A Facebook Challenge to the Christian Faithful

A challenge has been issued to Christians worldwide via Facebook. Posters hope Christians will see the inconsistency in their beliefs. This challenge is a failure, and here’s why.

78% of Americans claim to be Christian…Then why are you supporting wars (Matthew 5:38-42, Luke 6:27-31)? Why are you not fighting day in and day out to turn America into a socialist or communist society (Matthew 19:21-24, Luke 14:33, Acts 2:44-45)? Which is it; Are you Christians, or are you capitalists? You cannot be both according to Jesus (Matthew 6:24).

What the heck is he talking about?

Then why are you supporting wars (Matthew 5:38-42, Luke 6:27-31)?

Matthew 5:38-42

38Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth:

39But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

40And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also.

41And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.

42Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.

The person who believes this has anything to do with wars isn’t very familiar with the Bible.

“Turning the other cheek” does not mean accepting violence. It is a demand to be treated as an equal:

Jesus clarifies his meaning by three brief examples. “If anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” Why the right cheek? How does one strike another on the right cheek anyway? Try it. A blow by the right fist in that right-handed world would land on the left cheek Of the opponent. To strike the right cheek with the fist would require using the left hand, but. in that society the left hand was used only for unclean tasks. As the Dead Sea Scrolls specify, even to gesture with the left hand at Qumran carried the penalty of ten days’ penance. The only way one could strike the right cheek with the right hand would be with the back of the hand.

What we are dealing with here is unmistakably an insult, not a fistfight. The intention is not to injure but to humiliate, to put someone in his or her place. One normally did not strike a peer in this way, and, if one did, the fine was exorbitant (four zuz was the fine for a blow to a peer with a fist, 400 zuz for backhanding him; but to an underling, no penalty whatever). A backhand slap was the normal way of admonishing inferiors. Masters backhanded slaves; husbands, wives; parents, children; men, women; Romans, Jews.

Giving not only your coat but your cloak is intended to degrade one’s creditors.

Why then does Jesus counsel them to give over their inner garment as well? This would mean stripping off all their clothing and marching out of court stark naked! Put yourself in the debtor’s place; imagine the chuckles this saying must have evoked. There stands the creditor, beet-red with embarrassment, your outer garment in one hand, your underwear in the other. You have suddenly turned the tables on him.

Likewise, being compelled to go a mile and going two has specific relevance to the time. Roman soldiers were legally permitted to compel non-citizens (like Jews) to carry their belongings for one mile, but no longer. Going a second mile would put the soldier in danger of punishment.

Sorry, these verses are not relevant to the challenge, and have nothing to do with war. ((Luke 6:27-31 repeats the same content.)

Why are you not fighting day in and day out to turn America into a socialist or communist society (Matthew 19:21-24, Luke 14:33, Acts 2:44-45)?

Matthew 19:21-24:

21Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.

22But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.

23Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.

24And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.

Our challenger forgets the next two verses:

25When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?

26But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

Many of us have heard that “the eye of the needle” was a narrow gate near Jerusalem. However, there’s no evidence that it existed. The point of this passage is that the love of material possessions interferes with one’s proper focus, eternal servitude to God.

It has nothing to do with “a communist or socialist nation”, forcing people to give up their possessions against their will.

Luke 14:33:

33 So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.

Again, this is about forsaking (being willing to give up) material possessions, not about redistributing them in the name of “equality”.

Acts 2:44-45:

44And all that believed were together, and had all things common;

45And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.

The fact that apostles formed a commune does not relate to a commandment to form a communist nation.

Which is it; Are you Christians, or are you capitalists? You cannot be both according to Jesus (Matthew 6:24).

Matthew 6:24

24No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

Again, this is about the relationship of man to material possessions and God. Does the challenger think that socialists don’t love money? That communists don’t love their material possessions?

There is no commandment here to support a particular economic system.

This challenge to Christians fails. The author does not understand the Bible verses he quotes, and does not present a single real challenge.

Let’s collaborate. Let’s establish a series of challenges based in accurate use of Scripture, to demonstrate to Christians how their views are inconsistent with the Bible.

Leave your ideas in the comments, or discuss in the discussion forum!

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Mike Daniels is co-editor of Secular News Daily.

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