What Does It Mean to 'Turn the Other Cheek'?

Episode 204 Show Notes

What Does It Mean to "Turn the Other Cheek"?

From the Show

What does it mean to "turn the other cheek"?

Yeah Jesus really does expect us to turn the other cheek, and yes there's a place for self-defense. It's not a contradiction…He [Jesus] is talking to his disciples. He's not laying out a blueprint for a new geo-political empire. He's not talking to Caesar, he's talking to his sheep. So the church is called to be counter-cultural in the sense that, not that it opposes society, but in the sense that it's a city set on a hill, a light that is shining that contrasts with the darkness below. It's testifying to the kingdom of Christ as it's expanding throughout the world. — Michael Horton

Questions in this Episode

1. How do you understand John 20:23, where Jesus says, “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld”?

2. I was wondering why it's important to recite the Apostle's Creed and the Lord's Prayer during a worship service? I know some worship services do not do this and I was wondering what the reason for that was.

3. Does Jesus really expect Christians to turn the other cheek? Where is the line? At what point should a Christians stand up for themselves or their family and defend themselves against persecution?

4. How do you understand first Corinthians 10.23 where Paul says, “‘All things are lawful,’ but not all things are helpful. ‘All things are lawful,’ but not all things build up.”?

5. I was raised believing that we are supposed to get baptized in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. I have been reading my Bible about that and in Hebrews, it says that we are supposed to be baptized in Jesus's name. Can you clarify this?