DO THIS! (PART 5)

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong.

1 Thessalonians 5:15a

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

The Bible is full of commands from God, “Do this!” statements that serve to ensure His people live as He wants them to. We find a whole list of them as Paul prepares to close his first letter to the church in Thessalonica and they are forming the foundation for this series. So far we have looked at the following orders from our Lord:

1. Live in peace with one another.

2. Warn those who are idle and disruptive.

3. Encourage the disheartened, help the weak.

4. Be patient with everyone.

Today, we look at number 5, a call to avoid retaliation.

Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong. 1 Thessalonians 5:15a

As we have seen in other demands from our Lord, no one is excluded from what He wants. Here, we see that nobody is to pay back wrong for wrong and nobody means just that nobody.

The Christian believer is to make sure that nobody turns to revenge and that means they are to control their own behavior as well. And yet, people seem inclined to want to get even before they turn the other cheek as Jesus commanded during His Sermon on the Mount teaching:

“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. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.” Matthew 5:38-42

Now, this bold statement by Jesus was contradictory to the way the Jewish people were being instructed by the Jewish teachers of His day. Yes, there was a statement in the Mosaic Law that might seem to encourage revenge if interpreted improperly. You can find this in the Book of Exodus:

“If people are fighting and hit a pregnant woman and she gives birth prematurely but there is no serious injury, the offender must be fined whatever the woman’s husband demands and the court allows. But if there is serious injury, you are to take life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise.” 21:22-24

Note here that this statement is about a specific situation, a fight leading to a pregnant woman being struck and that incident leads to her giving birth prematurely. This is different from God saying everyone or nobody in that it’s not all inclusive. Rather, it is simply a call for proper justice in a certain matter. We know there’s not a blanket call for equal retaliation in the Law because we go to the Book of Leviticus and find this from the Lord:

“Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.” Leviticus 19:18

As we see in culture today, people take a section of scripture and use it out of context to try and justify their actions and beliefs. If the Pharisees and Sadducees would have just consulted the God they claimed they were faithful to about the matter of an “eye for an eye”, they would have been corrected for in the end translation, no person has a right to bring judgment on another. Judgment is to be reserved for God.

Consider this from the Apostle Paul as he wrote to the Romans:

Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is Mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Romans 12:19-20

Here, the Lord’s exclusive right to judgment is reinforced. Only He gets the chance to avenge and repay someone for their wrongs. No one else is qualified unless the Lord uses them as an instrument of His punishment.

So what are we to do instead?

We are to treat our enemies well, like we would treat someone who is dearly loved and cared for. If he or she is hungry, we are to feed them. If thirsty, we are to give them “something to drink”. Any action of goodness would be completely unexpected by the adversary and the hope would be that it would drive the enemy to repentance as they felt the conviction of God raining down like “burning coals’ upon their head.

Need another scripture passage to further reinforce today’s “Do This!” command. Consider this from Peter in his first letter:

Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing (3:9).

The Lord calls His people to bless others in His name as they carry out His will and way every day. Instead of responding in kind to someone who wrongs you, choose to bless them instead in obedience to the word of God. For if you do, the scriptures assure that you will “inherit a blessing” in return. In other words, blessing someone who the world would say isn’t worthy of being blessed will be rewarded by a God who operates opposed to the world’s ways.

And so the next time someone does something wrong to you, no matter the circumstance, remember God’s command and let Him handle the matter. In the meantime, give your antagonist the last thing they would ever expect. Show them the love and grace of the Lord who wants them to leave their sinfulness behind and exchange it for a better way of living, the way of Jesus that they have witnessed through your actions.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com