Sexual Sin (Part 1)  The Lust of the Eye

Matthew 5:27-30

Bill Cosby was Americas most successful comedian for almost 40 years, but what will he be remembered for. (Good thing and bad things - expand) 

Let me ask, you what would you say Winston Churchill was famous for (Expand). What about John Profumo. (Expand)

If the history of American president were written the next time in the 20th century Roosevelt will be remembered for bringing America out of the depression, Harry Truman for helping end World War Two. John F Kennedy wrote a chapter in history with a vision of putting a man on the moon. Some credit Ronald Reagan for bringing down the Berlin Wal, but what about Bill Clinton. Clinton, during his presidency was in charge over a period of unparalleled economic prosperity but be that as it may the one thing that will go down in the history books is that Bill Clinton was impeached for lying to congress and lying under oath about an affair he had when he said I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Monica Lewinsky. When it was proven beyond any doubt, but it was not true then he hid behind a definition of what it meant to him to have sex.

So, all of that brings up the question of the Biblical definition of sexual immorality. The answer to that question might not be as simple as it seems. For example, the definition of adultery in most countries is fornication. But what is the definition Jesus applies here in the Sermon on the Mount.

Jesus is preaching that our righteousness must exceed external righteousness of the scribes and the Pharisees. In fact, as I have said before the whole subject of the sermon on the mount is righteousness, albeit two different kinds of righteousness. External righteousness and an internal righteousness and to make his point so that we can’t miss it Jesus uses 6 cases as examples of the difference.

The first concerns we looked at recently was murder and the one we are going to look at today concerns sex. In this passage Jesus gives us a definition of sexual immorality so let’s turn to Matthew chapter 5 and let’s see what he had to say in a very fascinating passage of scripture. Matthew chapter five verse 27.

27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 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. 30 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.

(Matthew 5: 27-30)

In this passage Jesus obviously is discussing two things he’s discussing adultery and later he will be discussing divorce and after we get done with this passage in the conclusion what I’d like to do is come back and speak about how to handle sexual immorality from a biblical point of view. We will try and get a handle on what does the scripture really teach about how to handle this very common sin in our society will get to that probably tomorrow but first let’s see what Jesus had to say about the definition of sexual immorality. He starts out in verse 27 he says,  you have heard that it was sad very important word of those of old you shall not commit adultery . What Jesus is doing is contrasting what the Pharisees taught in the oral law versus what the Old Testament was really pointing to. So when it says in verse 27, you have heard it said, what he does not say, “it is written” So he is not dealing exactly with the Law of Moses as given on Mount Sinai he is dealing with the subsequent interpretation of it in that law in the oral tradition. He’s really talking about what the Pharisees are saying about it not what Moses wrote down first. What Moses said is thou shall not commit adultery what the Pharisees said is that all that was included was the external act, that’s all that’s all it meant so if you’ve never actually had done the physical act you had never committed adultery.

In contrast to that Jesus says I want to clarify what this commandment means, and he says “but I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart”.

This is a difficult statement so what exactly does it mean. Does it mean that all you have to do Is look then that’s adultery what exactly is he saying. If you look at the verse carefully, he says, I say it to you that whosoever looks to a woman. In the Greek text this is what is called a purpose clause, so the idea here is not just that he looks or the thought lands in his head but rather that it’s the intent of looking at her with a sexual aspect. The male gaze as it is sometimes it is called by art critics. 

Many years ago, an older Christian that I deeply respected was talking to me about this passage and the way he summed it all up was to say the point is you look at her and saying I would if I could. It’s not admiring her beauty it's not even thinking she may be very attractive, it’s about the intent. As a matter of fact, that’s highlighted by the fact that he says he has committed adultery already with her in his heart. That’s the whole point of the whole passage this is just one illustration the other was murder and there’s more to come but the point of the entire passage is that unrighteousness comes from having an incorrect internal attitude, it’s not just the external act of sin.

I think this verse has given a lot of young men trouble in thinking that just because they had  a thought, they had already committed the act, that has led some to think well I might as well go ahead and try and commit the act. That is a deceptive logic obviously as somebody has said and this is a very old proverb but it fits very well you can’t prevent the bird from landing in the tree, but you can prevent the bird from building a nest. I think the first person I’ve ever heard say that was Billy Graham so the thought may enter your head but you don’t have to build a shrine around it. That’s the point that Jesus is making.

Then he says verse 29,

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.

(Matthew 5: 29)

And then in verse 30 he says the same thing about a hand.

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.

(Matthew 5: 30)

This is pretty heavy-duty stuff, pluck out your eye or cut off your hand. This is hyperbole of course but at the same time there is simply no question that Jesus is teaching in this passage and in passages to come in the Gospel of Matthew that sin comes from the heart, and it is a serious matter. There’s no question about that it’s the whole point of the passage, it’s the whole point of Jesus ministry. He makes a big issue out of this, and we get to chapter 15 he comes at it again. This is highly figurative language because he says if you cut off the right hand well you still got the left you know he's obviously using overemphasis here but he’s making a very serious and significant point and that is that this sin is so serious they could cause you to end up in hell. And it is so radical that it takes drastic measures to deal with such as plucking out and I or cutting off a hand. I think what he is suggesting in these two illustrations is that you if you have a choice between entering heaven with one eye and going to hell with two you’re better off going into heaven with one.  His point is here that sex can become the thing that hindering you from entering into a relationship with God, it’s that serious.

The point Jesus is making is it’s the heart it’s the attitude it’s what’s going on inside that counts and you should do everything to prevent that heart from being inflamed by an action by the eye or an attitude or action of the hand and no sacrifice is too great to get that done. I think Paul put in real simple terms in Romans chapter 13 where he said.

“Make no provision for the flesh to fulfil the loss thereof.

(Romans 13: 14b) 

Don’t even go there, cut yourself off from any people, places, books, magazines, TV channels, websites or anything else that provides the temptation to make you succumb to this type of temptation. Anything that causes you to sin should be completely cut out of your life. Clear enough that what it is saying here. Up to this point in the sermon on the mount has been there to show the gulf that exists between the fake external type of righteousness which is only interested in us being seen to follow a set of religious rules and regulations and the internal type holiness that begins with an internal attitude. But now interestingly enough Jesus at this point bring up of all things divorce. We shall look at that tomorrow.