In this section of Jesus' sermon (Matthew 5:38-48), He teaches how to deal with the difficulties we encounter every day. You cannot control what people do to you. If they want to be offensive, rude, difficult to get along with, that's their choice. But you can control how you react to this behavior.
The most powerful thing you can do is let it slide right away. Don't keep it in your mind; it's not worth your time, otherwise it will steal your joy all day. Don't think about it anymore; the more you think about it, the more you relive the bitterness and hurt. Don't even tell your friends what they said. Keep your heart pure. Save your emotional energy to live this day to the fullest, to follow your goals, to love your family, to be good to your neighbors. Don't go into the next 20 years letting the same things bother you, the same co-worker gets on your nerves, the same grumpy relative steals your joy. They may not change, but here's the key: you can.
Sometimes, in the flesh we train ourselves to respond in a certain way. "If they say that, I'll get upset, I'll tell them this or that. If your crazy relative makes fun of me, I will say so." The problem is that you are letting them control you. If your smart retorts don't work a certain way, it will make your day worse. Begin to take control of your mind by surrendering it to the mind of Christ. Behave well anyway, bless and don't curse.
The scripture says, when you are kind to your enemies, it is like heaping coals of fire on their heads (Romans 12:20). You would think that if we treated our enemies as they treated us, that would be a good payback. "If they talk bad about me, I'll talk bad about them. If they leave me out, I will leave them out. If she is rude to me, I can also play in that game. I will be rude to him." This feeling seems good for our flesh, we return it with the same currency. But Jesus said repay with love, not with the same coin. The real way you see favor and growth is to bless your enemies.
When you are good to those who are not good to you, not only will you rise higher, but God will administer justice. He will deal with those who are not treating you right. He knows how to gather coals of fire, how to exert pressure, how to make them think differently about you.
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