One of my most basic fears is for my personal security. I would love to be secure in the knowledge that I can defend myself if attacked. I'm not, and I'm not likely to become so. I have taken a few martial arts classes, but have never stuck with them long enough to become anything like skilled in them. I can fire a pistol and rifle fairly accurately, but I do not own a pistol and the rifle I own is a curiosity, not a weapon. When I think of defending myself or fantasize about winning some sort of fight, it is actually depressing.
Enter Chambers and his use of the section of the Sermon on the Mount about personal defense. Essentially, Jesus says, "Don't". It's really straight forward. Turn the other cheek. Walk the extra mile. Give to those who borrow. Give your coat to your legal opponent trying to take your shirt. Love your enemies, pray for your persecutors. I get it. I don't like it, but I get it. In fact this flies in the face of being American. We don't do that. We have heroes like John Wayne, Audie Murphy, and William Wallace (oh wait, he was a Scot). People in rural America still idolize the rogue criminals of the 30's like Bonnie & Clyde.
So, I know I have some deep training and brainwashing to overcome in order to turn my cheek to my opponent. I know that "fair" doesn't enter into it, and I have no rights to defend when persecuted. It stinks, but I have to admit, the lack of support for cynicism might be nice. To be able to respond to situations without a negative comment because I do not need to defend a wrong done to me is a nice alternative to striking out in passive aggressiveness. There is certainly less therapy involved in letting go of passive aggressive modes.
But there are much more important gains to seek. Chambers points out that it is not my honor at stake, but my Master's. When I defend myself with either passive or active aggression, I hurt my Master. It is His honor besmirched by my actions rather than mine defended. My honor was negated when I chose to follow my Master. I gave up any right to honor when I submitted my life to Him. Any honor I receive should be from Him or else it is merely temporal and worth far less. His honor, on the other hand, is so precious and so powerful that it actually can overcome evil in this world and bring impossible people into His Kingdom.
So, the very people persecuting me, mistreating me, and humiliating me can, through the power of the honor of my Master, become my eternal neighbors in Heaven. The reason that does not sound so appealing, and why that makes Heaven seem to shine somewhat less is my failure to love others as my Master does. When I get to the root of my desire for security it stems from a lack of faith, but also a lack of love. Faith requires hope (Hebrews 11:1). But together, faith and hope form the safety required to love (1 Corinthians 13:13). I can say, "You have my back" because of faith. That faith flows from saying and believing that He loves me. And I believe He loves me because I have hope. Once there, and these two statements are sure, then I can be at His service, and that is love in action. It is there, in His service that I can turn my other cheek, bless when cursed, give to the borrower, and not resist the evil person.
Today, I travel to California after sitting through an all-day training session on a new business system I have been using for several months now. I will be tired. I will be traveling in a car with my wife, daughter, and two beagles. I will be in danger of forgetting my hope, jettisoning my faith, and defending my own honor. That would be a shame. I will need the power my Master provides in full measure, and I believe I will have it.
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