Do not resist an evil person
This week's zesty goodness comes from Matthew 5:38-42:
I read these verses this morning and the phrase "Do not resist an evil person" jumped out at me. It's not the first time I've seen it. I've probably even taught on these verses before. Intellectually I grasp their meaning, and I agree with them. Still, that phrase never fails to shock me. "Do not resist an evil person." How is that possible?
If someone hits me, I'm supposed to put myself in a position where they can hit me again. What? I've been hit before, and that's the last thing on my mind at the time. How is it possible for someone to get punched in the face and be willing to take it again? If someone steals your stuff, you're supposed to give them more of your stuff, if they want it. That's nothing like my behavior. If someone takes something of mine, generally I intend to get it back plus something more for my trouble. How does someone tolerate someone else maliciously walking off with the fruits of their labor, and not only not resist the thief but help them? It blows my mind.
And the thing about walking a mile. It's not the fitness police they're talking about. All Jews were subject to being commandeered as slave labor for the Occupying Forces of the Roman Empire. These were guardsmen who oppressed the Jewish people in Palestine during Jesus' time. If they had stuff they needed carried, they would pick out a couple Jews and make them carry it for them. How humiliating would that be? Not only has your country been pillaged and vandalized by savage foreigners, but now you're being asked to help them wreck things even more. Have you ever had someone grab your hands and smack your head with them, saying "Stop hitting yourself! Stop hitting yourself!" That's the multicultural version of that. How does anyone tolerate that kind of oppression, let alone go along with it and even add to it? What would your friends think of you helping the enemy? What would the local militia groups do to you if they found out?
"Do not resist an evil person." If Adolf Hitler was standing with a gun pointed at you, asking you to drive the train that takes prisoners to the death camps, and you were close enough that you could kill him if you tried, would you honestly choose driving the death train instead? If a cop was on a power trip and wrote you a series of expensive tickets out of spite, would you smile and pay them instead of fighting them in court? These are people bent on harming you, and on harming your people. How can we not resist them? Yet Jesus tells us not to resist an evil person.
This is the example provided by the ultimate man. This is a glimpse at the image of Christ. Even though he was completely just, he didn't fight the man who ate food out of his hand and then betrayed him. He didn't resist the men who scourged him with whips, or who nailed him to a cross and left him to die a public and humiliating death. What could we ever encounter that would justify resistance more than that? The lifestyle lived out by those who truly follow Christ and walk in his footsteps isn't "Shoot the abortion doctor." It isn't "stockpile guns in your compound." It isn't "hire a good lawyer." It's "do not resist an evil person."
None of us will ever encounter anything like the injustice suffered by Jesus Christ, yet he didn't lift a finger to resist his tormentors. He even helped them build their case by remaining silent. Still, most of us will put up a fight at the slightest sign of ill will by another person. I don't know of a single person who lives a perfectly Christ-like life. It's not that we can't. It's just that we're evil. We're unwilling to love others so much that our pain is less important than their wellbeing. We're stuck in this world, even though Christ has opened the door to his kingdom for us.
In the kingdom of God, none of this stuff is as important as we make it. If someone punches you in the face, it's a problem in the moment, but God can heal you. And even if he doesn't right away, do you honestly think you'll be upset about it 10,000,000,000,000,000,067 years from now? And that's only a tiny slice of eternity. Still, can any of us honestly say that we will not resist an evil person? It's such a pure thing that I can barely contemplate my filthy hands holding it. Every now and then I get it right: Someone is mean, and I'm nice back. Someone cheats me, and I don't hold it against them. But for me, those are exceptions. It blows my mind that it is possible for us to live so purely, if we choose. Christ wouldn't have mentioned it otherwise.
If anyone thinks this is a mistranslation or a weird way of reading what Jesus says, look at the example of the martyr Stephen in Acts 7. People were in the process of killing him with big nasty rocks, and he didn't put up a fight. This wasn't some accident of negligence on their part. They hated him and wanted him dead. It wasn't revenge for him being a jerk to them. It was pure malice, and yet he didn't resist the evil men. How far do we have to go to get to that point?
If you want to follow Christ, this is where the rabbit trail leads. It's easy to call ourselves Christians and concentrate on doing good things and following the occasional nudge from the Holy Spirit, but to do this? To lay ourselves bare to predation and be completely vulnerable to evil men? That's huge, yet it's only one of many things Jesus talks about as examples of what life in his image means. Are you ready? Am I? It's humbling to see who Jesus Christ really is.
