Jesus On Sin

Thanks very much, Stuart. Good morning, everyone.

Graeme and Stuart, both say, great to have you with us,

! whether you're in the building, watching on YouTube,

or listening to the audio recording.

Didn't Jesus say some strange things?

You might have listened to the reading this morning and thought,

that can't be right.

Can Jesus really mean that a lustful thought is equivalent to going the whole way physically?

Does he really mean that we're liable to go to hell

unless we mutilate our bodies to get rid of sin?

Well, the answer, I'm sure, to both questions is no.

But we need to think what Jesus is trying to say to us.

We mustn't let the fact that we're not necessarily taking him literally all the time

blind us to the fact that he is trying to really challenge us this morning,

to shock us out of smugness or complacency.

These verses are difficult to understand.

They're also very difficult to apply.

And I think if they don't make us feel uncomfortable,

then we're really not understanding what Jesus is saying.

We're missing the point.

I want to use four statements that are very simply,

I hope, will get us to the root of what Jesus is saying to us.

The first of these is sin is always wrong.

Secondly, sin includes wrong thoughts.

Thirdly, sin leads to judgment.

And fourthly, sin requires drastic action.

Our passage is specifically about sexual sin, so we will cover that.

But it also applies, I believe, to sin in general.

And these four statements should come to us with real force this morning

as we think of the words of Jesus.

Let's begin with a little bit of background.

If you've been here previous weeks, you will know this,

but it's worth a reminder.

We're in the Sermon on the Mount,

Jesus' teaching between Matthews 5 and 7,

principally to his disciples.

And this little section that we're looking at over these few weeks

starts with Jesus' words about the Pharisees.

He says,

Now, the Pharisees were sticklers for rules.

They looked at all the laws in the Old Testament,

added a few things themselves,

and they judged you by, could you keep the rules?

If you stuck to the letter of their rules, you were okay.

Teachers of law would tell you what the letter of the rules was,

but Jesus says to his disciples,

you need more than that.

It's not enough just to have a list of rules,

and you say, yes, I'm okay on that one, I'm okay on that one,

then you don't need to worry.

What really matters is not our external appearances

and the rules that we keep.

It's what our hearts are like.

And if our hearts are right,

then we can go beyond the righteousness of the Pharisees

and the teachers of the law.

This section in Matthew has been described as Christian countercounter,

and that's what it is.

It's challenging people's assumptions about what is right

and what is wrong and what they can get away with.

Now, below that verse, there are six examples,

as JT pointed out to us last week,

that Jesus gives to us.

I've just put up the headings in the NIV,

but I think they're quite descriptive.

He talks about murder, adultery, divorce, oaths,

eye for eye as revenge,

and love for enemies.

And in each of them, he begins a bit like this,

you've heard it said, but I tell you.

You've heard it said is looking back mainly to the Old Testament,

to what's written there,

particularly in the early books,

in the books of the law.

And Jesus says, you can read this,

and he's not contradicting it,

but he says, I'm telling you,

it means a bit more than you're interpreting it as.

You're not just to stick by the letter of what's there,

you need to be obedient to the Spirit as well.

And that, I think, is the background,

particularly to what we're going to be looking at this morning.

So let's get into our four statements.

First thing Jesus says is,

sin is always wrong.

It's very easy to get into a habit of thinking

that little sins don't really matter.

Big sins, yes, we all would say,

yes, they're wrong.

There are lots of things we say that's really wrong.

But small things, well, it's understandable.

It's excusable.

So someone might say,

I'm a very truthful person,

but like everyone else,

I tell an occasional white lie.

And that means actually,

they're not really that truthful,

like they would say.

And Jesus says,

we can't have grades of sin

and say some are unacceptable

and some are acceptable.

Sin is always wrong.

So a particular context here is adultery,

marital and faithfulness.

It comes from the Ten Commandments,

what's said here.

It's the seventh of the commandments.

You do not commit adultery.

But what do we mean by that?

The Pharisees and religious leaders said,

well, that's the physical act.

That is the sexual act

with someone you're not married to.

And they probably thought

as they were looking through

and assessing their obedience to the law,

well, that's an easy one.

I can just take it off.

I've never done that.

Jesus' teaching here

is that it's important

not just to stick to the letter.

We need to think of the principle.

So he says that

anyone who looks at a woman lustfully

has already committed adultery

with her in his heart.

Now, Jesus isn't being a killjoy here.

