This question is from my friend Uri. How does "turning the other cheek" work in real conflicts?
I’m going to start this one off by going into some of the differences between the way God’s people are treated before and after the time of Christ.
In the Mosaic covenant you have a relationship with three parts. The first part is God, the second part is the Nation of Israel, and the third part is the individual person. In many respects that is the order of importance throughout the Hebrew Scriptures.
God is the head of everything. God’s relationship with the Nation of Israel is equal to, and often greater than, his relationship with the individual person. This is of course barring specific individuals such as Moses himself. Those who are not Jewish, the god fearing Gentiles, are usually required to become part of the nation rather than living outside of that piece of the relationship.
The actions of the individuals in this relationship are understood in relation to their connection to God and the Nation. God is supreme. What he says goes. The Nation of Israel is not merely a religious body, it is an earthly nation. This means that the Nation has the same authority as any other earthly nation. This type of authority includes life and death of its citizens, and the authority to make war. This authority is exercised often by the Nation of Israel.
Israel conquered the land of Canaan not just with the blessing of God, but also with its own authority as a nation. Laws in the Mosaic covenant include the power of life and death being meted out by the people as representatives of the nation and of God.
One consequence of the Nation having such a prominent place in the relationship is that God treats the Nation itself as if it were a person. Punishment is corporate as often as it is singular. Children are punished for the sins of the fathers to the “third and fourth generation” and the entire nation suffers for the indiscretions of its kings.
However, you can see this start to shift later on. Chapter 18 in the book of Ezekiel has a long discourse on this shift. I’m not going to post the whole chapter, but it is worth going to look at.
What do you mean by this proverb of yours about the land of Israel: “When parents eat unripe grapes, the children’s teeth suffer”? As surely as I live, says the Lord God, no longer will you use this proverb in Israel! All lives are mine; the life of the parent and the life of the child belong to me. Only the one who sins will die.- Ezekiel 18:2-4
Only the one who sins will die. A child won’t bear a parent’s guilt, and a parent won’t bear a child’s guilt. Those who do right will be declared innocent, and the wicked will be declared guilty.- Ezekiel 18:20
When you get to the time of the Christian covenant, the relationship has changed. You still have God (Now expressed in Trinity), and the individual person, but the Church now holds the place that the Nation of Israel did. This is not to say that the nation of Israel has been replaced, or no longer exists (something that many Christians need to learn). It is just that the people of God no longer need to be members of the Nation of Israel to participate in the relationship with God. Most of the first members of the Church were Jews, but that quickly changed within the first decades after the death of Christ.
The Church now holds the distinction of being the body of all the people of God (Jews and Gentiles alike), and in many ways it is similar to Israel’s covenant relationship. One big difference is that the Church is not a nation. The Church has some authority over its members, but that is not absolute. There is no final authority within the church but God. It does not hold the powers and authorities of a worldly nation, especially those of life and death, or war. The members of the church are no longer part of a single nation, they are part of every nation in the world. Whereas the Nation of Israel had provisions for the death penalty when someone transgressed against the covenant, the Church’s highest authority in that case is to refuse to have fellowship with such a person until they have rectified their transgression between them and God.
With the shift from the Nation to the Church, there is also a greater emphasis on individual responsibility. No Christian holds full responsibility for any other Christian, not even parents for children. While we are called to help guide one another, none of us can live the Christian life for another person.
As the bible states, we are ambassadors for Christ. As such, we must strive to be good representatives. One thing we must represent is peace. The Church does not have the authority of the sword that a nation would have. That authority lies solely with god. A fairly typical viewpoint is that Christians are allowed to exercise the power of the sword when doing so under the authority of whichever nation they are part of, such as becoming soldiers or law enforcement officers, but we should not exercise that power in relation to the church. There is a healthy debate over how much, and when, a Christian can use force. Some limit it just to protecting others. Some people take it to absolute nonviolence. In any case, Christians are not supposed to be violent people. Paul sums this up very succinctly in the book of Romans.
If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.- Romans 12:18
This is a very short way of repeating the thoughts that Jesus expressed.
“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.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, - Matthew 5:38-44
This is not to say that we just let people off the hook for the wrongs that they do to us. It is just that we recognize it is not our responsibility to ‘“get even” or seek vengeance.
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.- Romans 12:19
About the Author:
Stephen Mayo lives in Montana with his wife, daughter, corgi, and three cats.
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