Last time we talked about going the extra mile.
In the same passage, Jesus offers this familiar invitation:
“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 anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.”
While Jesus was certainly an advocate for nonviolence, I’m not sure he intended this to mean we ought to subject ourselves to physical abuse. Like much of his teaching, there’s a cultural context.
In that culture, a backhanded slap on the right cheek was a demeaning, insulting gesture. Jesus invited his followers, rather than retaliating, to present their other cheek. If the person struck them again, it would be an openhanded slap, which would still hurt but would be the way an equal would strike someone.
Turning the other cheek invites the other person to treat us as an equal, even when it hurts or costs us something.
I’m not sure there’s a precise modern equivalent, but the principle is timeless.
If someone insults or demeans us in some way, we’re tempted to retaliate – eye for eye, tooth for tooth. Jesus invites us to surrender our desire to get even, and instead find a way to treat the other person as an equal who might become a friend.
I’ll be honest – that sounds good in theory, but I’ve never been much good at it in practice. But as I watch Project Rescue missionaries refuse to retaliate, and transform some of the worst criminals into friends and even allies, I find hope.
They don’t accomplish any of that with their own strength. They would tell you it’s all about leaning on Jesus.
If they can do it, perhaps you and I can find a way to let go of our instinct to retaliate.
Perhaps we can perform the costly act of turning the other cheek, erasing lines, and transforming a tormentor into a friend.