"You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.' But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
I read these verses this morning and the phrase "Do not resist an evil person" jumped out at me. It's not the first time I've seen it. I've probably even taught on these verses before. Intellectually I grasp their meaning, and I agree with them. Still, that phrase never fails to shock me. "Do not resist an evil person." How is that possible?
If someone hits me, I'm supposed to put myself in a position where they can hit me again. What? I've been hit before, and that's the last thing on my mind at the time. How is it possible for someone to get punched in the face and be willing to take it again? If someone steals your stuff, you're supposed to give them more of your stuff, if they want it. That's nothing like my behavior. If someone takes something of mine, generally I intend to get it back plus something more for my trouble. How does someone tolerate someone else maliciously walking off with the fruits of their labor, and not only not resist the thief but help them? It blows my mind.
And the thing about walking a mile. It's not the fitness police they're talking about. All Jews were subject to being commandeered as slave labor for the Occupying Forces of the Roman Empire. These were guardsmen who oppressed the Jewish people in Palestine during Jesus' time. If they had stuff they needed carried, they would pick out a couple Jews and make them carry it for them. How humiliating would that be? Not only has your country been pillaged and vandalized by savage foreigners, but now you're being asked to help them wreck things even more. Have you ever had someone grab your hands and smack your head with them, saying "Stop hitting yourself! Stop hitting yourself!" That's the multicultural version of that. How does anyone tolerate that kind of oppression, let alone go along with it and even add to it? What would your friends think of you helping the enemy? What would the local militia groups do to you if they found out?
"Do not resist an evil person." If Adolf Hitler was standing with a gun pointed at you, asking you to drive the train that takes prisoners to the death camps, and you were close enough that you could kill him if you tried, would you honestly choose driving the death train instead? If a cop was on a power trip and wrote you a series of expensive tickets out of spite, would you smile and pay them instead of fighting them in court? These are people bent on harming you, and on harming your people. How can we not resist them? Yet Jesus tells us not to resist an evil person.
This is the example provided by the ultimate man. This is a glimpse at the image of Christ. Even though he was completely just, he didn't fight the man who ate food out of his hand and then betrayed him. He didn't resist the men who scourged him with whips, or who nailed him to a cross and left him to die a public and humiliating death. What could we ever encounter that would justify resistance more than that? The lifestyle lived out by those who truly follow Christ and walk in his footsteps isn't "Shoot the abortion doctor." It isn't "stockpile guns in your compound." It isn't "hire a good lawyer." It's "do not resist an evil person."
None of us will ever encounter anything like the injustice suffered by Jesus Christ, yet he didn't lift a finger to resist his tormentors. He even helped them build their case by remaining silent. Still, most of us will put up a fight at the slightest sign of ill will by another person. I don't know of a single person who lives a perfectly Christ-like life. It's not that we can't. It's just that we're evil. We're unwilling to love others so much that our pain is less important than their wellbeing. We're stuck in this world, even though Christ has opened the door to his kingdom for us.
In the kingdom of God, none of this stuff is as important as we make it. If someone punches you in the face, it's a problem in the moment, but God can heal you. And even if he doesn't right away, do you honestly think you'll be upset about it 10,000,000,000,000,000,067 years from now? And that's only a tiny slice of eternity. Still, can any of us honestly say that we will not resist an evil person? It's such a pure thing that I can barely contemplate my filthy hands holding it. Every now and then I get it right: Someone is mean, and I'm nice back. Someone cheats me, and I don't hold it against them. But for me, those are exceptions. It blows my mind that it is possible for us to live so purely, if we choose. Christ wouldn't have mentioned it otherwise.
If anyone thinks this is a mistranslation or a weird way of reading what Jesus says, look at the example of the martyr Stephen in Acts 7. People were in the process of killing him with big nasty rocks, and he didn't put up a fight. This wasn't some accident of negligence on their part. They hated him and wanted him dead. It wasn't revenge for him being a jerk to them. It was pure malice, and yet he didn't resist the evil men. How far do we have to go to get to that point?
If you want to follow Christ, this is where the rabbit trail leads. It's easy to call ourselves Christians and concentrate on doing good things and following the occasional nudge from the Holy Spirit, but to do this? To lay ourselves bare to predation and be completely vulnerable to evil men? That's huge, yet it's only one of many things Jesus talks about as examples of what life in his image means. Are you ready? Am I? It's humbling to see who Jesus Christ really is.
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