First Baptist Church
Easter Sunday 2026

  • Announcements

    Recipe papers, Youth Group tonight 6-7:30, God’s Warriors Tomorrow, Bible Study during lent Wednesday at 6:30 with desserts, King of Kings Movie March 15th at 3:00 PM, Trivia Night March 22nd 4-6PM

    Call to Worship

    Leader: The world tells us to demand our rights, to settle the score, and to seek an "eye for an eye." People: But Jesus calls us to a higher way: the way of radical, sacrificial love.
    Leader: When we are wronged, Christ calls us to offer grace. People: When we are asked for much, Christ calls us to give even more.
    Leader: We worship the God who did not treat us as our sins deserve, but gave Himself for us. All: Let us worship the Lord, who transforms our hearts and teaches us to overcome evil with good!

    Song: Eye to Eye

    Sharing of Joys and Concerns

    Hymn: #471 As the Deer

    Offering

    Doxology
    Praise God from whom all blessings flow, praise him all creatures here below.
    Praise Him above ye heavenly host, praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen

    Children’s Sermon

    Sermon on the Mount: Eye for an Eye

    Welcome

    Today we are continuing on in our sermon on the mount series. Jesus has been going over these “antithesis” statements about “You have heard that is was said...” but then Jesus adds on to it to make it clear that it’s a heart issue. This part of the sermon is all stemming from how Jesus taught that we need righteousness that surpasses that of the pharisees. And because this is a heart issue, we know that we need the Holy Spirit to do this for us.
    After teaching on our words in the previous section, about being trustworthy people who mean what we say, let your yes be yes and your no be no, Jesus moves on to how our actions also need to line up with our words. We’re getting into some teaching now that is completely counter cultural to what we are used to, and so once again, this should challenge us. Let’s read the passage, pray, and then break it down together.
    Matthew 5:38–42 NIV
    “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

    Prayer

    Engage / Tension

    Whenever I read this passage I think of when I was a kid and I went to try out tae kwon do. This is like karate, I couldn’t tell you what the difference is, but they had a trial class that you could take to see if you would be interested in the program. My brother and I both went to it. I had no idea what to do or how to do it and almost immediately they paired us off and told us to spar with the other person. I’ve never done this, no idea what this entails. So I was a little surprised when this other kid just straight up kicked me right in the stomach. I can still picture it in my head and remember thinking, “Oh yeah, that’s how you want to play this, I’m gonna kick you as hard as I can in the stomach now!”
    This kind of reaction is not something that I had to learn. If someone did something to me, I would do the same thing back to them. This is the mindset of “Don’t get mad, get even.” And likely, this is a mindset all of us have had in our lives at some point or another. This is the exact mindset that Jesus begins to address in these next verses then.

    You Have Heard...

    Matthew 5:38 NIV
    “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’
    Jesus references teaching that was given out of the law in this verse. There’s a verse in Deuteronomy that he is referencing as well as a passage in Leviticus. The passage in Leviticus says...
    Leviticus 24:17–21 NIV
    “ ‘Anyone who takes the life of a human being is to be put to death. Anyone who takes the life of someone’s animal must make restitution—life for life. Anyone who injures their neighbor is to be injured in the same manner: fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. The one who has inflicted the injury must suffer the same injury. Whoever kills an animal must make restitution, but whoever kills a human being is to be put to death.
    Now, these verses are teaching this very thought that Jesus is going to challenge in a sense. This law in the Old Testament, often referred to as the law of retaliation, was originally given to the people to help them determine judgements in a court setting. This was needed to prevent harsh or unfair judgements. If someone broke your finger you couldn’t take them to court and get them sentenced to death. If someone killed your sheep, you couldn’t take them to court and have their house burned down. It was given so that there was structure and order to their court system. What Jesus is challenging though, is that this teaching has worked its way out of the court system and into personal lives. People were now applying this law of retaliation to any time someone wronged them personally. They were taking this law that applied to the courts and thinking they could act as judge on their own and retaliate against people personally. Jesus’ teaching that is coming then once again doesn’t abolish the law that was given, it expands on it and corrects the way that people have been applying the law incorrectly to their lives.

    Turn the Other Cheek

    Matthew 5:39 NIV
    But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.
    Don’t resist an evil person. Don’t regard someone as your enemy. We should relate to others, even those who would be against us, as neighbors. (More on this next week) Paul expands on this teaching in Romans as well.
    Romans 12:17–21 NIV
    Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
    Paul reiterates what Jesus teaches. Don’t repay evil for evil, don’t “get back” at someone who wrongs you. Paul reminds the Romans as well that God is the only judge that we should really be concerned about. If someone has done something against you, remember that they will have to answer to God as a result.
    Jesus gives us four examples to illustrate not resisting an evil person. The first is to turn the other cheek if someone slaps you. If anyone, no exceptions given here by Jesus, ANYONE slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek. Why does Jesus specifically mention the right cheek? For it to be a slap on the right cheek means that it was likely a backhanded slap. Not only do those slaps still hurt, but back then they were also used in a demeaning way that was meant to embarrass the person being slapped. You would backhand slap someone who you thought was lesser than you for example. So, to turn the other cheek does two things. First, it addresses this mindset that you are lesser than them. If they are going to slap you, they are going to have to slap you as an equal. This teaching of turning the other cheek though gets to the heart of retaliation. Think about this kid who kicked me. I had no question or conflict within my heart to kick him back. If someone slaps us on the face, we would likely have that same response. Jesus though says not to do that. Don’t strike them, don’t hit them, don’t get back at them. Turn the other cheek.
    I also don’t think this means that we are forbidden from protecting ourselves or our families. This also does not excuse violent crimes done against people. The guiding principle here is that as followers of Jesus we should have neighborly love towards all people and not have hearts that are full of malice, hate, and revenge.