Sexual desire is a gift from God

and in the right context

is intended to bring us pleasure.

We can see that, for example,

if we look at the Song of Songs

in the Old Testament.

But the right context for sex

is within marriage,

between a husband and a wife.

Outside of that,

sexual activity is sinful.

Now, I think we may use degrees of sin

more as an excuse when it comes to sex

than to most other things.

At one end,

there are sins that we should all find

really abhorrent,

such as sexual abuse of children.

And we are horrified by them.

At the other end,

there are things which we may not

even think about or recognise as sinful.

We read a slightly racy story

in a magazine or on social media,

and we maybe don't think twice

about the fact that we're taking pleasure

from something that maybe we shouldn't be.

And in between that,

there's a multitude of different actions

and thoughts,

which are all sinful.

Now, that being said,

there are some clear lines.

There's a clear line drawn here.

In the law, it says,

do not commit adultery,

physical adultery.

Jesus' hearers would all recognise

as being wrong.

Now, actually, most people today

would agree with that.

Most people would say,

if you're unfaithful to your partner,

that is a betrayal,

that is wrong,

with likely consequences

for the couples involved

and potentially for their families.

Sadly, although it's recognised as wrong,

it's still very common.

Christians would go further.

We would look at the Bible

and recognise that it forbids

all sexual contexts outside marriage,

even where those involved

are both single.

And that's going further

than most people around about us would go.

But there's a clear line there,

and it's quite likely

that many of us can say,

I haven't crossed that line.

Jesus draws another line here.

It's not enough, he says,

to avoid committing adultery physically.

We mustn't fantasise about it.

I don't believe he's saying

the fantasy has the same consequences

as the act.

The act of adultery

could directly affect somebody else

and leads them into sin.

It affects two couples

and possibly also, as I said,

could lead to the breakup

of two families.

Fantasising doesn't do that,

at least not directly.

But Jesus still makes it clear

that adultery in the heart

is sinful

and is within the spirit

of the command

not to commit adultery.

It's also not without consequences

because it will affect

how you relate to one woman

or one man

and reflects how you view

the other gender in general.

But there's a bigger picture here,

I think.

It's not that we've got three lines

and below them we're okay.

The big picture is that

we should never excuse one sin

on the basis that it's not as bad

as another sin.

We can't think that as long as we don't

cross a particular line,

we're all right.

You may think your sin

is less serious than someone else's.

You might be right.

But it's still sin.

Too often, even as Christians,

we accept the norms of our society

in what we do,

what we say,

what we watch,

what we read,

what we think.

And that's to the detriment

of our spiritual health.

We fail to recognise things as sin

that if we really thought about it,

we would realise where.

They become blind spots to us

and we need to act on that.

Thomas Brooks was a 17th century

Puritan preacher and writer.

And here's something that he wrote

which I think is very telling.

He says,

many times small sins

are more dangerous.

Great sins startle the soul

and awaken it to repentance.

But little sins breed

and work secretly

until they trample the soul.

So never think,

what I'm doing,

it may not be quite right,

but it doesn't matter.

All sin is wrong.

I think at this point

I need to say something else.

You may be feeling

that what I've talked about

doesn't really reflect

your position.

Far from being complacent

about sin,

whether sexual or otherwise,

you feel overwhelmed by it.

You're filled with guilt

and with shame

about a habit

or about something

you did in the past.

Well, first of all,

it's good that you feel

the weight of sin.

That's the Holy Spirit

bringing conviction

into your heart.

But you also need to know

that just as all sin

is wrong,

if your trust is in Jesus,

his blood purifies you

from all sin.

You need to confess

your sins to God

and receive assurance

of his forgiveness.

You might feel

that if other people

knew about your sin,

they'd be shocked by it.

That may be true,

it's probably true

of many of us.

But God knows

the full extent

of your sin

and he's willing

to forgive and forget

so that your shame

can be removed.

Psalm 32

is a great example

of this.

David is weighed down

by the weight

of his sin.

He feels his bones

wasting away.

His strength

is being sapped.

But he says,

Then I acknowledged

my sin to you

and did not cover up

my iniquity.

I said,

I will confess

my transgressions

to the Lord

and you forgave

the guilt

of my sin.

If you're feeling

overburdened

with guilt

and with shame

this morning,

that can be

your experience too

as you accept

what Jesus has done

for you

and put your trust

in him.

