Repay No One Evil for Evil

We are in a sermon series in the Gospel of Matthew.

We're in the Sermon on the Mount,

which is the most famous sermon ever preached.

!

And we deeply desire to resemble you in this manner,

to be characterized by selfless love,

to have the meekness and humility of your Son, Jesus Christ.

But Lord, we also come to this radical text

well aware of our inadequacies,

that we cannot live like this in our own strength.

So Lord, fill us with your Holy Spirit.

Help us to commune with Jesus by your Spirit

more and more through faith.

Conform us to the image of your Son,

even in this reading and preaching of your Word.

In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

Please stand, if you're able, for the reading of God's Word,

to honor God as He addresses us from His Word.

Matthew 5, 38-42.

You have heard that it was said,

an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.

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.

And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic,

let him have your cloak as well.

And if anyone forces you to go one mile,

go with him two miles.

Give to the one who begs from you,

and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.

This is God's holy and authoritative Word.

Please be seated.

Niccolo Machiavelli was a 15th century Italian philosopher

and politician.

He authored the famous book called The Prince,

which is still avidly studied by political scientists

all throughout the world.

But his work is born of cynicism and pragmatism,

and it prioritizes strategic cruelty over moral idealism.

And as a politician,

he was well aware of at times needing to enforce his policy

and punish people that don't fit his policies.

And yet he was well aware of the possible cycle of vengeance

and retribution that can take over.

And so this was his solution for ending that cycle.

He said,

If an injury has to be done to a man,

it should be so severe

that his vengeance need not be feared.

His political philosophy is still highly influential today.

To give you a couple examples,

Malcolm X,

the 20th century African American revolutionary

and human rights activist,

echoed the same sentiment when he said,

Be peaceful.

Be courteous.

Obey the law.

Respect everyone.

But if someone puts his hand on you,

send him to the cemetery.

He is still quoted

and looked to for inspiration and guidance

by many advocacy groups throughout the country.

Even our current president,

Donald Trump,

this is not a political statement.

I'm just...

He's often quoted as saying,

If anybody hits me,

I'm going to hit them 10 times harder.

Maybe you grew up with your parents

telling you to do the same thing at school.

All that to say,

the idea of tit-for-tat retaliation

is deeply ingrained in our culture and society.

We admire, actually.

We admire people who take nothing from nobody.

Who stand up for themselves.

Who don't let anybody push them around.

But that is a worldly idea.

Not a biblical idea.

Repay no one evil for evil

as Christ suffered evil for our sake.

That's the main point of this passage.

First, we're going to talk about the law of retribution.

And secondly, we'll talk about the principle

of non-retaliation

or probably better put,

non-resistance as Jesus puts it here.

Once again, Jesus cites a popular misapplication

of the Old Testament to start.

It's in verse 38.

You have heard that it was said,

an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.

This is a famous legal principle called the lex talionis,

which is Latin for law of retaliation.

We find it explicitly stated three times in the Old Testament.

Exodus 21, 24.

Leviticus 24, 20.

Deuteronomy 19, 21.

This principle was articulated in a memorable way

so that people could easily remember.

Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, life for life.

It was meant for rhetorical effect.

However, it was never intended in the Bible

to be applied literally.

We know that that's the case

because in Exodus 21,

where we first learned this principle,

the specific punishments that are stipulated

for certain crimes are not literally eye for eye.

For example, when a man strikes and injures someone,

the law stipulates not that that person

also be struck and injured in the same way,

but rather it says that that person

needs to pay a financial fine.

So the point of this law

is not that the punishment

should be identical to the crime,

but that the punishment

should be commensurate with

or proportionate to the crime.

This is a sound legal principle.

Let me provide some examples

to prove that this is a wise

and necessary principle still in our day.

In 2018,

Tangaraju Supia

was executed in Singapore.

What was his crime?

He helped people smuggle in

2.2 pounds of marijuana.

I think if he followed that law here,

like quarter of high schoolers

would be executed.

