Jesus Christ says in Matthew 5:38-41 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.” Friends, let me just say right now, there’s nobody like Jesus. These were such revolutionary teachings. These were such radical ideas and commandments that defy the normal order of things, that defy the natural workings of our human nature, that turn the tables on seeking justice for ourselves, and instead shift our focus to showing extreme grace, extraordinary generosity and non-retaliation towards our enemies. I’ll say it again – There’s nobody like Jesus!
Jesus wants mercy and grace to the be the sun that our planets of relationships and human interactions revolve around. Jesus says, “Whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.” (Matthew 5:39) Friend, if someone does you wrong, you don’t have God’s permission to do them wrong in return. 1 Peter 3:9 says, “not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing…” Instead of spewing out an insult toward someone who insulted you first, instead of repaying someone evil for an evil deed they had done towards you, do what Jesus would do and bless them. Mercy, not vengeance is the song our hearts should sing. Grace, not retaliation is the work we should set our mouths and hands to. The kingdom of God is a beautiful thing; Living in and working for the Kingdom of God means that we should voluntarily surrender our rights, our finances, our possessions, and our lives in the service of others, even when they are our enemies. For instance, Romans 12:20 says “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink…” Maybe there are times when you would want to pour a tablespoon of poison into the mouths of those who hate you, but instead we are commanded to use our resources to provide nourishment and life-giving hydration to those who hate us. Jesus invites us into a world of opposites. We are called to put to death the vengeful reactions that our human nature is begging us to unleash and instead embrace the kingdom of opposites where we put to use the heavenly reaction of radical grace and love that Jesus Christ is calling us to let loose.
Jesus says in Matthew 5:43-45, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven…” Jesus is inviting us into a brand new world where we love without restraint, where we stifle our instincts to curse those who’ve cursed us, and where we become obsessed with mercifully bestowing blessings on people, regardless of who they are. “Blessed are the merciful,” Jesus says, “For they shall obtain mercy (Matthew 5:7).”
In Matthew 10:8, Jesus says, “Freely you have received, freely give.” Jesus freely gave us His mercy when he died in our place on a criminal’s cross. Now it’s our turn to share that mercy and grace with others – freely. They don’t need to earn our mercy. They don’t need to work for our kindness. They don’t need to buy us a winning lotto ticket to gain our forgiveness, Jesus says, “Freely you have received, freely give.” God bless you.