“You Have Heard It Said…”
(Anger and Lust)
Matthew 5:21-30
NOW – I want to start off this morning with some words that Paul (under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit) penned to the church of Rome.
GO AHEAD AND TURN – to Romans chapter 13, or follow along on the screen.
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law.
The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. – Romans 13:8-10
whoever loves others has fulfilled the law
therefore love is the fulfillment of the law
QUESTION – how does ‘love’ fulfill the law?
BECAUSE IF YOU – love someone (agape love, a love of the will, a sacrificial love for the benefit of others)…
THEN YOU – will not harm them, you will not murder them, you will not steal from them, you will not commit adultery with or on them. BECAUSE – those would be the exact opposite of loving them.
Get It?
NOW – in my studies for today’s conversation I came across a great analogy in Dallas Willard’s book, ‘The Divine Conspiracy.’
Willard is discussing how Jesus on that Galilean Hillside was wanting us to understand that God was always calling us to something much deeper than merely controlling our outward behavior.
AND THEN – he goes on to say that…
“When I go to New York City, I do not have to think about not going to Boston or Washington DC. People do not meet me at the airport or station and exclaim what I great thing I did in not going somewhere else. I took steps to go to New York City, and that took care of everything.”
IN LIKE MANNER – when we value and treasure those around us, seeing them as people created in the image of God, and we chose to love them with God’s kind of love…
THEN – that takes care of everything else.
UNDERSTAND B/S – simply not going to Boston or Washington DC, is a poor plan for going to New York City.
LIKEWISE – simply not stealing from, or murdering someone… is a poor plan for loving them as God desires.
IN FACT – it will not work.
SURE – we may have avoided going to Boston or DC, but never made it to NYC.
HOWEVER – if we make the decision (with the help of God) to love people the way God desires, that takes care of everything else, and doing things that would harm them, well we would never get on that plane to begin with.
whoever loves others has fulfilled the law
therefore love is the fulfillment of the law
Prayer
OKAY… let me set the scene…
It’s 30 AD and Jesus has been: preaching, teaching and healing people for about a year. AND SO - there is a very large group of people following after Jesus.
AND – as Matthew chapter 5 opens up…
IT’S TIME - for Jesus to give His platform speech, His manifesto, if you will.
YES IT’S TIME - for Jesus to let everyone know what both He and His Kingdom are all about.
Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them. – Matthew 5:1,2
AND UNDERSTAND – this huge crowd is made up of people coming from different places and representing diverse ethnic, religious, and political backgrounds.
In That Crowd Were…
• Religious Jews from Judea with their devout commitment to the observance of the law.
• Galilean Jews for whom synagogue life, though important, was not the obsession it was for the Judeans.
In That Crowd Were…
• Non-observant Jews who, having dropped out of religious life altogether, were labeled as “sinners.”
• Greeks from the Decapolis region (the ten cities east of the Jordan) with their sophisticated love of art, philosophy, and athletics… and of course,
• The Romans—the triumphant foreign occupiers from the dominant superpower, were in that crowd on the Hillside as well.
AND UNDERSTAND - what Jesus has to say in the Sermon on the Mount (about the path to real life, and about life in His Kingdom) He addresses to all of these different people.
AND LISTEN – this path was not what they expected, and it is certainly not a path that most people were on.
OKAY - here’s the bottom-line…
IN – this Manifesto, Jesus declares that His Kingdom is about: being, having and living. UNDERSTAND…
His Kingdom Is About…
BEING - a certain kind of people.