I think smuggling drugs

is a terrible offense,

but I still think that's excessive,

a death penalty.

That's more like lie for eye,

not eye for eye.

In 2015,

a California university student

was convicted

of sexually assaulting

an unconscious woman at a party.

And because of that,

he was convicted for this.

He was proven to be guilty.

He was convicted,

and then he served

a whopping three months in jail.

That's more like eye for life.

Eye for eye would have been more just.

The eye for eye principle

of retributive punishment

is still the biblical

and wisest judicial practice

for society at large

because it promotes justice

by ensuring that the punishment

is proportionate to the crime

no more and no less.

Why then does Jesus

set his teaching here

in the Sermon on the Mount

in contrast to that wise

Old Testament principle?

He says in verse 38,

but I say to you,

do not resist the one who is evil.

The problem was not

with the law of retaliation itself,

but with how the Jews

of Jesus' day

were applying that principle.

Jesus provides three examples

of his teaching

not to resist the one

who is evil

in verses 39 to 42.

And all of them,

if you look at them,

deal with personal offense,

interpersonal conflict

and relationships.

This is not the case

of a governing authority

enforcing law and order

and punishing the evildoer.

That we still need.

This is instead the case

of a Christian

relating to bad people

who take advantage of them

and wrong them

in their personal lives.

That's the key difference.

According to scripture,

it's the government,

not individuals

who have the authority

to bear the sword

to punish evildoers.

It says in Romans 13,

one to four,

let every person

be subject

to the governing authorities.

For there is no authority

except from God

and those that exist

have been instituted by God.

Therefore,

whoever resists

the authorities

resists what God

has appointed

and those who resist

will incur judgment.

For rulers are not

a terror to good conduct,

but to bad.

If you do wrong,

be afraid.

For he does not

bear the sword in vain.

For he is the servant of God,

an avenger

who carries out

God's wrath

on the wrongdoer.

The governing authorities

and the courts

must uphold

the eye for eye principle

for the sake of justice,

for the sake of order

in society.

The problem was

that some Jews

were making

this legal principle

that should be enforced

by the civil authorities

a personal principle

of retribution

and revenge.

They were engaging

in this tit-for-tat

personal ethic.

You cut me off

on the road,

watch out,

I'm cutting you right off.

You ate my food

in the fridge,

if you guys have roommates,

I'm going to eat

your food.

You said something

bad about me,

I'm going to say

something bad about you.

your kid hit my kid

at school,

I'm going to teach him

karate and teach him

to hit your kid back.

You're being difficult

and cold toward me

at work,

I'm going to be

ice cold toward you.

When you take

this kind of

personal ethic

to an extreme,

you get the

never-ending

blood fused

between families

and tribes

and clans

that you see

in some parts

of the world

even today

and also

the endless cycles

of vendettas

between gang members

here in the U.S.

while they avenge

one of their members

and vengeance,

the cycle of vengeance

continues again

and again

and again.

It never

leads to peace.

It always leads

to more violence.

Jesus said

those who live

by the sword

will die

by the sword.

the principle

that God

intended

for his people

as a way

of helping them

to love

their neighbors

by getting

justice,

ensuring justice

in society

was instead

being twisted

as a way

to love

ourselves,

love themselves

at the expense

of others

and that's

what Jesus

is correcting

here in this

message.

The principle

originally comes

from Leviticus

19, 17-18.

You shall not

hate your brother

in your heart

but you shall

reason frankly

with your neighbor

lest you incur

sin because of him.

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.

Even in the Old Testament

bearing a grudge

against someone

and taking vengeance

against someone

was never meant

to be a part

of our personal ethic

but people

were misapplying

that eye-for-eye

tooth-for-tooth

principle

so Jesus

here restores

the heart

and spirit

of the original

law by completely

overturning

that retaliatory

personal ethic

of his day.

Instead he teaches

us to be selfless

to live so selflessly

that we endure

even wrongful

dishonor

lust

loss

suffering

and persecution

at the hands

of our neighbors.

