Matthew 5:38 Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: 39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40 And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also. 41 And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.
Some of the principles and laws of God's kingdom are really opposite to what we consider normal living, for they are contrary to what the carnal heart expects and craves. The above passage presents to us the antithesis to our natural behaviors and reactions to injustices, wrongs, and violations of our rights, for the counsels here given, basically reward good for evil. Christians are not to be blind to unfair treatments and wrongs, but our reaction to evil should never be a replica of the same. We should never allow bad treatment by others to invoke feelings of revenge and retaliation, for those reactions ore foreign to the character of God.
The Bible often recounts the gruesome details of the failures of God's people, so that future generations may be instructed as to what is the right course to pursue, and how the very same pitfalls can be avoided. For instance, when the sons of Jacob learned that their sister Dinah was defiled by a pagan prince, they allowed their anger and resentment to boil and churn, until those feelings of revenge bore fruit in violent actions that caused their father to shudder. Let's read:
Genesis 34:5 And Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter: now his sons were with his cattle in the field: and Jacob held his peace until they were come. 7 And the sons of Jacob came out of the field when they heard it: and the men were grieved, and they were very wroth, because he had wrought folly in Israel in lying with Jacob's daughter: which thing ought not to be done. 25 And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah's brethren, took each man his sword, and came upon the city boldly, and slew all the males. 27 The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and spoiled the city, because they had defiled their sister.
When we allow our feelings to run riot in our minds, then we open wide the door for satan to imbue us with his own thoughts and spirit, and usually what follows next, are ungodly actions that bring shame, disgrace and enmity, not only to ourselves and others, but also to the cause of Christ. That's why we are counseled to pray without ceasing, that we may not inadvertently blow a fuse by some unforeseen act of injustice to ourselves.
In our day, when so many people are armed to the tooth, it is very easy to move from revengeful thoughts to retaliatory actions, and therefore as Christians, very great care must be taken in advance to abide always by the principles advocated in God's word. When thoughts of revenge are harbored, they usually push us to act irrationally, and the more we indulge them, the more difficult it is for us to pray. That's why the scriptures teach us that we should never allow the sun to set on our angry feelings, but should rather promptly dismiss them by humbling ourselves before God in prayer.
We therefore end with a passage of scripture that reminds us of our duty as Christians to stay calm, even when we are surrounded by an atmosphere of turbulence and anger, for if we do, we would have gained one of the greatest victories over fallen human nature, and God would be greatly honored by our example. Let's read:
Ephesians 4:31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: 32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. 30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. God bless!