Matthew 5:38-48
“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 evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; and if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well; and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile. Give to everyone who begs from you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you.” (Matthew 5:38-42)

The statement “eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth” makes me think of what happens most days in my own house. No, this is not a foundational approach to mine and Natalie’s marriage. However, it is often how two brothers treat each other, especially when one is 3 1/2 yrs old and the other is 2 yrs old. As parents we try to teach them not to hit or shove, but when that happens, we also teach them not to hit or shove back. And it just goes to show the faults in all of our human nature that God has to still remind us as adults to offer kindness in the face of aggression. But in this passage there is more that God asks of us. We are asked to love our enemy. There is no question that on the surface this is a hard ask from our Father. If we just look around at all the divisions, in politics, in our personal lives, even in our church family, it is easy to see all the lines that separate “us” from “them”. How is it that we are to go about loving our enemies?