Jesus says

in verse 39

but I say to you

do not resist

the one

who is evil.

You heard that right.

Do not resist

the one

who is evil.

It's a surprising

command in a society

where resist

is one of the most

popular slogans.

We love resisting

because it makes us

feel strong

makes us feel

independent

it makes us

feel important

but Jesus says

do not resist

and not only

does Jesus say

do not resist

he specifically

says

do not resist

the one

who is evil.

That's more shocking.

This is not the case

of a good doctor

giving you a painful

shot in an arm

and saying

hey don't move

don't resist

this is going to be

good for you.

No.

This is an evildoer

who is selfishly

seeking to do us

harm

and Jesus says

do not resist him.

Obviously that's going

to require some explanation.

Jesus

helpfully gives us

four

illustrations.

The first is

in verse 39

but if anyone

slaps you

on the right cheek

turn to him

the other also.

A slap in the face

is a common idiom

that we often use

to refer to

a rebuff

or an insult

because slapping

someone is

primarily intended

to cause

humiliation

more than

physical damage.

People who are

trying to

do

and some of you

guys are

maybe laughing

there's a

I heard there's

nowadays

this thing called

power slap

or something

it's like

a competition

where people

slap each other

as hard as they want

I mean

that's barbaric

you know

but this is

I mean if you're

doing that

you might actually

get hurt

but you know

this is not

the normal

that kind of slap

this is just

like a slap

to humiliate

somebody

and you're

if you're

trying to

hurt somebody

you punch

them

because you

have a more

concentrated area

for your force

to deliver the blow

and to cause damage

you don't slap them

a slapping is for

expressing your

contempt

for someone

disdain for someone

humiliating someone

and the

main purpose

it's here

that that main

purpose of slapping

is confirmed

by the fact that

Jesus specifically

mentions the

right cheek

why is that

important

why does

Jesus mention

right cheek

most people

if you know

are right handed

and in order

to strike someone

on the right cheek

with your right hand

you need to do it

with the back

of your hand

that's even

more insulting

as that's

that's the way

it's viewed

in most

most ancient

cultures

at least

there is

for example

an ancient

Jewish commentary

in Exodus 21

which prescribes

a double fine

for the backhanded

slap

as opposed

to the palm

slap

because it's

just that much

more humiliating

so Jesus

is illustrating

here

a particularly

insulting

situation

he's not

talking about

physical abuse

he's talking

about

when you're

dishonored

maybe you're

in a work

meeting

every time

you say

something

there's a

co-worker

or a boss

who just

rolls his

eyes

and

sighs

audibly

as if

you just

can't

get your

act

together

maybe

your

sibling

or

housemate

calls you

names

and

belittles

you

with

biting

sarcastic

comments

that make

you feel

small

and

embarrassed

maybe

someone

leaves

a harsh

mocking

comment

on your

social

media

maybe

an

entitled

client

or

entitled

customer

insults

you

and

treats

you

with

scorn

as

you're

just

trying

to

do

your

job

every

fiber

of

your

pride

tells

you

to

slap

back

but

Jesus

tells

us

to

turn

the

other

cheek

don't

respond

to

insult

with

insult

instead

choose

humility

and

meekness

I

think

we're

missing

the

point

of

Jesus

teaching

if

we

turn

this

idea

of

turning

the

other

cheek

into

a

legalistic

practice

that

you

obey

literally

on

every

occasion

it

certainly

does

not

mean

that

a

victim

of

domestic

abuse

should

stay

mum

and

report

nothing

to

the

police

or

take

no

steps

to

protect

herself

remember

what's

in

view

here

primarily

is

insult

not

injury

for

example

when

Jesus

is

unjustly

