“You have heard the commandment that says, ‘You must not commit adultery.’ But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. So if your eye—even your good eye—causes you to lust, 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 hand—even your stronger hand—causes you to sin, 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 be thrown into hell.
It’s her responsibility!Islam makes the woman responsible to keep men from lusting. So did my Christian upbringing. The only difference, Muslims were, and are, more thorough. Most Muslim scholars teach that women must wear Burqas (head to toe coverings) in public while male modesty requires covering from navel to the knees (Wikipedia, “Women in Islam”). My Christian upbringing agreed with the logic that because men tend to get excited visually, women must adhere to more stringent dress codes.
Jesus turns the table. Rather than shifting blame for sinful sexual behavior onto the “other” person, he makes sexual purity the responsibility of oneself, in particular, the condition of ones own heart. We cannot leap to the issue and definition of sexually provocative dress until we have grasped this core issue. To do so leads straight to legalistic, ineffective, and ultimately oppressive standards of dress. And worse.
If it is the woman’s responsibility to keep me sexually pure by not tempting me with her “provocative” dress, then logically, it’s her fault when I spin out of control. So we accuse “that woman of stealing my man.” Worse, we even suspect that women are in some way accessories to rape. Under all of this logic rests the assumption that men are sexual beasts incapable of self control. Jesus differs.
Men, get your hearts right and you will win the battle with sexual unfaithfulness – whatever “that woman” wears! But who wants to do the spiritual work of developing a pure heart!? It’s much easier to blame someone else.
Lord of my body, mind, and heart, continue to transform my mind with your truth and to purify my heart daily by your Spirit. Grant another day of thorough-going sexual faithfulness, the Spirit’s fruit of self-control, and the complete refusal to objectify any woman, including my wife. - Mike Leamon
Masochistic or Devoted?During the Olympics I was shocked to hear of the extreme measures some athletes take in preparing for the games. Strict diets and exercise schedules are only the beginning for most athletes. I was horrified to hear that, in China, the children are given by the parents to instructors to be raised in Olympic training camps. The parents would only see their children once or twice a year.
Such treatment seems totally extreme and over the top to me. What is more important, a relationship with your family or a gold medal? For me a relationship with my family wins out every time. But then how important is my relationship God? I like to think it is worth everything to me, but I find myself diving into projects and work with an abandonment that would encourage a Chinese Olympic coach to the detriment of my relationship with God.
Jesus had some pretty hard words for dealing with the temptations of lust and theft, but is it not the principal we apply to our lives here. I don’t see anyone in my church walking around with one hand or one eye because they took Jesus’ words here literally. I do see people who struggle with lust and coveting.
So if the principle applies to my life, then why am masochistic when it comes to projects and my workaholic attitude but not my relationship with Christ? Jesus calls me to forfeit pleasure and work in order to experience fullness in my relationship with God.
Jesus, forgive me for being giving up so much for my job and pleasure and not you. Help me today to take time to rest in the fullness of your grace and care. I want my relationship with you to be more important than my career and desires. - Dan Jones
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