Carrying the Solider's Gear (TMF:1427)

Tuesday, August 04, 2020
Peace to Live By: Carrying the Solider's Gear (TMF:1427) - Daniel Litton
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       Thirdly, Jesus said, “And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.” I think for us to best understand this sentence, it is almost certain that Jesus was referring to here the fact that, during the Roman Empire, a Roman solider could, by law, require someone to carry his gear for approximately one mile. This was the law of the day during the time of Jesus. Here, then, Jesus is telling his followers that if a Roman soldier pointed them out and said they needed to help him carry his gear of a mile, that he should say, “Hey, I can carry it for two miles if you would like.” We are to be generous to those who need it, but even when they may be demanding it of us in a way that, inside, we don’t particularly like. I know, this one is hard. I wonder how many times Jesus carried the gear of Roman soldiers during his day? He most likely did multiple times.