struck

by

one

of

the

officers

of

the

Jewish

high

priest

he

doesn't

literally

turn

the

other

cheek

isn't

that

interesting

he

challenges

the

injustice

of

the

abuse

he

says

if

what

I

said

is

wrong

bear

witness

about

the

wrong

but

if

what

I

said

is

right

why

do

you

strike

me

John

18

22

to

23

Jesus

does

not

hesitate

to

point

out

the

high

priest

sinful

abuse

of

power

but

also

important

to

note

Jesus

does

not

retaliate

he

does

not

lash

out

at

his

abuser

with

insults

and

invectives

he

calmly

and

meekly

appeals

to

the

proper

authority

in

which

case

it

is

the

high

priest

who

is

insulting

him

in

this

way

turning

the

other

cheek

doesn't

mean

that

we

cannot

call

out

injustice

or

hold

people

accountable

it

does

mean

however

that

we

do

not

retaliate

for

personal

vengeance

we

are

to

respond

not

out

of

pride

but

humility

not

out

of

a

self

preserving

instinct

but

out

of

a

meekness

that

entrusts

ourselves

to

God's

defense

and

care

remember

the

beatitudes

it's

those

who

are

poor

in

spirit

those

who

mourn

their

sins

those

who

are

meek

who

can

turn

the

other

cheek

lamentations

3

24

to

33

demonstrate

this

principle

really

well

it

speaks

of

bearing

under

the

yoke

of

suffering

and

insults

recognizing

that

God

is

still

sovereign

over

all

of

that

and

trusting

that

God

will

eventually

have

compassion

on us

and

mercy

on us

if we

continue

to hope

in him

and wait

on him

this is a

remarkable

passage

follow along

with me

as I

read

the

Lord

is

my

portion

says

my

soul

therefore

I

will

hope

in

him

the

Lord

is

good

to

those

who

wait

for

him

to

the

soul

who

seeks

him

it

is

good

that

one

should

wait

patiently

for

the

salvation

of

the

Lord

it

is

good

for

a

man

that

he

bear

the

yoke

in

his

youth

let

him

sit

alone

in

silence

when

it

is

laid

on

him

for

the

Lord

will

not

cast

off

forever

but

though

he

cause

grief

he

will

have

compassion

according

to

the

abundance

of

his

steadfast

love

for

he

does

not

afflict

from

his

heart

or

grieve

the

children

of

man

why

do

we

give

our

cheek

to

the

one

who

strikes

and

let

ourselves

be

filled

with

insults

because

for

the

Lord

will

not

cast

off

forever

even

though

God

in

his

sovereignty

has

allowed

me

to

be

insulted

and

disrespected

in this

present

moment

we

say

I

know

that

God

does

not

grieve

or

afflict

me

from

his

heart

soon

he

will

have

compassion

according

to the

abundance

of his

steadfast

love

so I

say

the

Lord

is

my

portion

I

will

hope

in

him

and

wait

for

him

that's

the

spirit

of

those

who

turn

the

other

cheek

David

is

temporarily

overthrown

by his

son

Absalom

in

2nd

Samuel

16

he

is

fleeing

Jerusalem

and

a

man

from

the

house

of

Saul

Shimei

starts

pelting

him

stones

and

cursing

him

proverbially

slapping

him

back

and

forth

get

out

get

out

you

man

of

blood

you

worthless

man

the

Lord

has

avenged

on

you

all

the

blood

of

the

house

of

Saul

in

whose

place

you

have

reigned

and

the

Lord

has

given

the

kingdom

into

the

hand

of

your

son

Absalom

see

your

evil

is

on

you

for

you

are

a

man

of

blood

that's

a

backhanded

slap

but

David's

response

is

exemplary

mind

you

David

is

not

alone

when

this

happens

he's

surrounded

by

his

army

and

by

his

mighty

men

and

one

of

the

mighty

men

Abishai

says

to

David

why

should

this

dead

dog

curse

my

lord

the

king

let

me

go

over

and

take

off

his

head

he's

looking

for

that

personal

vengeance

life

for

I

but

this

is

what

David

says

if

he

is

cursing

because

the

Lord

has

said

to

him

curse

David

who