Let's move on though

and we'll look at

the second statement

I've made.

Sin includes

wrong thoughts.

So we're still

in verses 27 and 28

if you're following

through in your Bible.

And Jesus is making

some very important

points about

our minds.

Our thoughts

matter

and they're often

sinful.

If you think

lustful thoughts

he said,

that is a form

of idolatry

in itself.

Thoughts matter

first because

of what they can

lead to

in our actions

and our words.

Last week

when we were

thinking about

murder,

JT pointed out

that unjustified

anger

is the seed

of murder.

Well,

we could say

similarly today

that lustful

thoughts

are the seed

of adultery.

One thing

can easily

lead to another

and before

we know it

we're too

far down

the line.

Lustful thoughts

also affect

our relationships

because they

make us

view those

who we find

physically

attractive

as objects

rather than

as real

people.

But wrong

thoughts matter

for their own

sake as well

because they

draw our attention

away from what

is wholesome

and right.

They affect

our relationship

with Jesus

and our

prayer life.

When we

don't control

our thoughts

we're depriving

ourselves of

the peace

and the joy

that should

come from

our relationship

with Jesus.

In our

Sunday evening

studies upstairs

we've been

looking at

Paul's letter

to the church

in Colossae.

And chapter 3

has a lot

of echoes

of Jesus

teaching

in the

Sermon on

the Mount.

Verse 5

I think is

particularly

relevant to

what we're

thinking of

today.

Paul writes

put to death

therefore

whatever

belongs to

your earthly

nature

sexual

immorality

impurity

lust

evil

desires

and greed

which is

idolatry.

When Aaron

Lockhart

spoke to us

on this

passage

he points

out that

in this

verse

there's

one

sin

of

doing

and

lots

of

things

of

thinking.

Paul

covers

the

whole

range

of

illicit

sexual

acts

with

one

description

sexual

immorality.

But then

he has

four vices

which are

mental

impurity

lust

evil

desires

and greed

which is

idolatry.

Now it

looks as if

the list

is kind

of widening

there as

Paul goes

on to

some

extent

it is

but if

we think

of greed

as being

the belief

that everything

and everyone

exists for

our pleasure

that could

describe

sexual sin

as well.

And Paul

says the

initial battles

in the mind

might lead

to sexual

immorality

but it's the

thoughts that

matter that

we need to

get under

control to

begin with.

Our spiritual

battle is

won or lost

in our

minds

and we

can only

be triumphant

in it

if we

ruthlessly

focus on

our thought

life.

It's not

just lust

that trips

us up

of course.

Pride,

anger,

hatred,

a multitude

of other

things that

are in our

minds

that are

sinful

and that

we need

to get

rid of.

Paul says

in Philippians

four,

whatever is

true,

whatever is

noble,

whatever is

right,

whatever is

pure,

whatever is

lovely,

whatever is

admirable,

if anything

is excellent

or praiseworthy,

think about

such things.

I think I

need another

short diversion

here as well.

Occasionally

and maybe

quite often

an impure

thought will

come into

your head

or you'll

wake up

from a

dream

and feel

shocked

about it.

These things

are a reflection

of the fact

that we have

a sinful

nature.

They may

well diminish

if we grow

closer and

closer to

the Lord

and if we

focus on

our thoughts

but they

probably won't

disappear

completely.

Now sin

in these

things doesn't

lie in the

thoughts arising,

that's the

devil tempting

us.

Where the

sin comes

in isn't

what we

do with

them.

If we

harbour them

and develop

them in

our mind

then we

are being

led by

the devil

into a

sinful

habit.

We need

to get

away from

them when

these things

come.

Perhaps go

and do

something

constructive

or go

and talk

to someone

about

something

else or

get out

your Bible

and think

about Jesus

and let

him give

you the

strength to

take your

mind off

it.

Our

reaction

should be

like

Joseph

when

Potiphar's

wife tried

to seduce

him and

he fled

and not

like David

who saw

Bathsheba

bathing and

let the

sight lead

to a

doubtery

and ultimately

to murder.

Paul said

to Timothy

flee the

evil desires

of youth

and pursue

righteousness

faith

love

and peace

along with

those who

call on

the Lord

out of a

pure heart.

And if he

was bold

enough

Timothy

could quite

legitimately

have responded

flee the

evil temptations

of age

as well.

Temptation

doesn't go

away as

we get

older.

