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"27 You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' 28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. ~ Matthew 5:27-30
Today, we continue our study of Matthew 5 where we find the second of six "You have heard it said" statements from the Lord Jesus as He was teaching those who had gathered to hear Him. The Lord Jesus utilized these six comparative statements in order to help His hearers to recognize the difference between the words of God and the words of men. Of course, the words of men here was the commentary the religious leaders had added to God's word. This commentary had turned the people away from the full meaning of God's word. Here, the Lord Jesus was trying to help the people see their lack of their ability to earn God's favor through their good behavior. He also was destroying the self-righteous system of the religious leaders supposed holiness which was nothing more than arrogant self-righteousness. Even though our sin is forgiven and God sees us perfect through the Lord Jesus, the fact is we are sinful on the inside and we are capable of the worst things.
In v.27-28 of today's passage we read, "27 You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' 28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart."
In an attempt to help His hearers understand that they are not sinners because they sin, they sin because they are sinners, the Lord Jesus utilizes the seventh commandment, "You shall not commit adultery." While the sixth commandment, "You shall not murder" protects the sanctity of life, the seventh, "You shall not commit adultery" protects the sanctity of relationships. Marriage was the first human relationship that God established. So to protect it, the commandment was put in order.
In today's passage the Lord Jesus takes it a step deeper into the sinful human heart. He said, "Whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart." The word "lust" is written in such a way that we know it to be a purposeful glance meaning our hearts are filled with adultery. Our hearts, if not being given to the Lord, desperately wants to find an object to which to attach in our fantasies. The Lord Jesus is saying, "It is when we are actively looking for the person to lust after that we are already found guilty in our souls before God."
Our sinful human hearts are vile and not to be trusted more than the Lord. In this context the sin had happened in the heart long before it was acted upon. The Lord Jesus spoke these words to show us there is no one who is more righteous than another. He said these words to tell us that our problem is too deep for our self-righteousness to handle. The Lord Jesus always takes us to the heart of the matter. With the Lord, it is not about the external, it's about the internal. The problem is always in the heart. That's where the expressions of our sinfulness begin. The heart is the soil for the seed of sin to germinate and to grow. Adultery always begins first with lust which is generated typically for men visually by what we see. We are stimulated visually to act upon it.
In v.29-30 of today's passage we read, "29 If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell."
It was the intension of the Lord Jesus to startle His hearers. He said these words for the sake of shock because that is the reaction we should have to the sin that separates us from God. We should be shocked and repulsed by our sin, even as believers in Christ. According to the teaching of that day, the right hand or the right of anything was considered the best not because right handed people are better than left handed people but because most people are right handed and that's the arm of strength and that's usually the dominant area of the physique.
So to say if you're right-handed or you're right-eyed, if anything in your life is causing you to sin even if it's precious to you, you need to deal with it. You need to cut it out of your life. It could be things that you watch or it could be places that you go. It could be the websites that you frequent. It could be certain behaviors you need to cut out of your life, cut off from your life. It could be a relationship.
Of course we wonder in our hearts, "why?" Then the Lord Jesus said, "It's more profitable for you that one of your members perished than for your whole body to be cast into hell." Sometimes we must deal with our sin in a radical way. We lack the ability to see beyond. And since we do, we value our lives here on earth far more than we do our existence into eternity. When we turn our backs on sin, even though we are wretched to the core, and we invite God's rule in our souls, we will gain His heart for others. Who wants to violate someone they love? Of course, if it is lust that is another story.
The phrase "cause you to sin" is descriptive of bait in a trap that enables one to snare its prey. The Lord Jesus was saying, "Whatever it is in your life that causes these vile, evil thoughts, get rid of them." Of course, this is impossible for anyone to do without His abiding help. This is why He had to live in us. Having invited the Lord Jesus to come into our lives, we now have a new nature, a new heart. And we do not need to follow the pandering of our own lusts. We can know victory over even our lusts. If a man or a woman is without the Lord Jesus Christ, he or she hardly stands a chance in this arena.
