Sermons
Cycles of Retaliation
Cycles of Retaliation
Matt. 5:38-39
Introduction:
1. There is a monster lurking within each one of us.
2. On the surface he is like a pet, soft and cuddly and much to be desired. And most of the time this is what we experience. We hug him and pet him and sleep in his bosom.
3. But set off his sense of injustice and he becomes ferocious, biting and destroying with such intensity that we are bewildered that our cuddly pet could even act this way.
4. And then he calms down and becomes our cuddly pet again and invites us to sleep in his bosom!!
5. Such is the way of our sense of injustice so marred by sin. Cycles of retaliation are created.
a. It happens in couple relationships. One feels an injustice and seeks to punish
the other. “I just want them to hurt like I hurt.”
b. It happens in families, in friendships, in work relationships, in communities, and
governmental and political systems. Sometimes we don’t know all the details.
But we see the cycles of retaliation. Ex. Israel and Palestine (Hamas); the Soviet
Union and the Ukraine.
6. But Jesus said, “Whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also.” Solomon said, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him” (Prov. 25:21). Paul said, “Never pay back evil for evil to anyone” (Rom. 12:17). “I hear the voices, but this is the one I pillowed my head against.”
7. And if that isn’t hard enough, what do I do when I realize that the monster is me! I am the cuddly pet, until . . . someone treats me unfairly. My injustice is inflamed. I strike back. I inflame the monster in the other person, creating a vicious cycle in which we destroy each other.
8. How can we interrupt the pattern, gain control and do what the Lord wants us to do?
Discussion:
I. It is right that injustice be punished, but is it in our best interest to do so?
A. Scripture everywhere commends the practice of justice.
1. The rights of the innocent should be protected.
2. There is a system of right and wrong established by God that should be
honored.
3. I would even suggest this system is inherent in our being created in the image
of God. Our sense of justice is inherent in who we are.
4. He is the God of justice. Righting the wrongs. Caring for those treated
unfairly and bringing condemnation on the guilty. Isn’t He the one who said,
“Vengeance is Mine, I will repay” (Rom. 12:19; Deut. 32:35; Psa. 94:1)?
5. I conclude from this that it is legitimate for injustice to receive its just penalty.
I believe this is what “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” really means.
See Matt. 5:38 and Ex. 21:24. The punishment should fit the crime.
B. BUT is it in my best interest to bring this punishment on the evil doer?
1. Driven by my sin marred emotion, “I don’t care.” “Didn’t you know that guy
you hit was bigger than you?” “I didn’t care!”
2. My anger seethes and it is only right that the evil doer gets what’s coming to
him.
3. And it brings a certain pleasure when I express it. But then there are those
passages about anger . . .
a. “Be angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger,
and do not give the devil an opportunity” (Eph. 4:26; Psa. 4:4).
b. “A harsh word stirs up anger” (Prov. 15:1).
c. “The slow to anger pacifies contention” (Prov. 15:18).
d. “He who provokes him (the king) to anger forfeits his own life: (Prov. 20:2).
4. It is generally not in my best interest to punish the evil doer. “Scorners set a
city aflame, but wise men turn away anger” (Prov. 29:8). “Put them all aside:
anger, wrath, malice, slander and abusive speech from your mouth” (Col.
3:8).
5. Do I really want to bring down on my own head the punishment that I inflict
on the guilty? The judgment, the condemnation that we bring on others
tends to fall on us (Note Lk. 6:37-38. Observe the context (6:27-36). Be
merciful. Treat others the way you want them to treat you.
II. “But doesn’t God get angry and doesn’t He take vengeance on evil doers?”
A. Yes, absolutely. God does get angry and He does take vengeance on evil
doers.”
1. His anger is not marred by sin. Ours is. We may feel unjustly treated when
in fact we have not been unfairly treated.
2. His eye is clear and His judgments always accurate.
B. Do you suppose this is why He says, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” but tells
us to “never take our own revenge but to leave room for the wrath of God” (Rom.
12:19; Deut. 32:35; Psa. 94:1)? God is trying to protect us from cycles of
retaliation, to bring peace, to overcome evil with good (Rom. 12:18, 21).
1. Is there a difference between “revenge” and “vengeance”?
2. The words in the original language are from the same word family.
a. “Revenge” (NASB) 1556 “ekdikéō.”
b. “Vengeance” (NASB) 1557 “ekdíkēsis.”
c. Both recognize a violation has been committed. But God’s justice is
not marred by sinfulness. It is perfectly right.
C. And God grants forgiveness and is patient, not willing that any should perish
(2 Pet. 3:9). God defends what is right. While taking the penalty of sin upon
Himself. I defend myself and execute the penalty upon the other.
III. When I feel some injustice that is repeated over and over again I can bear a grudge while I wait for an opportune time to bring my vengeance upon my enemy.
A. Esau bore a grudge against Jacob because he had stolen his father’s blessing
(Gen. 27:41). He planned to kill him.
B. Joseph’s brothers thought he might bear a grudge against them and pay them
back in full for their having betrayed him (Gen. 50:15). They asked for
forgiveness.
IV. Forgiveness stops the cycle of retaliation.
A. Peter asked, “How often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up
to seven times? (Matt. 18:21ff). Jesus said, “Up to seventy times seven.”
B. And notice this interesting context (Matt. 18:15-18). How often have you heard
this interpreted to execute punishment on the sinner by reproving him, taking
witnesses to prove him wrong and then using the church to take vengeance?
The instruction is to “win your brother” not to destroy, embarrass, or punish him.
C. If we are unwilling to forgive our brother we are in no position to be forgiven
(Matt. 18:33-35; 6:14-15).
D. This does not mean that reproof is inappropriate. Lev. 19:17-18 says, “You
shall not hate your fellow countryman in your heart; you may surely reprove
your neighbor, but shall not incur sin because of him. You shall not take
vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the sons of your people, but you shall
love your neighbor as yourself; I am the Lord.” The reproof is not for you to get
back at your neighbor. It is to win him!
F. Forgiveness is difficult. It involves not punishing the violator even though he
deserves it. It involves the innocent carrying the pain. “That’s unfair,” you say.
It is grace. Joseph recognized that his brothers meant “evil” against him, but
he forgave them anyway (Gen. 50:20).
1. Forgiveness holds the guilty accountable.
2. But releases them from punishment.
3. It stops the cycle of retaliation.
Conclusion:
1. Isn’t this the model set by God himself?
2. Though He is angered by our sin and betrayal He extends His forgiveness.
3. He carries the pain of our sin and allows us to go free.
4. Forgiveness involves refraining from seeking retribution for grievances caused by others.
5. We end the cycle of retaliation and everyone is benefited.
For additional study consider these three resources:
The Price of Revenge: Hidden Brain
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hidden-brain/id1028908750?i=1000710912196
The Science of Revenge: Understanding the World’s Greatest Addiction, by James Kimmel, Jr., JD. Available at Amazon.com.
No Future Without Forgiveness, by Desmond Tutu. This addresses the issue of South African Apartheid and how South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission responded. Also available at Amazon.com.
