He
that smiteth a man, so that he dies, shall be surely put to death.
Eye
for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,
thine
eye shall not pity. It shall be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth,
hand for hand, foot for foot.
“You
have heard that it hath been said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’
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.
Unto
him that smiteth thee you on the cheek, offer also the other, and him that
taketh away thy cloak forbid not coat also.
“For
God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever
believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.
See
that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one
another and to everyone.
Romans 12:10 & 14
Kindly
affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honor preferring one another
Bless them which persecute you; bless and
curse not
Repay
no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of
all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God …
The
vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem
in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. Hear, O
heavens, and give ear, O earth; for the Lord has spoken: “Children have I
reared and brought up, but they have rebelled against me. The ox knows its
owner, and the donkey its master's crib, but Israel does not know, my people do
not understand.” Ah, sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, offspring of
evildoers, children who deal corruptly! They have forsaken the Lord, they have
despised the Holy One of Israel, they are utterly estranged. Why will you still
be struck down? Why will you continue to rebel? The whole head is sick, and the
whole heart faint. ...
John 17: 21-23
That
they all may be one, as thou Father art in me and I in thee, that they also may
be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me and the glory
which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one even as we are
one. I in them and you in me, that they may be made perfect in one…
It
seems that as of late the scriptures and the stories of the men in the bible
have been of interest to those who provide us with an endless glut of
distraction and fables of how life should be; I am speaking of movie and television
show makers.
These
new shows have thrown off the pretense of respect for the bible and instead seethe
with a plaited hatred for God and His followers; Noah is a murderous bigot
suffering a psychotic break, Moses is having schizophrenic hallucinations of a
child God who is both callous and vengeful, the twelve apostles are power
hungry sexist who wrest away authority from Jesus true church leader Mary Magdalene.
They
speak of how Jesus made a new religion of love and acceptance and did away with
the vengeful murdering hating God of the Old Testament; and with voices that
seem to teach and reveal they speak every blasphemy without fear.
Why
do they not fear? It is because the church has become like Samson; they desired
that which God had said they should not desire (the honor and acceptance of the
world), instead of occupying the land they were given they have gone down among
the philistines (leaving the Spirit for degrees of education, psychology, and self-help),
trading away their vows of living for God for the promise of filling the lust
for that witch is passing away (and calling it love). Also like Samson they
have not realized that God is no longer their great strength, they have been
bound and blinded. No enemy of God fears them. They have become merchandise.
…but
Samson’s hair began to grow again…
It
is not possible for our faith to be established in God when we are thinking His
teachings in the law are opposed to who we say He is. Jesus dealt with this in
his statements of “you have heard it said … but I say unto you…”. Do we believe
He was opposing the law in these statements? God forbid. No, He was showing us
the grace and truth of what was written by Moses from God.
It
is the flesh that reads eye for eye, tooth for tooth, life for life, and sees a
right to vengeance, but the breath of God in us teaches that the purpose of
such a law was not that your brother would know there are consequences for
harming you…NO. The lesson we must learn is IN WHAT WAY WE HARM OUR BROTHER WE
HARM OURSELF…can you see? The teachings of Gods life in us are for us first,
that we may then encourage the faith of our brethren.
