²⁷ Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, “Thou shalt not commit adultery:” ²⁸ But I say unto you, that whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.

Matthew 5:27-28

Adultery is bad, it breaks relationships apart, it takes the values of a committed relationship, and it tears those values down to nothing. Adultery ruined the trust that a marriage vow is built upon, that trust to serve, protect, provide and be faithful.

Fornication or sex outside marriage is now as common as any other vice, we live in a “hook-up” culture, and if you keep yourself pure from these desires you are seen as weird or an outsider. Women are objectified by our culture, and many are hurt, wounded, and living out lifetimes of trauma because of sexual abuse.

Our culture is a pornographic culture, and it’s a lie if you don’t see it. Immodest dress, raunchy literature, seductive advertisements, even the news headlines surround us daily and tell us everyone is doing it. More people look at porn on a daily basis than at any time in human history. We are living in the cesspool of vanity fair. But Jesus is saying that it’s more than committing the physical act of sex outside marriage.

Adultery is a serious sin, but it’s no more serious than all the other sins, the problem is for most of us, it’s very prevalent. You might say, “I’ve never committed adultery”, but Jesus here is saying that sin of the heart is the same as sins outwardly committed. The deal is, God sees our heart, he knows our heart, He knows our drives, He knows the things that we are thinking.

If I had a projector connected to my imagination, I’m sure it would be a show indeed. But am I embarrassed about that show? How would I feel if my mother and father saw that, or the people I work with, or my Wife? That is a daily struggle, the bad of this world mixes with the Good of God’s word in me, and I’m fighting each day to focus on God’s good and not seeking the bad.

The fight here is called “Mortification of Sin” which means putting our sin nature to death. But can we put our sin nature to death? I don’t know if we can do it perfectly, but we must strive to do it each day. Praise be to God, if we are in Him, He has placed in us the Holy Spirit, who leads and guides us through each day of life. If we focus on His word each day, and listen to his voice much can be averted, we can conqueror our sinful desires and thoughts.

Lord, all sins start with just a thought. Guide me, lead me to push those thoughts out of my mind. Help me to place my focus on you each hour of each day, that I might mortify my sinful nature.

Picture By unsplash-logoJR Korpa