An Eye for an Eye

Lord we thank you for today. You are a great God and we just pray for our time in the word tonight that Lord you'd open our hearts and minds to behold you in your glory. We thank you for your word is clear, it's true, and everything you say applies to our life, not just today but every day.

Tonight as we study your word we pray that you would really truly move us on to maturity in Christ, that we would truly, Lord, understand your word and follow you in obedience. We pray in Jesus’ name, amen.

If you got your Bible, turn to Matthew chapter 5. Matthew chapter 5 is commonly called the Sermon on the Mount.

I've entitled it Living Like a Child of the King, but it's called the Sermon on the Mount. I'm not sure Jesus had titles for his sermons, I just think he just stood up and preached or sat down and preached, that's what he did. But it's commonly called the Sermon on the Mount and it's all about the King and his coming.

Remember the King was anticipated, that's what the Old Testament is about, and the King had been anticipated for hundreds of years. But not only was the King himself anticipated, but the King himself was truly the one who came to bless us. So once the King was anticipated, the King arrived.

He arrived in Bethlehem as was prophesied. Once he arrived, he was advertised by the angels as he announced the arrival of the Messiah. After that, he was adored by the Magi who came and bowed before him and worshipped him and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

After that, he was announced by John the Baptist as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. After that announcement, he was affirmed by his Father in Heaven when he said, this is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased. That was at his baptism.

And then he was attacked by Satan. He was driven into the wilderness for 40 days to be tempted by the devil and so he was attacked by Satan. After that, he began to assemble his disciples.

After that, he gives this address in Matthew Chapter 5 on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee. Now, I don't know what was going through the minds of the people on that day, but the Lord, as he addressed them, said things unlike anything they had ever, ever heard. When you have heard error for so long and then the God of truth comes and proclaims the truth, because you've heard error for so long, you think the truth is the error.

And that's exactly what happened with Jesus. The people in Israel had heard error for so long, they thought they believed the truth. Then Jesus shows up.

He begins to preach. As he preaches, they've heard things they have never, ever heard. They were into a system of religion, but Jesus was a Savior.

They were into rituals and ceremonies, but Jesus was the Redeemer. He came to offer himself to them, but that's not what they wanted. And so Jesus begins to preach.

And as he preaches, when you come to the end of Matthew Chapter 7, verse number 28, they were amazed at what he said. They were astonished at what he said, because they had never heard anyone speak like this man spoke. That's simply because he didn't quote anybody.

All the rabbis would quote other rabbis. But Jesus never quoted anybody. He just preached the truth.

And the only thing he would ever quote would be what he already said in the Old Testament. And those would be the words that he would quote. He'd quote his own words.

And yet everything he said was contrary to what the nation of Israel had come to know. And yet at the end of the sermon, nobody believed. Nobody repented.

Nobody said, I want to follow you, Jesus. I want to give my life to you. No one said that.

They were amazed at what he said, but nobody followed. So how can it be that the greatest preacher who ever lived would preach the greatest sermon ever recorded in the history of man and in the Scriptures, and yet nobody believed? Nobody repented. What Jesus had to say was so radical, so out there, they had a hard time grasping all that he said.

He began and defined the spiritual identity of children of the king. That's how he begins. He defines the spiritual identity of children of the king.

He's the king. He comes to present the kingdom. So the Sermon on the Mount is about how you get into the kingdom and then how you grow up in the kingdom.

So he begins by defining the spiritual identity of a child of the king. And then he very clearly declares the biblical authority of the children of the king. He says that by saying, I have come not to abolish the law.

I've come to fulfill the law because the law is the authority. It is the highest authority. And this is the authority of my children in my kingdom.

And then he begins to describe the relational civility of the children of the king. By using the phrase six times, you have heard that it was said, but I say unto you. Because you see, this is what they had been taught.

You have heard that it was said you shall not murder, but I tell you that if you hate your brother, you're already a murderer in your heart. So he begins to describe for them the relational civility of children of the king. And then he begins to describe for them the personal purity of the children of the king by saying, you have heard that it was said, you shall not commit adultery, but I say unto you that if you look at a woman and lust after her in your heart, you've already committed adultery.

