Rocky Balboa and the Strength of Christ

I've often wondered exactly what Jesus meant in the sermon on the mount in Matthew 5:38 when he told us to turn the other cheek when someone strikes you. I don't think the idea is that we become a door mat for everyone who wants to take advantage of us, but perhaps that we become so strong that the attacks from those who oppose us won't bother us or subtract from our absolute joy and confidence that even the gates of hell will not prevail against us (matt 16:18) or what they mean for evil, God means for good (Gen.50:20/Romans 8:28).

In Rocky 3, Rocky Balboa is taking a beatin' from Clubber Lang and after getting knocked down 2 or 3 times, Rocky willingly opens himself up to a rapid fire series of punches to the face and he starts yelling at Clubber “you ain't so bad, you ain't so bad,...com'on, hit me! Hit me!”

I'm not so sure that this kind of strength comes merely by deciding to be strong any more than becoming a professional boxer is simply a matter deciding that you are. In other words, there is a process. In Philipians 4:12 Paul says that he has learned the secret of being content in every situation, whether life is fair or unfair. As Christians, we love to hear and admire the idea of feeling calm, cool and confident amongst any circumstance, but I think most of us tend to skip over one important word that Paul says: LEARNED.

Though there is some dispute about exactly when Paul wrote Philipians, it is universally agreed that he wrote it while he was imprisoned. Paul spent a great deal of time in freedom spreading the gospel and traveling and speaking at temples, house churches, and various other places. Finally, under the direction of the Spirit he went to Jerusalem knowing he was going to be imprisoned.

At some point he resolved to know Christ through whatever circumstances were to surround him. Also, it seems that at first he wasn't necessarily content knowing Christ in both freedom and chains, because he said he had to LEARN contentment, meaning that at one point, he hadn't learned or mastered it yet.

I believe that part of the abundant life that Jesus calls us to is one that we can be stolen from without distress because we are not attached to our possessions, that we can be persecuted and insulted and yell back “is that all you got?!!” because our inner strength surpasses all opposition, and one in which we are willing and available to learn from failure and from those whom we may think little of, because we resist our sense of pride and embrace humility.

True strength can stand against a rip-tide of 400 peers who pressure us to go one way and we stand as a rock unmoved. True strength stands against our own desires and laziness and pushes forward to do what we know we should. True strength can stand in the midst of a 1,000 forms of temptation yet never let it capture our minds so as to alter our thoughts. True strength holds all thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ in all circumstances (2 Cor. 10:5).

True strength is learned. Many have fallen into a terrible condition or lifestyle because they tried to 'enter the ring' against Clubber Lang without having trained themselves in righteousness, but merely liked the idea of it.

None of it happens overnight, but its learned and mastered. Our humanity is hardwired to learn through a process so much so that even when Jesus entered into human flesh it is said he had to learn(Hebrews 5:8). God designed the church in a way that we should take time to learn in order to carry out our mission and be whole (Eph.4:11-13). My constant fight is to change my thoughts, habits and outlook to conform to the way that Christ thinks and in doing so, partake of the divine nature (2Peter 1:4).