Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloke also. And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain. Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away. (Matthew 5:39-42)

The good should have the initiative. When bad takes the initiative by striking us on the cheek, or suing us for our coat, or compel us to walk with him and carry his burdens for a mile, Jesus asks us to give the initiative back to the good. By smilingly turning the other cheek a situation dominated by aggression becomes a situation dominated by love, compassion and perhaps even friendship. By offering not only our coat but also our cloak, it will go from being a court-case with conflict and ill feelings to a much less hurtful event settled out of court. Not having lost will possibly save many years of enmity between two who should be friends, and quite often the person suing for the coat will be touched by the goodness of our hearts and not accept either of the articles of clothing. If the Roman soldier invokes his right to compel us to walk a mile with him and carry his gear, we take away his supremacy and power, his enmity and stigma, and who knows, during our two miles, which might become ten, between friends, a Roman soldier might become converted unto a Master who would not allow him to be the enemy.

Jesus did not ask us to become door-mats. So, what is it that keeps us from being door-mats when turning the other cheek, and giving our coat and cloak? It is all in the attitude! If my attitude is that of always wanting to let the good walk away with the victory, if my attitude is such that I always want to turn the tables on Lucifer in order to bless my fellow man and glorify God; then I am no door-mat! Far from it!

We must be generous with what we have. But Jesus doesn't ask us to be generous beyond our means. If we are always saying in our hearts: "If I had I would give freely. But I do not have more than enough for my own needs". If we can say this with truthfulness we will be blessed as if we did give. But if those words are in any way hypocritical, God will remember to withhold from us when we beg of him. And this happens frequently.

God will bless us when we sacrifice. Sharing our bread with others, even when times are hard, is a sacrifice. It is not a sacrifice when our ships are in. God loves the spirit of sacrifice, and the scriptures gives example of how sacrifice can become the temporal salvation of God's people.

10 So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman [was] there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.

11 And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand.

12 And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.

13 And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son.

14 For thus saith the LORD God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth rain upon the earth.

15 And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days.

16 And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah. (1 Kings 17:11-16)