You see, he goes right to the heart issue. They were into all the external rituals, but Christ was into the internal realities. They believed that their system of religion was good enough to get them into heaven because the system that they had created was something that they could attain.

But you see, Christianity is not something that you can attain, it's not something that you can achieve. Christianity is all about what Christ has accomplished for his children, see? And so he's getting them to see that they're sinners and that they're far from the kingdom of God. And then he begins to describe to them the marital fidelity of the children of the king.

You've heard that it was said that you could just write a bill of divorcement. But I say unto you that unless you divorce your wife for the cause of fornication, you commit adultery. Again, completely foreign to them.

And then he says, let me describe for you the verbal integrity of the child of the king. You have heard that it was said, all this about oaths and swearing, but I'm telling you, you need to let your yes be yes and your no be no. Your word is your bond.

And therefore, you must understand that the people of my kingdom live and speak the truth. And then you come to verse number 38. And in verse number 38, you have what Jesus describes as the most radical ministry known to man.

And what he's about to say is so out there, is so way beyond what the normal person would think. You would think that Jesus was absolutely crazy. Let me read to you what he says.

He says, you have heard that it was said. He keeps going back to what the rabbis have taught them. He keeps going back to their tradition. He keeps going back to the things that they had been taught from a very young age.

You have heard that it was said, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you, do not resist an evil person.

But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat also. Whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two.

Give to him who ask of you and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you. Now, I can't even begin to imagine what the people were thinking as Jesus said these words. I don't even know what you're thinking.

But everything that Jesus said was absolutely radical. Everything he said. Nothing he said would set well with anyone.

Let me give you an example. Turn with me in your Bible to Luke 17 for a second. Luke 17.

What Christ is going to say would not sit well with his disciples. It doesn't sit well with us either. But that's the way Jesus is.

He says in verse number 1 of Luke 17, he said to his disciples, it is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come. You're going to be offended. People are going to put stumbling blocks in your way, but cursed be the one who causes his brother to stumble.

It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea than that he would cause one of these little ones to stumble.

Be on your guard. If your brother sins, rebuke him. And if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times a day and returns to you seven times saying, I repent, forgive him.

Now, you're a disciple and you hear those words and you think of a normal 24-hour day. And let's say you sleep for eight of those 24 hours. That would mean that every two hours and 15 minutes, someone would sin against you. The same person would sin against you. And he would ask for forgiveness. Jesus says you forgive him.

Two hours and 15 minutes later, he comes back and does the same thing and says, oh, I am so sorry. Would you please forgive me? Jesus says you forgive him. And then over the next two hours and 15 minutes, it happens again, and then again, and then again. It just keeps happening.

So the disciples hear this and the apostle said to the Lord, increase our faith. We need more faith. We cannot forgive this person who sins against us every two hours and 15 minutes.

Now, let me hand it to Peter. He listened. Because in Matthew Chapter 18, Jesus says that you need to forgive your brother.

And Peter says, well, okay, Lord, do we forgive him up to seven times? And Jesus says, oh, no, Peter, you missed a point. It's 70 times seven. That would mean in the same 24-hour period, you sleeping for eight hours, every 1.9 minutes, someone would sin against you and do the same thing over and over again, every 1.9 minutes.

You see, Peter missed the whole purpose of the message of Christ. He wanted Peter to understand and everybody else to understand that forgiveness is not optional. Forgiveness is always essential in the life of the believer.

It's not an option. So the disciples hear this for the first time and they're saying, Lord, you've got to increase our faith. We need more faith because we can't do this.

No way possibly can we forgive our brother seven times a day for doing the exact same thing. We can't do that. Jesus said, if you had faith like a mustard seed, you would say to the mulberry tree, be uprooted and be planted in the sea, and it would obey you.

And then he says this, which of you having a slave, plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, come immediately and sit down to eat. But will he not say to him, prepare something for me to eat and properly clothe yourself and serve me while I eat and drink, and afterwards, you may eat and drink. He does not thank the slave because he did the things which were commanded, does he? So you too.

When you do all the things which are commanded you, say, we are unworthy slaves. We have done only that which we ought to have done. Absolutely radical.

