.

In John 6, John records Jesus feeding the 5,000 and walking on water back to his home in Capernaum. The crowds follow Jesus, and Jesus calls them out for seeking more food instead of seeking to understand the will of God. Eventually, in that chapter, Jesus lets the crowds turn away without feeding them anything else. He tells them hard things with a hope that it will prick their heart and bring them to a greater understanding of the truth, but they just wanted full bellies.

Jesus is not telling us to find some raging alcoholic, and give him all of our money while our family starves. He is not telling us to spend all the church's money, feeding the poor, and taking care of all the bums in our area. He is telling us to be compassionate toward those who are evil and taking advantage of our kindness. But we desire to retaliate against them. We live in a time of extreme wealth and Jesus wants us to love people more than we love our money. He wants us to be willing to give what is needed to those who ask of us even when they don't deserve it because they are evil.

Being Like Christ

The problem in all of these situations is that we let ourselves get in the way of doing good for those who are evil. We want to preserve ourselves and seek justice. When people want to harm us, insult us, use underhanded ways, manipulate, ignore our needs, or lash out against us, we must train ourselves to be patient and bear with them. We are supposed to seek their good instead of our own justification.

Is this promoting a doormat lifestyle where everyone walks all over us? Should we just sit by as a robber harms our family because we don't want to be caught resisting the one who does evil?

Jesus defended himself. When Jesus was struck on the face, he did speak to the one who struck him to make it clear that he had not spoken anything untrue, but he never lashed out against anyone (John 18:22-23). He would go on to allow them to do much worse punishments. In John 8:48-50, Jesus defended himself against the accusation that he cast out demons by Beelzebub. In John 6, he refused to let the people force him to be their king. Also, in John 6, Jesus refused to give the people food after feeding the 5,000 because they were coming to him without learning the spiritual lessons he was there to proclaim. He defended himself, but he would show compassion more often, and he would never take vengeance against those who were mistreating him.

Living in an evil world, around evil people is hard. But Jesus chose to live here surrounded by people who were exponentially more evil than he was. We are exponentially more evil than he was, and he wants us to become more like him. He tells us to take up our cross and follow him. He tells us to die to self and live for God by loving our neighbor. Jesus took up his cross for us, and this is what we ought to do for our neighbor if we love him or her. We have to ask ourselves, "What is in their best interest?" Then, we have to give an honest answer. That is hard to do! We have all of these wants and wishes that cloud that answer. We say, "Surely, it is in their best interest for me to teach them a lesson by retaliating against them." Jesus wants us to understand that our anger and retaliation is not accomplishing the righteousness of God (James 1). Instead, these evil people around us need to see the love of Christ living in us.

Conclusion

I imagine that if we live long enough, we will see every type of person do evil things against us. Friends, family, and brethren are all tempted to do evil against us, just like we are tempted to do evil against them. What will we do in response? We want to get even and punish them at least on the same level as they have punished us. But if we love God and if we are seeking to be righteous, we will love those who do evil against us. When insulted, we will not insult them or demand retribution. When accused, we will not defend ourselves to keep our stuff. When forced, we will do beyond what is expected. When taken advantage of, we will still give with love in our hearts. Imagine the life of Jesus. This was his attitude every day because his purpose was to seek and to save those who are lost. He faced the insults, the accusations, people forcing him to do things, and trying to take advantage of him with complete patience and understanding.