Leviticus 19: 1-2, 9-18; Matthew 5: 38-48 (The Message)
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
February 23, 2020
The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them: You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.
When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very edges of your field, or gather the gleanings of your harvest. You shall not strip your vineyard bare, or gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and the alien: I am the Lord your God.
You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; and you shall not lie to one another. And you shall not swear falsely by my name, profaning the name of your God: I am the Lord.
You shall not defraud your neighbor; you shall not steal; and you shall not keep for yourself the wages of a laborer until morning. You shall not revile the deaf or put a stumbling-block before the blind; you shall fear your God: I am the Lord.
You shall not render an unjust judgement; you shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great: with justice you shall judge your neighbor. You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not profit by the blood of your neighbor: I am the Lord.
You shall not hate in your heart anyone of your kin; you shall reprove your neighbor, or you will incur guilt yourself. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord. - Leviticus 19: 1-2, 9-18
38-42 “Here’s another old saying that deserves a second look: ‘Eye for eye, tooth for tooth.’ Is that going to get us anywhere? Here’s what I propose: ‘Don’t hit back at all.’ If someone strikes you, stand there and take it. If someone drags you into court and sues for the shirt off your back, giftwrap your best coat and make a present of it. And if someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously.
43-47 “You’re familiar with the old written law, ‘Love your friend,’ and its unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy.’ I’m challenging that. I’m telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. He gives his best—the sun to warm and the rain to nourish—to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty. If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that. If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal? Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that.
48 “In a word, what I’m saying is, Grow up. You’re kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your God-created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you.” - Matthew 5: 38-48 (The Message)
Jesus’ great Sermon on the Mount may not have been so great to some of his hearers. Jesus’ words pushed the envelope as he raised the stakes of living in right relationships. Following Jesus meant following high moral and ethical standards and that required some self-reflection and personal examination.
But Jesus’ sermon was not to condemn the crowds or the disciples. Jesus’ sermon was to reorient his followers to the foundational truth of God’s kingdom – the Law of Love.
The last two comparisons Jesus made in our text today don’t just meddle – they reach beyond human logic.
In Jesus’ day everyone knew the Law of the Old Testament made room for the law of retaliation; an eye for eye and tooth for tooth [1]. My commentary states its purpose in the ancient judicial system was to “curb the tendency to unlimited private revenge” [2].
And yet Jesus preached if we are living for and in the kingdom of God then the Law of Love commands us to renounce our right to get even for the sake of living generously.
Who else lives generously? It may not be anyone else that we know, but God does.
In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus presses the limitless love for one’s neighbor with the parable of the Good Samaritan. (Luke 10: 25-37). You see, Jesus reinterpreted the Samaritan, Israel’s perceived enemy, as their neighbor – a fellow child of God. And according to Matthew’s Gospel this is how Jesus gets his point across; you are to love your enemies and let your enemies bring out the best in you, not the worst (Matthew 5: 44, The Message).
Who else gives his best to both the nice and the nasty? It may not be anyone else that we know, but God does.
Can you imagine what the world would be like if we actually lived according to the Law of Love?
As a teenager Derek had his own radio talk show called Stormfront which promoted the white nationalist agenda. At the age of eleven, he even created a Stormfront website for children. By the age of nineteen, Derek had been a leading voice of numerous white nationalist conventions across the country. He had his eyes set on a political future to further, in his words, “the survival and continued dominance of the great white race” [4]. Derek’s public arguments were not emotional, but rather stated what he believed were facts of racial science, immigration, and a declining white middle class” [5].
But first – college. Derek wanted to live on a small college campus with a diverse student body to see a different part of life. Therefore, he chose to attend the most liberal college in his home state.
For a while Derek lived under the radar as he hosted his daily radio show from the privacy of his college apartment. “He knew if his views were discovered at college he would be vilified and ostracized on campus” [6].
Derek struck a few unlikely student friendships from classes. There was Rose who he began dating and she happened to be Jewish. There was Juan, a native of Peru. Moshe as a transfer student from Tulane. And there was Matthew, who had converted to Judaism. Their friendships were genuine, but these diverse relationships began to create some friction within Derek’s worldview.
Mathew hosted a weekly Sabbath meal every Friday night. It was a “rotating group of six or seven Christians, atheists, whites, and Hispanics” [7]. Soon after Derek’s secret was made public on campus, Matthew invited Derek to join them for the Sabbath dinner.
A few students backed out. But not Juan, Moshe, and Matthew. It is amazing that these young men did not denounce Derek as their enemy. They did not feel threatened by Derek or cut him off. They simply lived generously, loved their neighbor as themselves, and gave their best.
Not only did Derek begin learning how to love his perceived enemies, he was ultimately moved to renounce racial hatred. But it cost Derek everything, including his parents forsaking him.
When Jesus says, “Love your enemies and let them bring out the best in you,” he is pointing us to a hidden truth: Giving our time, energy, and authentic selves to another who is completely different from us is the most Jesus thing we can do.
It is in that space that we have the opportunity to really see and hear one another as fellow human beings whom God created. That is what it means to love. And loving like Jesus loves is the kingdom key to breaking down walls of hate and hostility. But as long as an enemy remains impersonal then fear promises to breed hate and hostility.
Let me be clear – hate and hostility have no place in the kingdom of God.
I want you to close your eyes. When I say the word “enemy” what image comes to your mind?
What would it look like to for you to share space, to love your enemy, and to let them bring out the best in you? What would it look like for you to live generously and graciously as God already lives towards you? This is absolute foolishness to the world, but it is the wisdom of the cross.
The truth of the matter is that you and I have long been enemies of God because of the human condition of sin. As enemies of God, our Maker did not give us what we deserve. Jesus took what we deserve.
As Jesus fulfilled God’s plans for salvation the Romans – Israel’s oppressor and perceived enemy – flogged Jesus, mocked him, spat on him, and nailed him to a cross. It was public humiliation. And according to Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus did not retaliate or try to get even. Jesus renounced his divine authority and completely humbled himself. Jesus did not hate his enemies. He loved them without condition and with the fullness of God’s grace.
Jesus died for you and me and the one we have loved the least. On the third day God raised Jesus to new life to prove that God’s love is greater than hatred; to prove God’s forgiveness is beyond human logic; and to prove God’s kingdom is built on the Law of Love, a divine foundation that will never be undermined by the kingdom of this world.
Living out this gift of faith and being a disciple of Jesus Christ is not for the faint of heart. And yet we do not follow Jesus alone. The Spirit gives us the mind of Christ and teaches us all that Christ commanded (Philippians 2: 1-3; John 14:26).
God gave his best so that we might have hope to give our best. You and I are not called to judge the hearts and minds of humanity, but rather leave judgment to God alone. We are called to love like Jesus loves. We are called to turn our backs on evil and work for the good.
May we love our enemies for in doing so we are truly living out our God-created identity.
In the name of God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen.
Sources Referenced:
[1] Exodus 21:24; Leviticus 24:20; Deuteronomy 19:21
[2]New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, “The Gospels and Narrative Literature: Volume VII” (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015), p. 123.
[3] Eli Saslow, “Rising Out of Hatred: The Awakening of a Former White Nationalist” (New York: Doubleday, 2018), p. 7.
[4] Eli Saslow, p. 8.
[5] Eli Saslow, p. 7.
[6] Eli Saslow, p. 29.
[7] Eli Saslow, p. 74.
New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary Volume VII: “The Gospels and Narrative Literature” (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015), pp. 123-126.
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