Luke 6:27-34
"But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you."
The morality taught in the Sermon on the Mount is personal morality, not morality of the nation or society. On the morality of a nation and society, the Bible taught that the government has the right to bear a sword, to reward and penalize, in order to maintain equity and justice in the society. Therefore, we need to actively engage in politics, in order to influence the nation to walk on the path that pleases the Lord.
"An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth" is the norm of the world, and people usually think it's the right thing to do. The Lord, however, wants us to love our enemies and to be kind to those who hate us. It's not that the Lord doesn't want justice to prevail or doesn't care about right and wrong, but the Lord doesn't want us to act with vengeance in heart or commit evil deeds from our bitterness. Christians should not only do what's right, but also do more than just what's right; not only should we do the right thing, but we should also not forsake anyone in our heart. We may not look as if we are forsaking anyone, but we might be holding a grudge against someone, and we might be happy to see others suffer, we think their suffering will reveal how righteous and just we are. Although we might not be forsaking anyone on the outside, but deep inside we might be no different from the evildoers.
Lord used many examples to explain the concept of "turning the other cheek," for it is the most commonly misunderstood scripture passage. In the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord focused the attitude inside, but not just the behavior outside. When the Lord was on trial, He didn't turn the cheek when His right cheek was slapped; when Paul was on trial, he actively defended himself and didn't turn the other cheek. Forgiveness from our heart is the most important thing. When we are hurt by others such as our boss, we often feel humiliated and we will hold a grudge again those who wronged us and be filled with thoughts of revenge. The Lord, however, reminded us here that we shouldn't value our own pride so much, but rather value life of the Lord within us; we shouldn't value the humiliation that we suffer more than the humiliation that we may bring to the Lord. The thought of revenge will only kill our soul, so we ask the Lord to release us from it!
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