Major Kelly Durant
Matthew 5:25
Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.
2. How many of you have ever seen someone get involved in someone else’s business and you conclude that they should have just left it alone? In the world we expect to see this type of ignorant carnal conflictive behavior but isn’t it a shame when it is from one of our own brothers? Please pray before you ever get into someone else’s fight, you might end up looking like a fool or even getting arrested! Always be humble, be ready to forgive and back down.
One time at a certain Corps I recall on an evening Bible study night a member parked in the designated slot for the pastor’s car. That didn’t usually happen but it did that night. Well, wouldn’t you know it that one of the men wanted to track down the car owner and make him move the car. He wanted that rule breaker to respect the rules, which seems normal, but it escalated into anything but a normal situation.
The man was not asked, but told to remove his car. Apparently, neither of these two men knew the Bible verse, Proverbs 15:1 A soft answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger. So the one with the car was offended by the loud rough tone and the other one was offended because he was being challenged. The situation was, the Captain (pastor) didn’t even mind that someone got his spot, but without him knowing two people were arguing and yelling and insulting each other. The whole Bible class came out to witness two men almost having a fist fight! About five of us had our phones out to call 911 but thank God these two listened and settled down! That heated dangerous situation didn’t have to happen how it did!
3. Have you ever been in a room and one person yawns, and then you and others yawn too? Why is that? That is one being affected by the behavior of another! Like it or not we are all subjected to a type of hive influence, and if one is bad, then the others want to follow and be bad too. That one disrespectful bad apple will bring on a new low standard. That’s why bad apples must go, and quickly!
Before in a classroom if a kid was rude and disrespected a teacher, the rest of the class would shut up knowing the one kid was going to the principle’s office and was going to get punished by the school and then by his parents. The hive mentality was, the respectful ones get to remain free to study, while the ones with bad behavior end up having to do boring punishments. What has happened to our systems of late? Now the kids imitate the bad ones and get away with it!
As Christians we must give respect to others even when they do not deserve it! Jesus predicted what would be happening in our last days, Matthew 24: 12 “And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold”. Today we see lawlessness, rudeness, and disrespect rewarded by social “likes”, media news support, and even some getting a paycheck from evil billionaires! Our world is topsy turvy, or functioning in the opposite way that it should in order to maintain peace and order. Satan and his hateful people want the system to fall apart so they can rebuild it under their draconian dystopian anti-Christ empire. Who is of God and who isn’t? See how much they align with Jesus’ teachings to know.
4. But what is a Christian supposed to do? We get disrespected a lot! We are tempted to want to get into the fight to set everyone straight, to correct the lawbreakers and in a harsh way, but we are reminded of what Paul instructed Romans 3:8 And why not say, “Let us do evil that good may come”?—as we are slanderously reported and as some affirm that we say. Their condemnation is just. Rom. 12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Many people are getting angry and cold hearted due to all the recent nonsensical lawlessness. Seeing how it is we resist any sympathy for the devil and his people; they are causing too much pain and death, we want God’s righteousness! Romans 12:19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give no place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. Satan’s values are the opposite of God’s and in his eyes, and those of his loudmouthed demons, the disrespect and even murder of authority figures (or that of babies) is termed “justice” and justifiable because evil done on whom someone claims as bad is alright. What?! Do you see what horrendous blasphemy is being marketed to our confused youth? We must pray and trust that God’s judgements will come soon! God’s people and His values are the target of Satan and it is hitting home!
How is it that anyone with a brain could accept the recent messages that to ‘respect the law’ makes you be a bad person? And notice that labeled ones get targeted, harassed, trolled, and ridiculed into shame as crazy, disqualified, privileged, conservative idiots! The technocrat social-media gate keepers, the evil agenda driven school and college professors, and the mass media news outlet propagandists are pushing evil 86,400 seconds a day! The ‘bad is good and good is bad’ demons amongst us in authority are deceiving multitudes contradicting every instruction in God’s Holy Word! Their messages are always inflammatory lies and deceptions!
5. Ephesians 6:12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Our fight is against Satan and the demons inhabiting in evil people who spew out hate, mockery, lies and destruction with every breath, and these people are to be resisted, exposed, and denounced. “By their fruits you know them” But discretion must be applied to know that some powers are not purposefully evil but just functional.
Romans 13:1 Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. 4 For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. 5 Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience’ sake.
These verses apply to everyone meaning we must be submitted to the legitimate authorities of society or we will pay the price. But of late many youth and angry people have been getting it wrong, they have been submitting to anarchist voices so they are as barbarians rebelling against all authorities! We must.. Ephesians 4:27 not give place to the devil. 2 Timothy 3:1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
6. So what is the context for the verse of today? Matthew 5:25
Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him. Jesus is basically telling us not to go crazy and want to take matters into our own hands. In the verses in the beginning of the chapter we are reminded that “blessed are the peacemakers” but life is not just ‘love and peace’ many injustices are always happening to you and to others. Here Jesus speaks about controlling your anger, not letting disrespect get out of hand or you will pay the price of punishment.
21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. (Side note: Because an injustice occurs, say with an Asian man killing someone, this does not justify making any other Asian man innocent of that particular crime be worthy of death too! This explains the ‘without cause’ as here) Note that being angry is synonymous to murder if not dealt with appropriately!
And whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of hell fire. 23 Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. (Or vs, 25 happens)
7. All of this is about respecting others and that there is a Biblical system in place for the correction of injustices and it is better to not respond arrogantly with a vicious fight. In other words, you might insult someone, or express anger so ugly as to say ‘go to hell’ but this accomplishes nothing but to invoke God’s anger. Push it too hard and you will end up in jail! Angry provocative words, (even chants and slogans as in riots), insults, and violence will not serve as a remedy for correcting offenses. The solution is in a dialog, in communication, in a reconciliation, in a an agreement. And take note that according to these scriptures, God will not hear your prayers nor accept your sacrificial gifts if you are in conflict with someone and you do not go to them to fix it. “And forgive us our debts (offenses) as we forgive those who sin against us.” Matthew 6:12
What happens to someone with a bitter chip on their shoulder? Someone who is bitter against the world, God, or another person? They usually end up doing some random act of violence on someone (on someone innocent!) and then they have to pay the price for being stupid and out of control!
So learn that instead of being an idiot that gets taken to jail over being so cantankerous, heed the warning Jesus gives us that it is better to just back down and agree when confronted by someone, especially someone in an authority. The implication is to be humble, to set aside your anger and pride, to just let it go as it is not worth it to want to create a big emotional altercation over anything. James 4:10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.
8. We all need to come to terms that we don’t need to be in the middle of every fight going on in our family or in our community or nation. The truth always comes out, justice will happen, if not in this life it will when the ‘Great White Throne Judgement’ comes with Jesus overseeing who goes where for eternity. (Revelation 20) We must learn and teach respect to our children and friends, respect for God and authorities and respect for each other to keep the peace.
May the Lord help us to recognize that disrespect and anger is a sin. Don’t participate in the anger or disrespect that others may do. Our human anger against any people group over an injustice will not accomplish anything except getting God angry with us for adding fuel to the fire.
Conflicts and our resolutions with others should be with those directly tied to us, with our brothers, family, and coworkers. And now I will end on a positive note with our Salvation Army’s 11th doctrine. Those who do God’s will, even though unfair in this life, even though we suffer persecution, disrespect, and ridicule, we will go on to be rewarded forever!
11: We believe in the immortality of the soul; in the resurrection of the body; in the general judgment at the end of the world; in the eternal happiness of the righteous; and in the endless punishment of the wicked.
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