At first glance, Jesus seems to be telling us to be doormats. If they hit you, just let them hit you again. If they’re persecuting you, then pray. If they want your coat, give them your undershirt as well, no matter how cold it is. Be kind to everyone, no matter what they do to you. Just take it.
But I don’t think that’s actually what’s going on here. Jesus tells us to love our enemies and do good for those who hate you. Yes, Jesus tells us to love in each of these scenarios. Jesus tells us not to rise to the level of our enemies- to stop that cycle of hatred. But Jesus also shifts the narrative to allow us to take a step back when we need to. As UMC Discipleship noted, Jesus starts with “Do good’ [which] means …get close enough to impact a life somehow. [But] ‘Bless’ is at arm’s length. When curses are being hurled, you might need to step back… blessings aren’t in your face; they are laid at your feet. They are handed out at a bit of distance. And then ‘pray’ when the abuser is at work, then get away; … run to safety. But don’t carry the hate with you; run from it too. … Leave behind the inclination to return the hurt as you have been hurt. It doesn’t help with healing. …Let it go and love… from a distance. …Pray that God will step in and love your enemies.” We are not to retaliate, we are not to seek getting even or even delight in the downfall of another. We put it in God’s hands.
I actually learned something this week about “turn the other cheek”. If someone hit you with a backhand, as someone would hit a servant or someone they considered “beneath them,” then insisting that they hit the other cheek meant that they had to hit you open palmed like an equal. This was a way to stand up for yourself without retaliating.
Even the psalm calls us to take a step back from retaliation. “Don’t get upset over evildoers; don’t be jealous of those who do wrong… Trust the Lord and do good. …Refrain from anger and turn from wrath.” It is easy to look at others and become angry, but the evil and ungodly will not last forever. Trust in God and do good.
But even while considering how to stand up for oneself, those listening had to be wrestling as they thought about their own revenge culture: if I bless those who curse me, then I lose the chance to get even. I lose the chance to prove my superiority. I lose the chance to win. So Jesus addresses this, telling us that we aren’t supposed to seek to win. Don’t lend because you know you’ll get the money back. Don’t love because you know they love you.
This is about living in an entirely different kingdom. In his online commentary, Rev. Dr. David Lose proposed “Jesus … is inviting us into a whole other world. A world that is not about measuring and counting and weighing and competing and judging and paying back and hating and all the rest. Instead it’s about love. Love for those who have loved you. Love for those who haven’t. Love even for those who have hated you. That love gets expressed in all kinds of creative ways, but often comes through by caring – extending care and compassion and help and comfort to those in need. [That love is expressed through] forgiveness – not paying back but instead releasing one’s claim on another and opening up a future where a relationship of love is still possible.”
There’s something about love that speaks, even as it seems so counterintuitive. “Each time we forgive each other, [we interrupt] the cause and effect laws of this world. ...when we forgive, we interrupt this endless cycle [of hate deserves hate and violence begets violence] and create something new.
“Love …, defined most simply, is seeking the good of another above your own. Love is not a means to an end, it is an end unto itself which, in turn, creates morality and justice and all the rest of the things we strive for yet fail to find or manifest absent love.”
I’m slowly realizing that it’s ok to admit that someone is an enemy. In his Luke Commentary, Richard Vinson writes, “Once we realize that we have an adversary who is actively trying to do us harm, our responsibilities are to pray for him or her, to look for opportunities to do him or her a good turn, and to avoid any sort of retaliation. … The moment we decide, ‘You are my enemy, and so I must act in love toward you’ can actually be a clarifying and liberating point when we cease pretending that this person is a friend or colleague and turn to doing what a Christian must for an enemy.” I’d even venture that it doesn’t mean that this person is evil, or wicked. Even if they don’t care about my best interest, I can still care about their best interest, and act accordingly.
So where are you holding on and keeping score? Even the psalm reminds us that judgment is not ours: God has the last word. Don’t worry about the wicked- they will not last. It is not our job to judge. Let go of it. God is ultimately in control.
So this week, hear Christ’s invitation to this kingdom. We don’t need to keep score. We can give it all up and just love. Thanks be to God. Amen.
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