a christian love story I

Jesus says: "love one another as I have loved thee" how did He love us? by dying for our sins of course. He also says: "whosoever strikes thee on one cheek, offer the other to him." but of course, this is not without disclaimer: "whatsoever you do to the least of my brothers, that you do unto Me," he also says.

therein lies multiple dilemmas...

1. are we to die for others' sins as well? it so seems that we should offer ourselves up for torture should anyone so desire to do so. in so doing, the christian thing would be to pray for the sinner even as that person rains suffering upon us. ultimately, either the prayer touches the person to stop, or we die for that person's sin. is that the way to go?
   
   
2. unfortunately, dying for another's sin may not necessarily change the sinner's fate... for that person has seriously hurt Jesus as well! if God were to take a sinner's sins personally, God knows what's gonna happen to that incalcitrant peccant. won't you make sure that the bully who beats your kid up gets just punishment? and, if the bully is incalcitrant, that the kid gets expelled (or at least distanced permanently from your child)? in God's terms, defending his children would most likely involve limbo, purgatory, or eternal damnation...
   
   
3. but then again, wouldn't that negate the poor christian's efforts? imagine the poor sucker who followed Christ's command and martyred himself so that a sinner may be saved - that fellow would have died in vain! couldn't it be said that the martyr-wannabe had given up God's most precious gift - life - for another to receive eternal punishment?
   
   
4. this isn't the end of it... elsewhere, Jesus says: "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are." the second part is so far in line with the reasoning above, but the first part leaves us with much to worry! isn't he calling those who try too hard for one convert hypocrites? isn't he saying: "woe to you, martyr-wannabe"?
   
   
5. the crux of this whole dilemma: should one offer one's life in an attempt to save another? it seems if we offer up God's gift in vain, the consequences are dire! so i'd say we offer the other cheek, but not to the extent of doing anything more drastic than that, or losing something dear to ourselves. ultimately, it is measured altruism and not flat-out selflessness that we should be aiming for, right?

on the other hand, the way i'm approaching the problem of this love story may be wrong from the start, of course. perhaps by putting these various verses of the New Testament together is already using them out of context, and i've already lost sight of the "spirit of the Word" in so doing. perhaps Jesus meant 'be tolerant and calm in the face of violent oppression' when He said "offer the other cheek." perhaps it was only meant as a teaching on revenge anyway.