There is no slave owner who watches his slave come in from a long, hot day and say, this has been a tough day for you. I am so sorry you were in the hot sun, and I was sitting back in my air-conditioned house and having a good time, and you were out in the hot sun, and you were plowing the field, and you were doing work for me. I tell you what, you come in, you put your feet up, and I'll fix you dinner.

I'll prepare your bath. I'll make sure you're taken care of. And then when you're taken care of, then I, as your owner, will then go back and take care of the things I need to take care of.

Jesus says that would never happen. Not in your life. Instead, he says, I don't care how hot you are, I don't care how sweaty you are, I don't care how long you've worked today, you still fix my dinner, you still feed me, you still draw my bath water, and then when you're done with that, if there's enough daylight left, you can do what you need to do.

And Christ says those harsh words. He does not thank the slave because he did the things which were commanded him, does he? He doesn't say, you know what? I want to thank you for plowing my field today. I want to thank you for working hard today.

I know it's been difficult on you, but I just want to thank you for what you've done. Christ says the slave owner doesn't say that. Why? Because the slave is only doing that which he has been commanded to do.

And then Jesus says this. He says, so you too, when you do all the things which are commanded you, say, we are unworthy slaves. We have done only that which we ought to have done.

In context, so you too, when you have a brother who sins against you seven times a day or 77 times in a day, nonstop sinning against you, you do only that which you're commanded to do. You don't need more faith. You just need to be obedient to what's been commanded you.

It has nothing to do with faith. Has everything to do with obedience. Will you do what you're commanded to do? You have been commanded to forgive your brother nonstop.

Forgiveness is not an option. It is essential. Therefore, when you do that which you've been commanded to do, all you can say is that I'm still an unworthy slave.

You get no medal to pin on your chest because you forgive somebody. You get no reward to hang on your shelf because you're a forgiving person. You're only doing that which you've been commanded to do.

And because you've been commanded to do it, you just obey the master, the king, the ruler. That's what you do. And when it's all said and done, you can put your head on your pillow and simply say, I'm still an unprofitable, unworthy slave because I've just only done what's been commanded me.

You see, all that's just so radical. All that is just so over the top. All that is just so, man, you got to be kidding me, Jesus.

Who does this? Who lives this way? And Jesus comes along and says, you have heard that I was said. An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you, retribution, retaliation, revenge has no place in a child of the king.

None. In fact, he just simply says, whoever slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. Well, wait a minute.

What about my dignity? What about my rights? We're big on rights today. We're big on civil rights. We're big on women's rights.

We're big on transgender rights. We're big on workplace rights. We're big on parental rights.

We're big on children's rights. We're just big on rights. Christ is basically going to say, if your rights are first, righteousness will always suffer.

Remember, you're still a slave in the kingdom of God. Slaves have no rights. They're just obedient to the master.

That's all they are. But see, that just sounds so negative. It just sounds so wrong.

What about my dignity? What about my demeanor? I'm made in the image of God. Why would I live this way? And Christ says, the people in my kingdom, they live so radically that you will know them because they are not people who seek retribution. They're not looking to pay people back.

They're not looking to get ahead. They're just looking to do what they've been commanded to do. Having said that, the outline is the same.

You had them before you. We deal with the rabbinical tradition. We deal with the biblical teaching.

And then we deal with the practical and personal transformation. It's the same outline through the six illustrations that Christ gives at the end of Matthew Chapter 5. And we begin with the rabbinical tradition. Two things you need to see, the legislation and the perversion of the legislation.

Jesus actually is quoting the Old Testament. He's quoting from the book of Deuteronomy, the book of Leviticus, and the book of Exodus because all three of those books have this phrase, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.

In fact, if you were to study history, this was not just something that Moses came up with. A hundred years before Moses, the Babylonian king, had developed an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. And it was designed to make sure that punishment for a crime was not excessive. An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.

Its purpose was to prevent further crime. In fact, Deuteronomy 19:20 says, the rest will hear and be afraid, it will never again do such an evil thing among you. If you have this law among you, an eye for an eye and tooth for tooth, it will manage punishment for crimes.

The crime or the punishment will fit the crime. And it will curtail people from committing more crimes. But this was a law in the civil courts.