It’s about… ‘who,’ the people in His kingdom are…
They Are…
The poor in spirit, the meek, those who mourn, the pure in heart, the peacemakers, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, the merciful,
AND… those who are persecuted for the life they live and the Lord they love, YES…
His Kingdom Is About…
Being, and… it’s about
HAVING – a significant impact and influence in the world, by being the ‘salt’ of the earth and the ‘light’ of the world. AND REMEMBER B/S…
Being the ‘salt’ of the earth is about the fruit of the Spirit displaying, noticeably different life that we live…
In our homes, in our workplaces, in our schools, in the marketplace… on social media. AND…
Being the ‘light’ of the world is about ‘the truth’ that we share and ‘The Savior’ we point to, UNDERSTAND…
His Kingdom Is About…
Being, Having, and it’s about
LIVING – a life that is distinct, that is different than those in the world around them.
AND LISTEN – what this ‘distinct and different’ life looks like, is where Jesus goes next in His Sermon on the mount.
AND B/S – believe me when I tell you , living out ‘His’ Kingdom life is most definitely radical and counterculture.
UNDERSTAND – for the next 28 verses in Matthew 5, Jesus gives six examples of Kingdom Living, that were then, and are still now, relevant, weighty and often contentious.
NOW – I‘m going to read all 28 verses, so that we can ‘kind of’ get a feel for the impact that these words had on those who first heard them… HOWEVER – we will only reflect on 10 of those verses this morning.
OKAY MGCC – let’s do this, Matthew 5:21-48…
Turn in your bibles/app… or just listen as I read.
Word of God speak, and Spirit give us ears to hear and eyes to see…
You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment.
Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.
“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.
“Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.
You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.
And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.
It has been said, ‘Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.’ But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.’ But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King.
And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.
You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.
And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?
And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
- Matthew 5:21-48
NOW – we hear this teaching of Jesus, and we think to ourselves…
• Wow, that was intense, that was extreme, that was uncomfortable.
• That’s… that’s an… an ideal
• And so, we reason with ourselves, and we think that there is no way, that we can live up to it, like seriously… (don’t lust, don’t become angry, keep your word all of the time, love those you promised to love… forever… no matter what, turn the other cheek, love your enemies…)
NOW UNDERSTAND B/S – one thing that I want to try to avoid as we dive into this section of the Sermon on the Mount…
“You have heard that it was said… but I say to you…”
IS TO – spend the majority of my time trying to explain what Jesus did not mean by this text.
QUESTION – have you ever been to that sermon?
NOW – I have preached that sermon. You know, were we say something like this… “Now, let me explain the reasons why we can get out of what Jesus said about…
• Turning the other cheek, Not lusting
• Not becoming angry, and about
• Staying and not giving up on a difficult marriage
AND YEAH – I get it.
I MEAN – these Jesus words in Matthew 5, come to us, just like they came to those who first heard Him… shocking.
QUESTION – so what should… what do we… do with them?
LIKE DO WE: ignore them, run from them,
convince ourselves that they are not all that important for us to follow and obey…
SINCE - we are a New Testament people… and God loves us, wants us to be happy and does not really require anything of or from us.
NOW – there are some things we need to be aware of in our effort to both understand, and live out what Jesus is teaching in His radical manifesto about life in His Kingdom.
#1 - Do Not Think That Jesus Is Setting Himself Up Against The Law
YOU KNOW - idea that in these 6 (You have heard it said… but I say to you) teachings, that Jesus is basically saying…
“Hey, there is a new sheriff in town, and there is a new way of both looking at and understanding God.
AGAIN – this idea that the law was just about a bunch of rules and regulations… and how Jesus and the New Testament is all about Grace and God’s love for us.
How the Old Testament Law which only cared about outward acts was being replaced by the new of the heart.
HOWEVER – we know that this is not true, because Jesus made clear in the text that we dove into last week, that…
• He did not come (despite what people were thinking) to abolish the law but to fulfill it.
• The law is as enduring as the heavens and the earth and that not the smallest letter (one iota) or the least stroke of the pen will disappear from the law until all is accomplished.
AND JESUS SAID – in Matthew 5:19
Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands
‘Sets aside’ … lyo (lou oh)… To: loosen, untie, relax, unbind
• Matthew 21:2… ‘untying’ the donkey for Jesus to ride
• Mark 1:7… John TB, not worthy of even untying his sandals…
• John 11:44… when Lazarus comes out of the tomb, and Jesus said, ‘unbind him, and let him go.’
