Latest / Jo Watson: Unfiltered Faith / The Other Cheek
Transcript
- Jo Watson: Yeah. Welcome to Unfiltered Faith, where it's time to breathe, time to slow down, and time to let your shoulders drop. And time to step into the sanctuary. Not the sanctuary that we're all so unfamiliar with. The one God is building inside you. Today we're driving into one of Jesus' most misunderstood teachings. Turn the other cheek. Taken from Matthew 39. Now, depending on how you grew up, turn the other cheek either sounds deeply holy, or it sounds like a warning your mama might have given you to stay out of trouble when she sent you to school. But Jesus wasn't talking about school or Playground drama. He wasn't talking about ignoring your relatives' shady comments at Thanksgiving dinner. And he surely wasn't talking about letting people walk all over you like you're the welcome Matt in a hotel lobby. When Jesus talked about turning the other cheek, he was teaching a different kind of courage. He was teaching a way of responding to harm that protects your dignity. He was talking about responding to harm in a way that exposes the injustices of a system or an act committed by someone in that system. And he was teaching how to respond to harm in a way that opens the door for healing on both sides. You see, the instruction that some of us were given when we were growing up around the subject of turning the other cheek. Has taught us how to live in abusive relationships, it's conditioned us to be silent in injustice, and it has taught us how to just live with the painful things that people do to us or say to us. So I want to first acknowledge your pain this morning, because some of us have lived in and are still living in painful situations. And as we dive into our topic this morning. Remember, we are family. This is unfiltered faith, so let's go. I want to share a story with you this morning. And while it may not speak to the depth of some of the pain that some of you may have experienced trying to turn the other cheek, I want to use this story as an example to illustrate what Jesus was saying with Turn the Other Cheek. The story goes like this. A morning that revealed something about the human heart and something about God's heart too. I was visiting a church, a place filled with warm smiles and strong coffee, and the kind of worship that makes you sway even if you weren't planning to. The worship leader was playing a song that I just couldn't help but stand up and raise my hands in praise to, even though everyone else around me was still sitting quietly with little or no expression on their face. There I was standing, hands raised in the air, feeling the presence of the Lord, and in the midst of it all I realized that not only was I the only person standing in praise and worship with my hands raised, but I was also the only person of color in the room. Well, during the meet and greet, I was People were hugging and shaking hands and laughing and exchanging holy kisses, and a woman approached me, sweet, well meaning, but carrying something that she didn't realize that she was carrying. She took my hand and she looked at me with a soft smile and she said I'm so glad you're kind feel welcome here. I froze. Now I don't know who she thought my kind was. Maybe she thought I represented all black people who like to praise and worship with their hands in the air. Perhaps she thought I represented all women who tied their hair back with a scarf, or maybe I represented all visitors or people who liked strong coffee. I can't be sure what she really meant, but what she said landed. Like a stone in my chest. Because you see, in that moment, at least to her, I wasn't Joe. I wasn't a child of God. I wasn't a visitor. I wasn't even a worshiper. I was a boss. Something other. Let me say that again so you understand the importance of what I'm saying. I wasn't Joe. I wasn't a child of God. I wasn't even A visitor. I was a category, a box, a stereotype, a symbol of something other instead of a person with a story. I felt myself shrink, not just a little, not enough for anyone to notice, but enough for me to feel it. You see, her comment wasn't violent, but it was dismissive. It was dehumanizing. It was the kind of thing that makes you feel small in a room where you already stand out. Now the old me would have snapped. The sanctified me would have prayed in tongues for whatever had a hold of her to be released. But the Jesus following me remembered Matthew five thirty nine. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn them the other also. Turn them. The other cheek. Not pretend it didn't happen. Not laugh it off because I was unsure of what to say or do. Not let it slide and carry the weight alone. Not stay silent to keep the peace. But turn the other cheek. Respond in a way that refuses retaliation and protects my dignity. So I took a breath, a slow steady, spirit-centered breath, and gently said, Thank you for welcoming me. And just so you know, I'm not a your kind, I'm just Joe. And I'm so grateful to be here. While her eyes widened, not in defensiveness, in awakening, she squeezed my hand and whispered, I'm so sorry I didn't realize. And something holy happened in that moment. Not because she apologized, not because I corrected her, but because we met each other in truth without shame, truth without anger and without pretending. You see, Jesus' words in Matthew 539 are often misunderstood. He wasn't telling people to accept abuse, he wasn't telling the oppressed to stay oppressed, and he wasn't telling the wounded To stay silent. Jesus was teaching non violent resistance, a way of confronting harm without being harmful. Turn the other cheek. You see, the context for today's scripture is this. In Jesus' culture, a slap on the cheek was a backhanded slap meant to meet demean or shame someone. Turning the other cheek. Force the aggressor to strike with the open palm the way you strike an equal. That type of open palm forcing the aggressor to strike you as an equal was a dignity asserting act, a way of saying you cannot reduce me, you cannot define me, you cannot strip away the image of God in me. What Jesus was saying with the turn the other cheek was don't fight them, but don't let them play you. Jesus was talking about holy boundary setting, sanctified respect. In other words, it's kingdom level clap back without the clap. That is what Jesus was teaching. Jesus was talking about holy boundary settings. I want to say that again. Sanctified self-respect. In other words, it's kingdom level clap back without the clap. And here's the part that we often miss. Turning the other cheek becomes a healing pathway for both people. Not just the person who experienced bias, but the person who committed it too. When we practice turning the other cheek the way that Jesus intended it, it one protects the dignity of the person who was hurt. The kind of dignity rooted in Genesis one hundred twenty seven that God says so God created humankind in his image. It protects my heart and it affirms that I can be who God created me to be. Two, it invites the other person, my sister, into awareness without shame, awakening her, giving her a chance to grow instead of defending herself. And growth is healing. Three, it breaks the cycle of harm instead of multiplying it, creating a pause, a holy pause, where both parts can soften. Four, it opens the door to restore relationship. And five, it models the kingdom of God for everyone watching. A world where dignity is protected, a world where bias is confronted without cruelty, a world where people are invited into transformation and not humiliation, a world where justice and peace reign. Micah 6 8 says, Do justice, love, mercy, walk humbly with your God. Turning the other cheek is not weakness. It is creative, courageous love that heals the one who was hurt and the one who did the hurt. This is what Jesus meant by turning the other cheek. Sabream, take a breath with me and ask yourself. Where have you felt unseen? Where have you been misunderstood? Where have you carried hurt silently? Where have you shrunk yourself to keep the peace? And what would it look like to reclaim your dignity with gentleness? To speak truth with courage. To respond in a way that heals you and invites healing for others. Psalms one hundred thirty nine fourteen says, I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully ming. That is a phrase that should wash over all others. You are not a catadam. You are not a box. You are not a your kind. You are a beloved image bearer of God. You are fearfully and wonderfully made. And if anyone forgets that, you have full permission to remind them with grace, with humor, and with your whole sanctified chest. So today, may you walk in the dignity God placed inside of you. May you speak truth. With gentlemen and courage. May you refuse to mirror harm, but never minimize it. May your presence awaken awareness, not shame. May your responses open doors to restoration, and may you carry the sanctuary of God with you into every room, every conversation, every moment where you are called to turn the other cheek. And reveal the kingdom of God. Thank you for being here. Thank you for leaning into the hard conversations. And thank you for choosing healing for yourself and for the world around. I am always excited to hear from you. Send me your comments, your stories, your questions, and may any topic that you wish to discuss put it on your heart to send it to me. And we would love to discuss it here on Unfiltered Faith. And remember, we are family giving voice to unfiltered faith because God is moving. So stay ready and to God be the