We need

to have

our minds

under control

as much

as we

possibly

can

to

fulfill

them

what is

right

and what

is

helpful

to us.

Right,

so these

are the

first two

things.

Let's move

on now.

We're going

to look

at verses

29 and

30.

And the

third thing

we want

to think

about is

that sin

leads to

judgment.

Twice

in these

verses

Jesus says

that our

bodies could

end up in

hell unless

we take

drastic action

to avoid

sin.

The word

used for

hell here

is Gehenna.

Gehenna was

a location

outside

Jerusalem

but at

one point

was used

for human

sacrifices

but in

Jesus'

day was

a rubbish

dump

which was

constantly

on fire

to kind

of purify

the rubbish

that came

to it.

But it's

used commonly

by Jesus

and by

others at

the time

to describe

the place

of ultimate

eternal

judgment

for sin

for those

who don't

accept him.

Jesus is

making it

very clear

that there

is a

judgment

for sin.

No sin

is

inconsequential

and unless

our sins

have been

forgiven

we will

face the

fires of

hell,

we will

face

God's

judgment

on us.

But there

is a

difficulty

here.

Graham and

others have

pointed out

in previous

weeks that

the Sermon

on the

Mount

is delivered

principally

to Jesus'

disciples.

is not

about how

we win

God's

favour,

it's how

we should

live when

our trust

is in

Jesus.

But that's

quite hard

to reconcile

with Jesus

suggesting that

his disciples

might end up

in hell

if they

don't take

appropriate

action.

So what is

he actually

saying here?

One possibility

might be that

Jesus is

exaggerating

for effect.

That is

certainly the

case as

we come

on to

the actions

he expects

from us.

But that

seems very

unlikely to

me.

Jesus isn't

going to

talk in

that way

about something

so devastating

and so

eternal

as hell.

A second

interpretation

might be

Jesus'

disciples,

Christians

today,

can lose

their salvation

because of

sin that

comes into

their lives.

Once they

were saved,

now they're

not.

But that

goes against

the clear

teaching of

Scripture.

That salvation

is based on

faith in

Jesus,

it's not

based on

any good

works of

ours.

John says

in his

Gospels,

everyone who

believes in

Jesus has

eternal life

and in the

same Gospels

Jesus says,

I give them

eternal life

and they

shall never

perish,

no one

will snatch

them out

of my

hand.

So if our

trust is in

Jesus,

our eternal

future is

secure.

Perhaps what

Jesus means

here,

I'm not

certain,

but I'll

throw it

out as

a suggestion,

perhaps what

Jesus means

here is

that if we

persistently

don't take

sin seriously,

it could

suggest our

faith was

never truly

in Jesus.

There were

people following

him, looking

like his

disciples, who

would later

fall away,

who weren't

really disciples

of Jesus.

If we

can see

all that

Jesus has

suffered to

bring us

forgiveness

for sin,

all that

came on

him as

he went

to the

cross, the

physical

suffering,

the separation

from God,

and if that

doesn't affect

the way we

live, it

probably means

at least that

we haven't

understood the

cost of our

salvation to

Jesus.

Jesus says

his disciples

must have a

righteousness

that exceeds

that to the

Pharisees and

teachers of

the law.

And people

who are

careless about

their sin

simply don't

have that.

Now I'm not

talking here

about situations

where we

struggle with

sin, even

if we feel

we fall

time and

time again.

Paul says

in Romans

7, Paul

the great

apostle,

what I want

to do, I

do not do,

but what I

hate, I

do.

That's many

of our

experiences.

And he

exclaims,

what a

wretched man

I am.

Now no one's

going to

suggest that

Paul was

not a

Christian.

Struggling

with sin

doesn't mean

that you're

not a

Christian,

that you've

not been

saved by

Jesus.

But if we

don't feel

the need

to struggle,

then I

think we

need to

take Paul's

advice,

examine

yourself to

see whether

you are in

the faith,

test yourself.

Remember

that Christians,

as well as

those who

haven't

trusted in

Jesus,

will have

to give

account of

their actions

to Christ.

For Christians

won't lose

their salvation,

but they will

be held

accountable for

what they

have done

for the

Lord Jesus.

Will

Graham is

the grandson

of Billy

Graham and

is a quite

well-known

evangelist

himself.

I read a

very perceptive

article he

wrote where

he suggested

in the past

when people

chose a way

of life that

went against

the Bible's

teaching,

they normally

left their

faith behind.