SO - the idea in Matthew 5:19 is of someone relaxing what God has called us to do… what God has already bound.
Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. – Matthew 5:19
UNDERSTAND - Jesus says that whoever relaxes the least of these commands and teaches others to do the same, will be called the least.
AND – this is where people think, ‘man, I am so glad that I am not a teacher.’
I MEAN - being a teacher of God’s Word is a very serious thing, and I think we all know that, right?
IN FACT – many of read this week in our FCFH, James 3:1…
Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. – James 3:1
Anyone glad you are not a teacher?
OKAY – here’s the deal… No, you may not be a teacher behind a pulpit on Sunday or in a classroom.
BUT – what about sitting a table with someone at a coffee shop? Are you ever a teacher then?
LIKE – do we ever relax or loosen God’s teaching when we are drinking your favorite latte with a friend?
MAYBE: a friend who is…
• Battling anger and bitterness
• Struggling with lust
• In an ungodly relationship
• Considering divorce
• No longer attending, serving or giving to the church
AND – we tell that friend:
• you have a right to still be angry at them and not forgive,
• at least you haven’t acted on those lustful feelings
• I know they are not the perfect fit, but God does not want you to be alone
• God wants you to happy, and it is obvious that you are miserable in this marriage
• God knows that your life is crazy and busy right now, He understands. You can get back to all of that church stuff when things settle down.
NOW – we may not want to stand up here or in a classroom setting and teach those things… BUT SOMEHOW – in a coffee shop, it just… it just feels different.
AGAIN – one thing to avoid when trying to understand what Jesus is saying In Matthew 5…
IS – thinking that Jesus is arguing with the law, He is not.
I MEAN - it makes no sense at all for Jesus to say that He come not to abolish the law… but to fulfill it, and that not even the smallest part of the law will disappear…
AND THEN - in His next breath say, “Okay Moses and the law, got it all wrong, let me set things right.’
UNDERSTAND – what Jesus is doing in these 6 (“you have heard that it was said, but I say to you”) statements
IS - correcting the faulty interpretations of the law that were being taught to the people by the Pharisees and the Teachers of the law.
AND REMEMBER – as I said last Sunday.
THAT - by the time Jesus arrives on the scene the Pharisees and Teachers of law interpretation of the law and the Old Testament, had become the ‘official’ interpretation for last few centuries.
AND – another thing to keep is that when the Jews returned from Babylonian captivity they had largely forgotten their own language and therefore could no longer read the Hebrew text.
Which meant they were dependent on the Rabbi’s to tell them what God’s Word said and to explain to them what God required of them.
AGAIN – what I am trying to say is that Jesus is not setting Himself up against the law and the Old Testament, but against the teaching of the Pharisees… who had distorted the Law and reduced it to outward behavior and external ritual…
Okay – you have murdered anyone; you haven’t committed the act of adultery… Then you’re good to go
NOW – a second thing that we need to be aware of in our effort to both understand, and live out what Jesus is teaching in His radical manifesto about life in His Kingdom.
Do Not Think That The Kingdom Is Only About The Heart
QUESTION – what does Jesus want from us?
Jesus how can we ever live up to this crazy standard?
Again, when the original audience heard Jesus say in Matthew 5:20…
Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the Scribes and Pharisees you cannot enter the Kingdom.
The immediate response was, ‘then who can?’
Like if these guys who have devoted their lives to it, and they’re failing, then who can?
What’s the point?
Jesus, are you hear to tell me… that no matter what, I can’t do this? Yes and No.
What Jesus says to that question is Yes and No.
Understand what Jesus is calling for, and I really want us to hear this, because this gets to the very heart of what it means to be a follower of God… from the beginning.