That's the legislation that was given. And so Christ says, you have heard that it was said, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Just like everything else he said, the people in the back would be nodding.

Yes, yes, we get that. We are all for eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth. We are all there.

So you think, what's the problem? It's because there was a perversion of the law. And the rabbis taught that this civil justice system that we have is now going to be in personal relationships. So no longer is it going to be a law that's taking place in civil court, but we're going to have the opportunity to enact our own vengeance, our own retribution.

And so if you stand against me, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. And so they became judge, jury, and executioner. So they perverted the legal system and made it personally their own so that in personal relationships, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth would be okay.

Now, it's not because we don't want our judicial system to adopt what needs to happen with personal relationships. And we don't want personal relationships to adopt what happens in our judicial legislation, right? So when there's a crime that's committed, and you go to court, and the judge says, you know what? I understand that you have gone to the local school, and you've shot up the school, and you've killed 20, 30 people. But you know what? We're going to forgive you.

We're going to show mercy on you. We're going to demonstrate compassion and love for you and let you know you're free to go. And if you go out and you shoot up another school, and you come back, guess what? We're going to show mercy. We're going to forgive you. And you can go out and do whatever you want because we, as a court, are very kind, very loving, and very merciful.

Could you imagine if our court system did that? There'd be anarchy on our hands. People would be going crazy. But you see, there is a judicial system that takes care of crimes and handles them to make sure that the punishment fits the crime.

So we don't take our personal relationships and the philosophy for living that and put it in our court system, just like we don't take our court system and put it in our personal relationships and say, honey, in a marriage, you said this to me and did this to me. Guess what? Payback time. I'm going to do this and say this to you.

Or if your friend breaks the windshield on your car, you don't say, you know what? I'm coming over. I'm breaking the windshield on your car. I might even break two windshields. We don't do that.

Instead, we're compassionate. We're forgiving. We're loving.

But see, the rabbis, they would take that which was designed for the judicial arena of Israel and adopted it for their own personal relationships so they could enact vengeance and retribution on those that sinned against them. That's the perversion of the law. That's the rabbinical tradition.

So Jesus says, you have heard that it was said, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. And I'm sure there were some Pharisees in the background in the amen section saying, amen, we're all for that. That's us.

And then Jesus would say those familiar words, ah, but I say unto you. I have a whole new different way of operating in my kingdom. It's so radical, you won't even believe it once I say it.

But here it is. He simply says these words to them. But I say to you, do not resist an evil person.

What? What do you mean, don't resist an evil person? Wait a minute, didn't Jesus say that we're to resist the devil? He's evil. Sure, James 4:7, 1 Peter 5:9, resist him steadfast in the faith. So we're to resist the devil who is evil.

Doesn't Paul say in Romans 12, verse number 9, abhor that which is evil? Yes. Doesn't Paul say in 1 Thessalonians 5:22, abstain from every form of evil. But here is Jesus saying, do not resist him, the person who is evil.

Well, how do you reconcile that? What does that mean in 1 Corinthians 5? When someone continues in immorality, they're to be brought before the church and church discipline enacted. The Bible says in 1 Timothy 5, verse number 20, when an elder sins and there's no repentance, he's to be brought before the church and told to everyone that fear might come upon them.

Jesus, in John 2, saw evil in the temple and he cleansed it. At the end of his ministry, same thing happened. On the last week of his life, he saw evil in the temple. He took a whip, turned over the chairs, the money-changing tables, and ran everybody out of there.

He didn't let evil go. He dealt with evil. So what is Jesus saying?

The word resist in this to me means to oppose, to set against. So whatever you're doing, you're setting against something that is evil. Jesus says, do not do this. Do not resist the evil person.

In other words, don't you set yourself against an evil person so as to enact vengeance upon him. Don't do that. That's what he's saying because it manifests itself as you begin to read through what Jesus actually does say.

In the context, it obviously refers to harm done to us by one who is evil. So when the evil person comes against you, don't oppose him. Don't go against him.

Don't seek vengeance upon him. Don't seek retribution against him. Don't do that.

Again, totally contrary to what they had heard. So they've been raised with the law, eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, famously known as Lex Talionis. They've been raised that way.

