Living Out Matthew 5:40
November 30th, 2011 § Leave a Comment
Today I saw this in a story over at NPR:
But one night last month, as Diaz stepped off the No. 6 train and onto a nearly empty platform, his evening took an unexpected turn.
He was walking toward the stairs when a teenage boy approached and pulled out a knife.
“He wants my money, so I just gave him my wallet and told him, ‘Here you go,’” Diaz says.
As the teen began to walk away, Diaz told him, “Hey, wait a minute. You forgot something. If you’re going to be robbing people for the rest of the night, you might as well take my coat to keep you warm.”
via A Victim Treats His Mugger Right : NPR.
It’s not too often you hear of someone really living out the verses in Matthew 5 where Jesus says:
You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you. – Matthew 5:38-42 ESV
I don’t know if Julio Diaz is a Christian or not. However, offering the kid who just mugged you your coat, then taking him to dinner really is living out the words of Jesus.
When we think of courage and apply it to a situation like the one Diaz faced, we probably think of something out of a Dirty Harry movie. Yet, who really is more courageous, the one who fights the mugger, or the one who feeds his mugger?