Like this is the uniform consistent teaching throughout all of the Scripture. This isn’t a new way of looking at the old. It’s not a new way of look at God. This is how God has always been. This is what it always meant to follow God, in Jesus we just see it brightest.
AND – what Jesus is calling for is for His followers to have an integrated head, heart and hands. That’s what he wants.
THAT’S – why it’s wrong to say
THAT – what God wants you to do, is just know these things.
And to believe in Him is to know right things, in part.
It’s also wrong to say that all God wants is your heart.
It doesn’t matter what you know.
WELL – the bible actually says that it does matter what you know… a lot.
UNDERSTAND – consistently the prophets and the apostles say… We do not want you to be ignorant, to be uninformed
We want you to know these things about who God, and what it means to follow Him.
THERE ARE – two very wrong things in the bible.
ONE – is to worship the wrong God.
THE OTHER – to worship the right God, wrongly.
MGCC – our minds matter.
SO – we can’t just say it’s… all… about… the heart.
IT’S NOT – just about the heart.
IT’S ABOUT – knowing the right things about God.
AND THEN – it’s about our hearts faithfully…
Feeling, and responding, living, breathing, repenting
Breaking, strengthening, being encouraged,
Going on, failing, breaking…
AND YET – once again being reformed by the Holy Spirit, guided, protected…
It is about… your heart in this constant responsive transformation: to the word of God, to the Spirit of God in the context of the people of God.
AND JESUS – is wanting the head and the heart to live in unity. AND – it never stops there.
UNDERSTAND B/S – nowhere in the Bible does it say as long as you know the right things, and are feeling the right way… THEN – that’s good… that’s good enough.
LISTEN – the natural overflow of a head and heart that are knowing and feeling and responding to what God has said and is doing… are hands and feet that are loving and moving.
Calling out and providing for justice and compassion and relief everywhere we go.
UNDERSTAND MGCC – Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount is doing what the prophets of old did…
“I am calling you back to who God is and to God’s plan for you, for His glory, and your joy, and for the benefit of others.”
AND IN ORDER TO THAT – Jesus has to break through all of the lies that the religious leaders have been teaching the people (for last few centuries)… about who God is, and what it really means to follow Him.
NOW LISTEN – the Pharisees did this for the best intentions.
UNDERSTAND – these guys were living in the wake of an entire nation of people who decided that were going to worship idols and we’re going to do what we want to do.
AND – God punished them severely. He said, ‘okay, you want to serve and worship idols let’s see how much they help you.’
And He allowed them to be conquered and taken into captivity. And the nation was humbled… and in that humbling they said, ‘okay, we will never worship idols again, and we will never take God’s law lightly again.
IN FACT – we will make extra laws that we will build around them… so that we will never break God’s law again.
Do Not Think That Jesus Is Setting Himself Up Against The Law, and
#2 Do Not Think That The Kingdom Is Only About The Heart
OKAY… are you still with me?
I know I shared a lot.
BUT LIKE – this is important stuff…that is, if we really want to understand and live out what Jesus is teaching in His Kingdom Manifesto
OKAY – in our time remaining I want us to look at what Jesus wants us to understand about (murder and anger) and (adultery and lust)…
NOW – I know our time is limited, but I think that we are all fairly familiar with both anger and lust.
HOWEVER – before we do that there is just one more important thing we need to keep in mind, as one of the guys I read this week wrote in his commentary on the SM.
When Matthew writes about Jesus’s interpretation and teaching of the law, he continues to portray Jesus as a new Moses and the fulfillment of the Exodus:
• he is the Son God has called out of Egypt (Matt 2:15);
• he passes through the water in his baptism (3:13-17);
• he is tested in the wilderness (Matt. 4:1-11); and
• he expounds the law of God in the mountainous region
REMEMBER – as we said last week, God’s plan has always been about… delivering, rescuing, and redeeming a people from bondage… making them His own, and then setting them apart as a people, distinct from those in the world… for His glory and the world’s good.