And Jesus comes along and says, nope, that's not the way it is in my kingdom. And people were just flabbergasted. That's why when they hear him speak, nobody repents because he's too way out there.

He's too harsh. It's too hard. Nobody wants to live this way.

Why? Because I have my rights. I have my dignity. I am not going to allow you to take advantage of me.

I'm going to fight for every right that I have. And Jesus says, the people of my kingdom, they don't do that. And he gives four simple illustrations.

One, about dignity. Two, about security. Three, about privacy.

And four, about property. And this is what he says. When your dignity is insulted, you need to be respectful.

And then he says, when your security is invaded, you need to be graceful. And then he says, when your privacy is inconvenienced, you need to be resourceful. And then he says, when your property is infringed, you need to be bountiful.

Let's look at them together. First of all, Jesus says these words. Oh, by the way, this is the way Christians are.

Remember Romans chapter 12? Romans chapter 12, verse number 17. Paul says this, never pay back evil for evil to anyone. That's what Paul says. Under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, never pay back evil for anyone. Why? Because he understands Matthew chapter 5. He gets it. Respect what is right in the sight of all men.

If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. But if your enemy is hungry, you feed him. If he's thirsty, you give him a drink. For in so doing, you will heap burning coals on his head. Do not overcome or be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Paul sums up what Jesus says in Matthew chapter 5. You overcome evil with good. You deal with your enemy with kindness, and benevolence, and compassion, and love. Because you see, when you repay hate with love, you cause that person to be ashamed.

Why? Because you've done what they would never do, and you demonstrated to them the Christ, and that's what's most important. So Jesus makes it very clear back in Matthew chapter 5 with these words when he says, but I say to you, do not resist an evil person, but whoever slaps you on the right cheek, turn the other to him also. When your dignity is insulted, be respectful.

Now, the highest form of disrespect at the time of Jesus was to be slapped in the face. And it's the right hand with the right cheek. That would mean the back of the right hand against the cheek.

One author says this, among Jews, a slap or other striking in the face was among the most demeaning and contemptuous act. To strike someone elsewhere on the body might cause more physical harm, but a slap in the face was an attack on one's honor and was considered to be terrible indignity. It was to be treated with disdain as being less than a human.

Even a slave would rather have been struck across the back with a whip than to be slapped in the face by his master's hand. To strike someone on the right cheek would then be a vicious, angry reaction indicating an act of insult. Yet when we are insulted, maligned, and treated with contempt, literally or figuratively struck on the cheek by someone, we are to turn to him the other also.

But Jesus' point pertains more to what we are not to do than what we are to do. Turning the other cheek symbolizes the non-avenging, non-retaliatory, humble, and gentle spirit that is to be characteristic of kingdom citizens. When someone was to slap you across the cheek, it would be a mark of dishonor, disdain, and would be a tremendous embarrassment to you.

But Jesus says, that's the case. Turn to him the other cheek also. And someone would say, okay, I'll turn the other cheek.

But after I turn the second cheek, that's it. No more. I got two cheeks and that's it.

Once the cheeks are done, I'm going after him. That's not the point. The point is, is that there's no room for retaliation.

There's no room for revenge. There's no room for retribution. We don't do that.

Why? Because you want to be respectful because they were not. So when your dignity is insulted, be respectful. Number two, when your security is invaded, be graceful.

And this is even more difficult. For he says, in verse 40, if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let them have your coat also. Why would I do that? Why would anyone do that? Now, the shirt was a long flowing shirt.

It wasn't shirts like we wear today, but they would go down to your calf, down to your ankles. Most people would have one or two of them. Some would have up to four.

Unless you were really rich, it's all you had. Your coat was your outer coat. It's that which kept you warm.

And so in the book of Exodus, the 22nd chapter, the 26th and 27th verses, the Mosaic law required that a man's cloak be returned to him before sunset so he would not freeze to death. But here's Jesus saying, if someone is going to sue you, and obviously it's a legitimate lawsuit, you had done something that they were going to sue you for. They couldn't sue you for your property.

They couldn't sue you for your money. You didn't have any money. You didn't have any property.