then

shall

say

why

have

you

done

so

leave

him

alone

and

let

him

curse

for

the

Lord

has

told

him

to

it

may

be

that

the

Lord

will

look

on

the

wrong

done

to

me

and

that

the

Lord

will

repay

me

with

good

for

his

cursing

today

maybe

it's

what we

say to

ourselves

when we're

insulted

when we're

dishonored

maybe

maybe

it's

the

Lord

who

is

ordaining

his

goodness

and his

sovereignty

for me

to be

dishonored

today

to be

disrespected

today

to be

insulted

today

if so

then I

will

silently

bear

under

the

yoke

and

entrust

myself

to

his

steadfast

love

and

compassion

because I

know if I

wait on

him

and hope

in him

he will

not

disappoint

that's

what it

looks like

to turn

the other

cheek

verse 40

gives us

a second

example

and if

anyone

would sue

you

and take

your

tunic

let him

have

your

cloak

as well

what's

in view

here is

the

old

testament

law

governing

the

treatment

of the

poor

poor

people

in those

days

had just

two

garments

the

inner

garment

here called

the

tunic

and the

outer

garment

the

heavier

the

thicker

garment

called

the

cloak

the

cloak

was

the

more

essential

garment

because

it

was

able

to

keep

them

warm

and

because

for

the

poor

you

served

also

as a

blanket

when

you

slept

outside

kind of

like

a

sleeping

bag

sometimes

a

poor

person

would

give

his

cloak

as

a

pledge

to

someone

when

borrowing

money

from

a

neighbor

I

really

need

this

money

to

get

this

bread

for

my

kid

I

don't

have

anything

to

give

you

as

a

pledge

that

I'll

repay

this

debt

so I'll

give

you

my

cloak

this

is

the

best

I

have

so

the

lender

takes

the

cloak

but

if

the

poor

person

was

not

able

to

repay

the

debt

to

get

the

cloak

back

Exodus

22

to

25

to

27

demanded

that

the

lender

still

return

the

cloak

to

the

poor

person

before

sundown

and

the

biblical

rationale

was

this

this

is

his

only

covering

and

it

is

his

cloak

for

his

body

in

what

else

shall

he

sleep

this

is

God's

compassion

but

Jesus

here

commands

his

followers

to

relinquish

even

that

basic

right

if

anyone

would

sue

you

and

take

your

tunic

let

him

have

your

cloak

as

well

this

is

reminiscent

of

what

Paul

teaches

in

1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians 6:7

6

verse 7

in

this

situation

one

Christian

has

defrauded

another

stolen

a lot

of

money

from

a

fellow

Christian

brother

and

that

other

brother

that's

been

defrauded

is suing

this

brother

now

for

defrauding

him

and

Paul

interestingly

enough

doesn't

rebuke

only

the

fraudster

he

also

rebukes

the

person

who's

bringing

the

charge

he

says

to

have

lawsuits

at

all

with

one

another

is

already

a

defeat

for

you

why

not

rather

suffer

wrong

why

not

rather

be

defrauded

does

does

your

money

does

your

property

matter

that

much

to

you

do

you

drag

a

fellow

Christian

brother

or

sister

to

court

display

that

in

front

of

unbelievers

when we

fight

tooth

and nail

for

my

rights

and

my

due

and

my

entitlements

to

make

sure

that

we

get

our

stuff

and

keep

it

what

message

does

that

send

to

the

world

it

reveals

to

the

world

that

we

are

a

people

whose

hope

is

not

in

the

life

thereafter

in

eternal

life

kingdom

of

God

but

in

this

life

in

this

world

when

we

have

an

inheritance

that

is

imperishable

undefiled

unfading

kept

in

heaven

for

us

it

says

in

first

Peter

when

our

heavenly

father

it

says

has

many

rooms

for

us

why

do

we

care

so

much

about

losing

our

earthly

property

Hebrews

10

34

commands

persecuted

believers

who

joyfully

accepted

the

plundering

of their

property

since

they

knew

that

they

themselves

had

a

better