Sermon on the Mount - Lesson 13 - Retaliation

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Slide 6	•This teaching is not for the world•This teaching has nothing whatever to do with a person who is not a Christian. This is section is probably one of the most feared statements in all the Bible. People have gone to great lengths in an attempt to explain it away•Go back to the context – He is teaching His new followers from the Beatitudes onward•The Beatitudes provide the foundation from which this behavior must spring.•It is utterly impossible for a person to live this way consistently without the Beatitudes – we must be born again before this can apply•*The lex* talionis, the law of retaliation. •This law was given to protect the innocent and to make sure retaliation did not exceed the offense*•Jesus here teaches how the believer should respond to personal injury. He is not discussing the government’s obligation to maintain law and order.*
Slide 7	•5:38 Ye have heard that it hath been said , an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth”•“Ye have heard that it hath been said…”•He is getting ready to straighten out the false teaching of the days religious leaders and lawyers•“…an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” This comes from the following passages – grab your Bibles•Ex. 21:24 Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, •Lev. 24:20 Breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth: as he hath caused a blemish in a man, so shall it be done to him again. •Deut. 19:21 And thine eye shall not pity; but life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot. (Hold your finger here)
Slide 8	•These passages declare what was both a command to punish and a limitation on punishment—the penalty must not exceed the crime. •According to the OT, authority for punishment was vested in the government, not in the individual. •Now look back in your Bibles – back up a couple of verses to Deut 19:17•Deu 19:17 Then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges, which shall be in those days; •Deu 19:18 And the judges shall make diligent inquisition: and, behold, if the witness be a false witness, and hath testified falsely against his brother; •Jesus said ye have heard that it hath been said.. – He is clarifying, straightening out the false teachers – those who had turned this law given by Moses – into a system of personal revenge and retaliation •The original intent of the law is that punishment should be equitable and should fit the crime. •These limitations prohibited exacting a greater vengeance such as when Lamech boasted in Gen. 4:23 •And Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice; ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech: for I have slain a man to my wounding, and a young man to my hurt.
Slide 9	•5:39–41 Jesus went beyond the law and established a higher standard of righteousness for the Christian by abolishing retaliation altogether. •He taught us to have confidence in an almighty God who is completely aware of the injustices done to man and totally capable of executing eternal justice. •He showed His disciples that, whereas revenge was legally permissible, non-resistance was graciously possible. •39 But I say unto you, that ye resist not evil:•Jesus instructed His followers to offer no resistance to evil – to a person who does wrong to you - The Bible is full of supporting verses
Slide 10	Romans 12:17-2117 Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. 18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. (If you can’t live peaceably it must not be your fault)19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. 20 Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. 21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
Slide 11	1 Corinthians 6:7 7 Now therefore there is utterly a fault among you, because ye go to law one with another. Why do ye not rather take wrong? why do ye not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded? 1 Thessalonians 5:1515 See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.
Slide 12	1 Peter 3:9-129 Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. 10 For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: 11 Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it. 12 For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.
Slide 13	1 Peter 2:21-2321 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: 22 Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: 23 Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: Proverbs 20:2222 Say not thou, I will recompense evil; but wait on the LORD, and he shall save thee
Slide 14	Proverbs 24:16-2016 For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief. 17 Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbleth: 18 Lest the LORD see it, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him. 19 Fret not thyself because of evil men, neither be thou envious at the wicked; 20 For there shall be no reward to the evil man; the candle of the wicked shall be put out.
Slide 15	•“Do not react to a wrong with a wrong.” •Two wrongs do not make a right.•He that does so makes himself precisely what the other is, a wicked person.•39b but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. •If they were slapped on one cheek by someone, they were to turn the other to him also. This is not an attitude of “I dare you or challenge you”•The slap on the right cheek is a backhanded one—an insult as well as injury. •Our Lord’s own meek yet dignified bearing when smitten rudely on the cheek and not literally presenting the other, is the best comment on these words. •“It is the preparedness, after one indignity, not to invite but to submit meekly to another, without retaliation”40 And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also. •If they were sued for their coat, they were to surrender their cloak (an outer garment used for covering at night) as well. let him have thy cloak also—the outer and more costly garment. This overcoat was not allowed to be retained overnight as a pledge from the poor because they used it for a bedcovering.
Slide 16	41 And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain. •If an official compelled them to carry his baggage for one mile, they were to voluntarily carry it two miles. •Roman soldiers could legally force Jews to serve as porters for a set distance. Jesus urged His followers not to let their oppressors destroy their Christian love, which should even go beyond what the Roman law demanded•What is being required by Jesus is a readiness to submit to unreasonable demands of whatever kind, rather than raise quarrels•Pro 19:11 The discretion of a man deferreth his anger; and it is his glory to pass over a transgression. •Proberbs 19:11 teaches us to overlook a transgression – not to take an offense -can be seen as being passive in the face of an offence – but Romans 12:21 refocuses our attention – from perceived passivity to action•Romans 12:21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. •We are to not just not take offence – we are to overcome that by doing good – good to them that would have offended you.
Slide 17	•Jesus ends this section by teaching that we are to be generous and non judgmental42 Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away. •To aid the poor the OT forbade charging interest on loans made to fellow Jews (Deut. 15:7–11). •Many refused to make such interest-free loans. Jesus requires His followers not to put selfish desires material gain above human need.•This passage of scripture my be the most resisted, most rationalized passage in the Bible•5:42 Jesus’ last command in this paragraph seems the most impractical to us today. Our obsession with material goods and possessions makes us recoil at the thought of giving away what we have acquired. However, if we were willing to concentrate on the treasures of heaven and be content with only necessary food and clothing, we would accept these words more literally and willingly. •Jesus’ statement presupposes that the person who asks for help has a genuine need. Since it is impossible to know whether the need is legitimate in all cases, •“It is better to help a score of fraudulent beggars than to risk turning away one man in real need.”
Slide 18	•This passage has been called “The Gopel of the extra Mile.”“Humanly speaking, such behavior as the Lord calls for here is impossible. Only as a person is controlled by the Holy Spirit can he live a self-sacrificing life. Only as the Savior is allowed to live His life in the believer can insult (v. 39), injustice (v. 40), and inconvenience (v. 41) be repaid with love.” (MacDonald)
Slide 19	•WE CAN’T FORGET THAT THE BEATITUDESE HAVE TO BE OUR ATTITUDES AND IF THEY ARE WE ARE LIVING WHAT JESUS IS TEACHING •The first four Beatitudes reveal spiritual progress – each step leads to the next and presupposes the one that has gone before.•To be poor in spirit we acknowledge our complete and utter spiritual bankruptcy before God•Next we mourn over the cause of it – our sins, the corruption of man and his fallen nature and the control sin and death has over this world•We are to be meek, humble, and gentle toward others allowing our spiritual poverty to condition our behavior to them as well as to God•We are to hunger and thirst for righteousness – what good does it to confess if we don’t hunger – we replace our sin with a desire for righteousness•Next we turn from our attitude toward God to our attitude toward others•Merciful – Pure in heart – peacemakers•We will be reviled and persecuted and we are to rejoice and be exceeding glad!•These are character traits - we don’t act like Christians – we are Christians and our actions are an outcome of that.•We are not meant to control our Christianity – our Christianity is meant to control us.