Telling them that as my people this is how you are to behave.
AND – in this second Sinai (if you will), God’s people…
• have a new power (the Holy Spirit), and
• a new focus… living from their salvation, not for it
BOTH OF WHICH – makes living this life possible.
OKAY…. let’s talk about…
I. ‘anger…’
You have heard that it was said to the people long ago,
Note – that Jesus does not say, ‘It is written…’
The words that He uses throughout the Gospels whenever He quotes the OT… like He has already done in Matthew 4…
It is written…
• man does not live by bread alone
• don’t put the Lord your God to the test
• worship the Lord your God and serve Him only
SO AGAIN…
Jesus is referring to the teachings of the Pharisees
“You have heard what Rabbi ‘so and so’ says…”
Or. “You have heard what Pastor ‘so and so’ says.
‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment.
Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell. – Matthew 5:21,22
JESUS – is like… you have been told that as long as you do not commit the actual act of murder…
That you are good to go… that you have meet God’s standard for your life.
BUT LISTEN – my kingdom is not simply about not committing the act it is about what is going on inside of you.
There were two Greek words used for anger. One was for the anger that comes and goes quickly. Then the other, used here in Matthew 5:22, was for the anger that festered and grew. That’s not to say there’s no problem with anger that flares up and dies quickly but the most damaging and consequential form of anger is the one that is the slow burn, where we keep throwing logs on the fire until we reach a boiling point and explode.
Raca, means, empty-head. Today it would be like calling someone stupid or moron. It’s having contempt for someone.
Jesus is saying if you do this you will have to answer for it. Anger can cause us to be venomous in our speech and say hurtful words. Laurence Peter said, "Speak when you're angry and you'll make the best speech you'll ever regret."
And if your anger goes so far as to call someone a fool, you'll be in greater danger. NOW - this doesn't compute with us who think calling someone a fool isn't that big of a deal. But if a person said this back then they would really be calling someone morally deficient or Godless.
In today's language it would be like telling someone, 'go to hell' or that they're going to hell. Basically, Jesus is saying if this is your sincere wish for your fellow man then you are in danger of such judgment.
In Jesus’ day, to call someone a fool was a serious accusation. No one would consider saying such a thing unless anger had reached the point of hatred.
It’s not that calling someone a fool punches our ticket to hell but Jesus is calling attention to the direction that someone who has that level of hatred is going. One may have thought that murdering someone in thought or with words was no big deal; only the actual act was something to be taken seriously.
One may justify themselves saying, “Well, at least I’ve never killed anyone.” But we see we have no reason to boast. While none of us here may be guilty of actual murder, we're likely to be guilty of being angry enough to wish it upon someone; even if it was just once. And if we have hatred toward a fellow Christian, we are a murderer.
1st John 3:15, “Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him.”
Jesus wants us to see that breaking the commandment of “do not murder” is something deeper than just the act itself. Before it’s an act it’s a thought. Jesus wants us to take what’s going on in our hearts and minds seriously before we get to the breaking point.
THEN JESUS – gives 2 illustrations…
• You are bringing an offering to God, and remember that a brother has something against you.
• You are on your way to court with an adversary…
POINT – settle things with people, and in your heart as quick as you can… don’t allow your anger to grow.
Refrain from anger and give up your rage; do not be agitated—it can only bring harm. (Ps 37:8)
A patient person shows great understanding, but a quick-tempered one promotes foolishness. (Prov 14:29)
A gentle answer turns away anger, but a harsh word stirs up wrath. (Prov 15:1)
A hot-tempered person stirs up conflict, but one slow to anger calms strife. (Prov 15:18)
Don’t make friends with an angry person, and don’t be a companion of a hot-tempered one. (Prov 22:24)
A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise person holds it in check. (Prov 29:11)
(if we are going to be angry, let it be for things that anger God)
II. “lust”
You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. – Matthew 5:27,28
JESUS – is like… you have been told that as long as you do not commit the actual act of adultery…
That you are good to go… that you have meet God’s standard for your life.
