What would happen if I really...?

I suppose every time we are confronted by a new understanding from Jesus’ teaching, we face the issue of whether or not to incorporate the lesson into our lives. Will I move from precept to practice? Am I a disciple in name only, or am I really committed to becoming like my Master? I have been discussing just one idea Jesus presented in His Sermon on the Mount—the challenge to love our enemies, turn the other cheek, and refuse to respond to violence with violence. For me, this particular issue is somewhat of a bellwether on the sermon as a whole. I have become convinced that Jesus intended to communicate exactly what His words convey to us. I believe that He is telling us that kingdom citizens who take seriously their faith commitment will choose a non-violent response to those who act in violence against them. Just as importantly, I am sure that Jesus is calling us to actually love our enemies and, by our willingness to show them that love, demonstrate in some small way what kingdom life is like.

But some thorny questions emerge when I try to visualize that kind of life. How do I balance non-violence with what I understand to be my obligation to defend and protect my family? What would happen if everyone took this position, and there were no police or armed forces to keep law and order? How should a person who is drafted into military service respond? What would have happened if America, as nation, had taken that position in 1941 after Pearl Harbor? I wish I had answers to all these questions. I don’t. But let me share with you the issues I have come to see a little more clearly, as least as they apply to my own life.

First, there is no doubt in my mind that Jesus came to announce a kingdom that is characterized by peace. What did the angels announce at Jesus’ birth: “…And on earth, peace among men…” (Luke 2:14). Isaiah’s prophecy again and again calls us to see Messiah’s coming as the advent of peace. In Isaiah 57:19 we read: “ ‘Peace to him who is far and to him who is near,’ says the Lord, ‘and I will heal him.’ “ Paul picks up this theme in Ephesians 2:14: “For He Himself is our peace…”. And to make his point credible, Paul cites Isaiah in verse 17: “And He came and preached peace to you who were far away, and peace to those who were near.” God is a peacemaker, a reconciler at the very core of His being. For the world, a peacemaker is Samuel Colt’s 45 caliber revolver (or, today, a Glock G-23). But isn’t Jesus calling us to abandon violence and be the peacemakers, as He understood His own calling from the Father?

Secondly, Jesus lived a life that was precisely in line with His teaching on loving your enemies and turning the other cheek. Again, the prophets made clear what to expect from Messiah when He came. Isaiah (53:4-9) tells us that He was to be struck, wounded, crushed, chastened, scourged, oppressed, afflicted, led to slaughter. And that is exactly what Jesus experienced. Isaiah goes on to tell us that Messiah would be silent before his persecutors, “like a sheep led to slaughter.” How can we help but be troubled by the way Jesus reacted to the brutality of His accusers? He had the resources to strike them back, to end the suffering. Instead He remained silent and even blessed those who were taking His life.

Thirdly, our calling is and has always been to make our lives congruent with that of Jesus—to emulate the Master. That is what discipleship is all about. To the degree that we can be little Jesus’s, we will have fulfilled the Master’s commandments. Jesus made that clear in John 8:31 when He addressed those who believed in Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine.” And to those who hear His words and chose to ignore them, Jesus said (Luke 6:46): “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?”

Finally, it does no good to theorize what might have been, or try to construct a scenario where I might respond in a particular way to some external threat. Our foundational instruction as Christians is and always has been to live today in faith. We are not given grace for tomorrow, only for today. And our task is not to figure out what might be coming, but to prepare ourselves to walk in faith no matter what the circumstances we might face. Either we can trust the Master to equip us or not; either we can trust our lives to His sovereignty and grace or not.

Now you can see where my own struggles with this issue have led me. I certainly don’t write this to convince others or to take the same position. Nor am I convinced that I can live out what I believe even now. But my heart is to be like Jesus. My desire is to understand what He wanted us to see as our kingdom heritage, and to experience as much of it as my faith will allow. So I leave you with one more passage, this one to look at in your own time and digest as the Spirit provides the enabling. Take a moment to reread 1 John 3:11-16 in light of this discussion. It has taken on some new meaning to me of late.

Father, as I encounter each experience you have sovereignly chosen for my life, help me to bring the life and words of Jesus to the situation, and may my responses to life's challenges speak to a lost world about your heart.