It amazes me how many people who say that Jesus is Lord of their life do not obey this command. Sometimes they gossip about the person who hurt them, sometimes they go to their pastor, and sometimes they plot and get back at you. Let’s take a look at this command that seems to be so difficult for people…
It was 8:30 pm and over a hundred men and a few women were gathered in a park enjoying a delicious meal served to the poor and homeless of Sydney, Australia. One of my friends had finished his meal and was chatting away when a large angry man walked up and punched him in the cheek.
Nick, my friend got over his shock and said, “Do you need to do that again?”
The thug hit him with another hard punch and received the same response from Nick: “Do you need to do that again?”
The thug hit Nick, who was a black belt in his own right, four times and four times Nick asked the same question.
The thug’s heart broke at this and he began to cry. He said, “Why don’t you call the police and put me in jail?”
Nick realized that this man was having a hard time being in free society after being locked in prison routines for too many years. Nick put his arm around him and said, “Want to come with me and have a nice brewed coffee and have a good chat?”
In my life, I haven’t heard many stories like that. Could you hard men reading this do that? Or you would have been in a very violent fight with this guy fresh out of prison.
In 1 Corinthians chapter 1, Paul speaks and says that the wisdom of God is foolishness to men.
Many of Jesus’ teachings sound like nonsense. This idea that people can hurt you, and you just forgive them and let them hurt you again, sounds pretty stupid. Many Christians don’t turn their cheek, they go to the police and arrest the person and send them back to jail.
I had a 20-year addiction to hooker services, and I seriously wanted to break the habit, so when I next saw my psychiatrist, I asked if I could take the chemical castration pill that pedophiles are given when they come out of the jail. This pill completely stops the production of sperm in the body and I knew that with this pill it would be released.
My psychiatrist said the only way I could get that pill was if I was a sex offender and they couldn’t prescribe it no matter if I had a prostitution addiction.
As she walked out with my caseworker who was in the meeting with her, she said:
“Matthew, I wish you would drop that Christian crap you believe in. Why don’t you masturbate?”
I walked out so mad at her. How dare you talk about my faith like that? I thought to myself that what she said must have been an ethics violation and seriously thought of reporting what she did to her superiors in a letter.
Jesus spoke to my heart when I had calmed down. “Of course you could turn the other cheek, Matthew!”
Yes, I could do that. It is difficult to do this lifestyle of obedience. So I didn’t report her and the next time we met he was still the same happy Matthew.
You see readers, the commands of Jesus are not easy to do sometimes and you will be forced to contact Jesus and ask him to give you the strength to fulfill them. When you live a life under the continual help and power of the Holy Spirit, your life is a continual witness to all those around you who are watching your life.
Here’s another example a parent took with a rapist.
An assistant pastor’s daughter was raped and instead of reporting the man who did it, with the father’s permission he went and befriended the guy. He invited the young man to come live in his own house with the daughter he had raped.
The rapist got a real surprise when he arrived with his suitcases and they introduced him to the daughter. At the dinner table the first night, the daughter told the rapist that her father knew it was him and that she invited you to come and learn to be a kind and loving man.
Throughout the months with the new family, the orphaned man gave his life to Jesus and pushed hard and persecuted Jesus with great fervor. The daughter and he became very close, they were like a brother and sister. Years later, the rapist married the daughter of the head pastor.
You will see:
Revenge would make the pastor have the bully beaten up and killed. Justice would see the rapist arrested and imprisoned. But grace won when she welcomed the rapist and showered him with love.
So many times we break the Father’s heart with our sin, but how many times does he forgive us and turn his cheek?
Something to ponder!
Perhaps you would like to email this to someone?
be blessed,
Matthew Robert Payne
