“Going against human nature”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Wednesday, September 27, 2023
Matthew 5:38-48 (Forward, p. 60) CEV p. 987
I think that it’s a natural and normal human impulse to want to ‘get even’, to pay the person back for what she or he has said or done to us, or to want the person to somehow ‘pay’ for it. Accordingly, Jesus’ words in today’s passage—taken from His Sermon on the Mount—go very much against what I’d call ‘human nature.’
First of all, He forbids something that was almost ‘second-nature’ to Middle Eastern culture, namely the practice of retaliation. Retaliation, or paying back someone for an insult or injury, was seen as a cultural norm, even as something that was ‘expected’ of you. Restoring, or at least, defending family honour was something that was ‘expected’, even demanded. And here it didn’t matter whether the insult or injury was physical or merely verbal, something that was said, you, as a family member were ‘required’ to pay it back. However, Jesus says ‘no’ to all that.
But that’s not all. Jesus goes even further with His instructions about our just ‘taking it’, which, in the culture of the times, were quite outrageous! Firstly, he mentions being slapped across the right side of the face. We may not ‘get it’, but Jesus’ original audience would have. To be slapped was insult enough but to be slapped on your face’s right side was even worse. That is, unless the attacker chose to try something very awkward, that is, use his or her right hand, it would normally be the left hand that was used—and the back of the hand at that! And that hand was the hand of dishonour, the hand usually used for ‘bodily functions’. And that was in a day devoid of toilet paper or any such thing! And, the back of the hand made it even worse. And in case we err on the side of thinking that no one could possibly take on this sort of thing voluntarily, it was exactly the kind of abuse that Jesus willing endured in his various trials. It is the kind of non-retaliation that He expects of us, His followers.
Jesus’ second example also seems pretty unrealistic. It comes from a lawsuit in a court of law. He relates an instance of someone being sued for his or her outer garment, the tunic or ‘chiton’. It was the person’s long, sack-like outer garment, of which the person might well have several. It was like the kaftan that many Middle Eastern men and women still wear.
But Jesus says that if someone sues you for that, you should offer your cloak as well. This was pretty radical, for most people only owned one of these, and actually used it as their bedding, their blanket at night. Such was its importance that a cloak was taken as pledge for a debt, it had to be returned at nighttime since he needed it then. So, is Jesus saying that we should allow ourselves to be trodden upon, to be treated as a doormat? No, He is saying that we should not be constantly standing up for our rights, for what we consider to be our due. And, isn’t this rather pertinent for our times and place, when many make a big fuss about their rights and their freedoms, and how these are being violated or eroded away, and very little fuss about their duties or responsibilities to the wider public, to society at large! And, once again, is this not a lot like Jesus: looking out, not for Himself, but us!
Our third example may seem even more remote from our times, even more disconnected. There was a law often in force and practiced in occupied countries that the locals could be compelled to provide a foreign soldier with such services as food, lodging or transportation. One of these services was carrying his pack for him. However, there was, in Roman law, a limit to this: you could only be forced to carry it for one mile—and no more. But here Jesus suggests being gracious and going even further, two miles in fact. (By the way, this is exactly the kind of thing that Simon of Cyrene did for Jesus in carrying His cross!) So, what Jesus is espousing is that we should do far more than ‘just our duty’, more than just whatever the state or governing body requires of us and do it cheerfully and willingly.
And, again, did not Jesus do far more than any earthly authority might demand of a person? He went far beyond that out of His love for us.
Our fourth example is perhaps one that would resonate far more for us today. It concerns people who are begging, scrounging off us, asking for handouts. So, how are we to ‘handle’ such people and such requests? Actually, Jesus is not talking about ‘handouts’ per se, but loans. And, as a parallel version in Luke points out, they are not to be loans given out with the full expectation of being repaid, of getting it all back, but given where the repayment is iffy, to say the least. In other words, to give freely and unconditionally. And why loans vs. outright gifts? Here Barclay points out something most interesting and suggestive that the ancient rabbis suggested. They said that giving framed as a ‘loan’ would preserve the person’s dignity and self-respect. In other words, the intent of the gift, or
loan, was to truly help the person in his or her hour of need, rather than demean that person. Again, a very good principle.
In His final illustration Jesus talks about how we respond, in general terms, to anyone who mistreats us. He tells us to pray for them and their welfare, which is very informative and helpful, for it is very difficult to sincerely pray for people all the while hating them and wanting the worst for them.
And, what is the underlying principle to all this most abnormal, unnatural behaviour, this behaviour that goes against our basic human nature? It is that God our Father behaves in exactly this way. God is kind and provides sunshine and rainfall on all people, regardless of their behaviour or their merit. Indeed, Jesus say, anyone, just about anyone, can behave nicely to those who are nice to them. Even the worst scoundrels do that, He says. Instead, be like your heavenly Father who loves and cares for everyone.
All in all, this is a pretty difficult set of commands, and dare I say it, only such things as can safely be done with God’s help and God’s direction.
Forward notes: “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect”
(verse 48).
“Jesus’s instructions in this verse are sticky words for someone with perfectionist tendencies like me. I hear ‘be perfect’ and am tempted with all my might to accomplish what I know to be impossible.
“Of course, human beings cannot be perfect like God. Plenty of Scriptures make plain how imperfect we humans are. Jesus’s point is not that people should be flawless or always get everything right. If Jesus isn’t setting people up for failure by expecting perfection, then what is he saying?
“Jesus’s teaching in verses 43-48 revolves around making practices of love complete. The word translated as perfect means complete or finished, and complete love, in Jesus’s depiction, goes towards enemies as well as to those who love you back. Just as the divine parent does not withhold ‘sun’ and ‘rain’ from ‘the evil’ and ‘unrighteous’ (verse 45), so people are not to leave love unfinished by excluding enemies. Our love does not have to be perfect or turn all enemies into friends. It just needs to be given a chance to do what love can do among all people.”
Moving Forward: “Is there someone you have trouble loving? Add that person to your prayer list, asking for strength and courage to love.”