All you had was the clothes on your back. It's all you had. You're poor.

You don't have much. So if they're going to sue you, they're going to sue you for the clothes on your back. Instead, they're going to sue you for your shirt.

If he sues you for your shirt and he wins, give him your cloak as well. Someone would say, why would I do that? I'll freeze. Why would I do that? Because the Lord says, when your security is invaded, be graceful.

That is, give them something that they do not deserve. Go above and beyond to show them that you're not bitter, that you're not angry, that you're not resentful, that you're not going to come back and sue them in return for them suing you. Don't do that.

No. Instead, be graceful. And then he gives another illustration.

And it just keeps getting worse. Verse 41, whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him too. Now, everybody likes people who go above and beyond, right? Christ is saying, I want you to go above and beyond.

But in those days, Roman soldiers, as they would travel, would have their gear with them. And they would be able to call someone out to carry their weapons, their luggage, whatever they had, for one mile. For one mile.

And Jesus says, if this is you, and you're called by a Roman soldier to carry something for a mile, go to. Go above and beyond. Why? Because when your privacy is inconvenienced, you need to be resourceful. And it's an inconvenience to you.

Simon of Cyrene faced this. He was on the Via Dolorosa. He was on the road of the cross, the way of the cross. And he was conscripted out of the audience to carry what? The cross beam for Jesus, right? He had to do that. That was not an option for him.

And if a Roman soldier calls you to carry his stuff, you are carrying your enemy's weapons. You're carrying your enemy's luggage. It's not like your friend came to you and said, hey, you know what? I got a long journey. Will you go with me and help me carry some of my stuff? He'd say, I'd love to do it for you. No problem. No, this is an enemy.

This is not someone who's kind and loving and somebody you want to spend the rest of your life with. This is the guy who's fighting against you, fighting against your freedom.

Jesus says, go with him a mile, but don't stop there. Go with him two miles. Go way beyond. Go overboard to show them the kindness and generosity that you are a resourceful person and that you are there to serve and be as compassionate and kind as possible.

And then, as if that's not enough, Jesus then says, give to him who asks of you and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you. What? Are you kidding me? Give to him who asks? What do you mean? Somebody comes up and asks me for something, I got to give it to him? Jesus says, yeah, absolutely. When it comes to your property, if it's infringed upon, I want you to be bountiful.

I want you to go way above and beyond and give him more than they can ever begin to imagine. Now, he's not talking about being irresponsible at home. He's not saying, look, honey, I couldn't buy food tonight because I gave all my money to the poor.

He's not talking about that because that would mean that you were negligent in your fatherhood and your husbandry and your responsibility at home. He's not talking about that. He's talking about a need that someone has and you're able to meet that need.

And that you somehow, some way, not just want to meet the need, but do more for him. Don't turn them away. Reach out to them, care for them, meet the need because there's a need that needs to be met.

Listen to what it says in Deuteronomy 15, verse number 7. If there is a poor man with you, one of your brothers, in any of your towns, in your land, which the Lord your God has given you, you shall not harden your heart nor close your hand from your poor brother, but you shall freely open your hand to him and shall generously lend him sufficient for his need in whatever he lacks. That's Deuteronomy 15:7 and 8. You see, we become very possessive of our property, of the things that we own. We forget that we don't own anything.

We're just stewards of what God's given to us. You don't own your house. You don't own your car.

You don't own your clothes. You don't own your shoes. You don't own your money.

You don't own anything. God owns it all. He owns everything.

And what you have, he gave to you and he gave it to you so you might be a good steward of the things that he's given to you. And now he says, if there's a need, and that brother has a need and comes and asks you, look, this is what I need. Give to him.

Don't neglect him. Take care of him. Meet his need.

And thus, demonstrate that you're a true child of the King. So, what's the practical personal transformation? What needs to happen in my life? I read this and I think, man, Lord, I don't want to do this. I do not want to turn the other cheek.

Somebody wrongs me, I'm getting back at him. I don't want to do this. But Jesus says very clearly, these are the children of my kingdom.

You have heard that it was said, this is the way you behave. But in my kingdom, people behave differently. You see, it's almost no wonder nobody repented or believed or wanted to follow.

