Essays on Christianity

I started writing a series of essays on Christianity, and this is the first one. All of the essay topics came from discussions that I've had in WBA, so I thought I would write about them. Feedback, criticism, suggestions and etc. would be most appreciated!

Christianity
Strength or Weakness
“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.” Matthew 5:38-39
Many would say that turning the other cheek is a sign of weakness, and that by doing so you are letting people walk over you. It depends on what weakness is, and what strength is. I define strength not by the power of one’s hand, but buy the power of his character. Therefore, Christianity would not be weakness, but the epitome of strength itself. Physical dominance over another is not, in reality, a way of showing strength, except the strength of the body, which is far less superior to strength of character and mind.
Christ is the root of Christianity; therefore, by saying that exercising Christianity is sign of weakness, we could deduce that the Son of God was weak. This is far from truth. Christ is perfect, perfect in all things, perfect in strength. He allowed men to crucify Him, but by doing so, was he showing weakness or strength? He cried from His cross “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” I say that a man of weakness would never be able to proclaim that about his murderers. Christ took upon Himself the sins of the world, this could only be done by the Son of God, by the ultimate Savior and strength.
When someone strikes you, would you be exercising more weakness by succumbing to your bodily urges to strike back? Or staying in possession of your temper and your composure? When someone is ‘walking all over you,’ yelling, screaming, hitting, or swearing at you are they exercising strength or weakness? The way you respond to them decides your own character’s strength. Which reaction would be easier, to strike back verbally and physically? Or to react in a calmer, more civilized manner? It would be logical to assume that in this situation the most difficult path would be the one in which you would have to exhibit more strength. This would prove Christians a strong, instead of weak, people.
It is human nature to want to strike back when someone harms or offends you, this is referred to in the scriptures as the natural man. We learn from the scriptures that the natural man is an enemy to God, and that in order to return to Him we must cast it off (Mosiah 3:19). We are mortal, therefore we are imperfect. In this life we will never be able to reach perfection, but if we strive for it we will be able to become better and progress eternally. Striving for perfection, and striving to throw off the natural man takes, an incredible amount of strength, it is an impossible feat to accomplish without the help of the Lord. By following Christianity we will be able to grow closer to God and grow stronger spiritually.
However, is it always unchristian to fight back? I believe that Captain Moroni was inspired when he created the Title of Liberty. “In memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children.” It is my belief that it is Christian to fight for our God, our religion, our freedom, our peace, our wives, and our children. Christ usually didn’t use force, but when He went to the temple and found people had blasphemed the house of God he forced them out of the temple. He was fighting in defense of His God and His religion.
The bottom line of this is that God knows when it is right to fight and when it is right to turn the other cheek. If we are in tune with His Spirit we will be able to exercise strength instead of weakness and continue to strive to be like His Son, perfect in all things. Perfect in strength.