BUT LISTEN – my kingdom is not simply about not committing the act it is about what is going on inside of you, about what is in your heart.
One of the commentators I read this week wrote the following?
Do you conceal lust in your heart but count yourself righteous because you have never followed through with the act? Jesus says, Not on your life!
Adultery is not limited to the act. It includes the gazing and lingering look that objectifies another person to whom you are not married in a covenant relationship. This is a gaze, not a glance (“looks” is a present participle and could be translated “keeps on looking”).
The gaze excites sexual imaginations in the heart, and you mentally engage in an act reserved for your spouse and the marriage bed.”
NOW – some may say that there is no harm in looking?
Like what’s the big deal. It’s okay to shop, as long as I don’t buy…
BUT YOU KNOW – I think that King David, would disagree.
I MEAN - his great sins of both adultery and murder, all began when he went up on his roof top to take a look at another man’s wife bathing.
QUESTION – do you think lust is a problem in our world today?
In his book, ‘Mere Christianity’ the great Christian apologist addresses the issue of lust and the Biblical teaching about sex. He writes the following on his chapter on sexual morality.
Chastity is the most unpopular of the Christian virtues. There is no getting away from it; the Christian rule is, ‘Either marriage, with complete faithfulness to your partner, or else total abstinence.’
Now this is so difficult and so contrary to our instincts, that obviously either Christianity is wrong or our sexual instinct, as it now is, has gone wrong. One or the other. Of course, being a Christian, I think it is the instinct which has gone wrong…
He goes on to say that this sexual appetite is in ludicrous and preposterous excess of its function.
AND THEN – he gives this powerful analogy…
Suppose you come to a country where you could fill a theatre by simply bringing a covered plate on to the stage and then slowly lifting the cover so as to let every one see, just before the lights went out, that it contained a mutton chop or a bit of bacon, would you not think that in that country something had gone wrong with the appetite for food?
And would not anyone who had grown up in a different world think there was something equally wrong about the state of the sex instinct among us?
“You have heard it said…”
• That as long as you do not do the actual act
• As long as no one else gets hurt
• That as long it is between two consenting adults
But I say to you…
I made a covenant with my eyes not to look with lust at a young woman. – Job 31:1
UNDERSTAND B/S – lust is such a big deal that Jesus uses 2 powerful illustrations…
• If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away
• If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away.
Now Jesus is using hyperbole to make His point, THAT…
• Since lust is so dangerous… Can a man scoop fire into his lap without his clothes being burned? Can a man walk on hot coals without his feet being scorched? Proverbs 6:27,28
• Since lust always takes you further than you want to go and keeps you longer than you want to stay.
• Since lust never delivers what it promises.
• Since lust unchecked can lead to some extremely drastic consequences.
WE MUST, DO – whatever it takes to overcome it…
What then are some wise and practical steps we can take to overcome lust.
Sinclair Ferguson gives us four:
Realize where yielding to sinful lust will lead you.
Hell! Plant that in your mind and recall it again and again.
Deal with the real cause of your sin.
It is an impure heart that settles for God substitutes. This is simply idolatry. What is there in your life that you are putting in the place of God? That you desire and long for more than God?
Act decisively, immediately,
Even if it must be painful. And remember, “Obedience cannot be negotiated, nor can heaven and hell.”
Now is always the right time to do the right thing.
Realize that your lust is not the whole of your life,
Or even the main or most important part of your life.
Think and understand what you gain by abandoning it.
You get Christ and heaven thrown in!
Sin is a cruel taskmaster and lust is one of its favorite instruments to keep you enslaved and in bondage.
Jesus came to rescue you, to set you free from this never satisfied tyrant. Treasure Him above all else.
What you gain will put to shame what you give up.