Who wants to follow that? Who wants to be a part of that kingdom? Who wants to live that kind of life? Truly, that goes against everything that we have been taught or raised on. But that's just it, see? Christianity is absolutely radical. Christianity is not like anything you've ever known.

Christianity is not like another religion. Christianity is not like anything that we can ever understand because it's all coming from the Christ who gives us his word. But more importantly, he gives us himself.

So, what needs to happen? Four things real quickly. One, it requires self-control. It requires self-control because by nature, I'm a vengeful person.

By nature, I want to get back at someone. All you got to do is just drive down the road and someone cuts you off. What do you do? Praise the Lord. Thanks for almost causing an accident. Jesus is good.

No, we're like, I'm going to flash my lights. I'm going to honk my horn. I'm going to get right up on his bumper. I'm going to let him know that he can't do that to me.

That's exactly how we are. Don't sit there and say, that's not how you are. I saw you last week driving home from church.

Just kidding. So, it requires self-control. And here's the great thing about that.

In Christianity, we have the spirit of self-control, 2 Timothy 1, verse number 7. We're partakers of the divine nature, right? And because we're partakers of the divine nature, what God's called us to do, we can accomplish because he gives us the power to do so. He's given us a spirit. And the fruit of the spirit is self-control, Galatians 5. So, it requires self-control on our part.

Number two, it reaffirms self-denial. If any man came after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. It reaffirms the fact that you really understand what it means to be a follower of Christ.

Christ made it very clear that when you follow me, you want nothing to do with yourself. All your dreams, all your aspirations, they've all been set aside. It's all about my dreams, about my aspirations for you.

It's all about self-denial. Galatians 6:14-15, we have been crucified to the world. We've died to the world. We've died to the world's philosophies. We've died to the world's aspirations. We have been crucified with Christ.

We have died to self. And when you live this way, it reaffirms self-denial. It requires self-control.

And number three, it reinforces self-sacrifice. It reinforces self-sacrifice. In other words, our lives are to represent sacrifice.

Love is sacrificial. And next week, we will see that we are to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. We are to look at it from the divine perspective.

In Mark 1:33, you read Mark's gospel in the very first chapter. It's the busiest day recorded in the life of our Lord, the busiest day. He is dead tired.

And everybody from the day comes to the house and wants to be healed. So Jesus heals them. He is so tired.

And then the very next day, having recorded the longest day, the busiest day recorded in the life of Christ, the very next day, He is up at the crack of dawn before everybody else, but He made fellowship with His Father in heaven. Why? Because His whole life was marked by sacrifice. He came to give His life away.

So therefore, it reinforces self-sacrifice. And lastly, it results in self-sharing, sharing of myself, the sharing of all that I have to meet the needs of someone else, to be as kind as possible.

This can only happen if you come to Christ and say, Lord, I can't do this. This is beyond me. Lord, I don't even want to do this. But with you, I can.

You see, Christ is getting them to come to a place where they are absolutely bankrupt. He wants to drive them to a place that their religion is not going to satisfy. He's driving them to a place where they say, Lord, we can't do this.

This is impossible. That's right. It is.

But with Christ, all things are possible. But you see, as long as you think you can, you can't. But as long as you know you can't, you can.

Because God works in and through your life. And God is driving everybody in the hillside to come to the same place. I can't do this. I have no resources to accomplish this.

And then Christ says, you're right. You don't. That's why you need a Savior. That's why you need a Redeemer. That's why I came. And I'm the only one who can forgive you and allow you to live like a child of the King. Let's pray together.

Father, thank you for today, a chance to spend this brief moment in your Word.

We're grateful for this opportunity. And Lord, our prayer is that you convict us all. This is so hard at times to look at and think, wow, Lord, this seems so impossible.

And it is in the flesh. But when we depend upon the Spirit and walk in the Spirit, these things are all possible. Because this is what you've called your children to do.

So our prayer, Lord, is that we would truly, truly follow you. That we'd be the kind of people that understand what it means to take up a cross and follow the Christ because we're willing to set our own desires and aspirations aside to fulfill the aspirations and desires of our Master. So we thank you, Lord, in Jesus' name.

Amen.