    Hand Over Your Coat

    Matthew 5:40 NIV
    And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well.
    The second illustration that Jesus gives brings up the legal setting. In Jesus’ time someone could use you and take you to court over something that you have done wrong to them. A common thing that they would sue you for is the shirt that you were wearing. This is the long tunic that would have been worn under the coat, this is what is right up against your skin. The reason that Jesus says to hand over your coat as well is because it is giving more than what is required. In fact, it was actually against the law to attempt to sue someone for their coat. The reason being that the coat was more than just a piece of clothing. If someone was homeless their coat was their only shelter. The coat was also used as bedding for people who didn’t have a bed. So to hand over your coat as well as your shirt in a legal battle was outlandish. It was taking things to the extreme. Nobody would expect someone to hand over their coat as well. Can you imagine getting in some kind of legal battle with someone over a fender bender and in the settlement conversation they person who hit you offers up their house to you along with payment for the damages? That’s ridiculous, outlandish, it doesn’t make sense. It far exceeds what is being asked. This is the point that Jesus is making. The love that Christians should have towards others is outlandish. It far exceeds the kind of love the rest of the world has.
    The reason that we can and should love in this way is because it is the very same way that God has loved us through Jesus. God offers his son up as a sacrifice for our sins when we were still guilty of our sin. God’s love shown to us through Jesus is radical. That is why our love towards others should be radical as well.

    Go the Extra Mile

    Matthew 5:41 NIV
    If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles.
    Roman soldiers had a law, a right, where they could point to any Jewish citizen and force them to carry their heavy military pack for one Roman mile (about 1,000 paces).
    You can imagine how much the Jewish people hated this. Imagine you are in the middle of a busy day, working out in the shop or trying to finish up a project before the sun goes down, and an occupying soldier demands you drop everything to carry his gear. Every step of that one mile would be filled with bitterness, anger, and resentment. They would count out exactly 1,000 paces, drop the bag, and walk away.
    But Jesus says, when they force you to go one mile... go two. Why? Because the first mile is compelled by law. The second mile is compelled by love.
    When you go the second mile, you take your power back. You are no longer a victim being forced to do something; you are a willing servant choosing to show the love of God to someone who considers you an enemy. Imagine the shock on a Roman soldier's face when the Jewish man he just oppressed smiles and says, "Let me carry this a little further for you."

    Give Freely

    Matthew 5:42 NIV
    Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
    Jesus ends this section on retaliation by addressing our possessions. When we feel wronged, or when someone is always asking us for things, our natural human instinct is to close our fists.
    God is telling His people not to be transactional. Don't treat your neighbor like a business deal. If a neighbor constantly needs to borrow a tool, or someone asks for help when it’s inconvenient, the world says, "Protect your stuff. They owe you." Jesus says, "Open your hands."
    We don't give because the other person deserves it. We give because we have a Father in heaven who is deeply compassionate, and He has given freely to us.
    Exodus 22:25–27 NIV
    “If you lend money to one of my people among you who is needy, do not treat it like a business deal; charge no interest. If you take your neighbor’s cloak as a pledge, return it by sunset, because that cloak is the only covering your neighbor has. What else can they sleep in? When they cry out to me, I will hear, for I am compassionate.

    Closing / Communion

    When we look at this whole passage—turning the cheek, giving up our coat, walking the second mile, and giving freely—it feels impossible. And if we are just trying to follow these as a new set of strict rules, it is impossible. When we get kicked, our default setting is to kick back.
    This is why Jesus said our righteousness has to surpass the Pharisees. It has to be a heart change. We need the Holy Spirit to give us a heart that actually desires to bless those who wrong us.
    And as we prepare our hearts for communion this morning, we are reminded that Jesus didn't just preach this sermon; He lived it.
    When humanity rebelled against God, God didn’t demand an "eye for an eye." He didn't retaliate. Instead, Jesus stepped down into our mess.
    He didn't just speak about turning the other cheek hypothetically. When He was arrested and beaten, He literally turned His cheek to those who struck Him.He didn't just hand over His coat; He was stripped of His garments and hung on a cross.He went the ultimate extra mile, walking to Calvary, carrying the weight of our sin instead of a Roman pack.
    Peter, who was standing there listening when Jesus first preached this Sermon on the Mount, would later write this about his Savior:
    1 Peter 2:22–23 NIV
    “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.
    As we take the bread and the cup today, we are remembering the radical, outlandish love of a God who did not treat us as our sins deserved. Let's take a moment to reflect on His grace. Let's ask Him to soften our hearts, to remove any bitterness or desire for revenge we might be holding onto, and to fill us with His Spirit so we can walk out into the world and love our neighbors exactly as He has loved us.

    Prayer

    Hymn: #436 Grace Alone

    Communion

    Benediction

      • John 19:38–42NIV2011

      • John 20:1–10NIV2011

      • John 20:11–18NIV2011

First Baptist Church
8157435726
2 members • 5 followers