But now

they're more

likely to stay

in the church

and attempt

to justify

their actions,

possibly by

distorting

scripture.

Now we can

see that's

true of

sexuality,

among other

things.

and Will

Graham says,

it's a grave

mistake to

take sin

lightly or

to believe

the lie that

since Christ

died for our

sins, there

are no

consequences

to our

actions.

There are

spiritual and

eternal,

not to mention

physical costs

to be paid

when we

ignore God's

guidance through

his word.

And he

continues,

rather I would

encourage you to

cling to Christ

and dig so

deeply into

the Bible.

that you can

spot a lie

from the

truth.

We need to

recognize that

sin leads to

judgment and

we need to

take it

seriously.

And taking it

seriously, our

last point,

means that sin

requires drastic

actions.

Jesus says,

to avoid hell

we need to be

willing to

gouge out our

right eye or

cut off our

right hand.

Our eye would

represent what we

see clearly,

the inputs into

our body,

if you like.

Our hand would

represent what

we do,

the sins that

we commit.

And in both

cases, the

right one is

seen as being

stronger than

the left,

and that's why

he specifies

right eye and

right hand.

Now, it's

almost universally

agreed that we're

not to take

Jesus literally

here.

He's using

hyperbole,

exaggeration for

effect, and he

isn't suggesting

that we should

mutilate our

bodies.

If we took him

literally just in

the matter of

sexual thing and

our thought life,

there would be

few of any men

here who weren't

maimed.

I can't speak for

the woman, but

maybe similar

too.

In any event,

mutilating our

bodies wouldn't

keep us from sin

if there was no

change in our

heart.

But if we don't

take this literally,

it doesn't give us

an excuse not to

take Jesus' words

seriously.

We can't say,

well, obviously

that's not what

he's meaning, and

just go away and

forget it.

Jesus is aiming to

shock us into

action.

So what would

that mean for

us?

Just a few

suggestions.

It will vary

depending on where

our weak spots

are and the

things that we

can recognise

that trigger us

to sin.

It could affect

the books that

we choose to

read.

Are they

wholesome and

helpful?

It could affect

the websites we

visit, the

social media we

view, the

programmes that we

watch on our

screens, the

films we go

to.

If any of

these lead us

into sin

through our

eyes, then

Jesus says we

need to cut

them out, remove

the thing that

brings the

temptation that

leads you to

sin.

And we need

to go further

than that.

it could also

affect where

and with

whom we

spend our

time.

If a

friendship or

relationship is

unhelpful

spiritually, you

may need to

give it up.

It might even

affect the job

you do if that

is leading you

in some way

into temptation.

Now it's not

for me to tell

you what you

should do, I

need to examine

my own heart.

but I'm

trying to

prompt all

of us to

consider what

we may need

to change to

reduce the

danger of

falling into

temptation and

maybe get out

of a bad

habit we've

been unable

to shake so

far.

This has been

a pretty heavy

study and I

think that

reflects the

seriousness of

the passage.

Let me finish

with some

encouragement and

that also will

hopefully help

us as those in

the church head

towards taking

communion together.

If we do

take our sins

seriously, if we

do feel the

weight of them,

we may also

doubt our

ability to

change.

It's one thing

to recognise

that we're

going wrong,

it's another

to be able to

do something

about it.

And in our

own strength

that is

undoubtedly

true.

But we're

not left

alone, we

don't have to

do it by

ourselves.

When we

receive Jesus

as our

saviour

and Lord,

we also

receive the

Holy Spirit.

The Holy

Spirit is our

counsellor,

leading us

into all

truth,

helping us

to see

how we

should live.

He also

provides us

with the

weapon we

need when

the evil

one attacks

us, the

sword of

the Spirit,

which is

the Word

of God.

And the

Spirit's work

in our

lives give

us the

strength to

obey and

to grow

spiritual

fruit.

That's why

he's here,

that's why

Jesus sent

his Spirit

to draw us

to him

and to

help us

to live

before him.

And we

also see

Jesus.

Jesus who

is tempted

in every

way as

we are,

but who

never

sinned.

Jesus who

took our

sins on

himself when

he was

nailed to

the cross

and took

the punishment

that should

have been

ours.

Jesus who

triumphed over

evil and

death and

today is

a living

saviour and

lord.

What would

be impossible

in our

strength is

possible in

his, through

following his

example, through

seeking his

help as we

pray.

So today, if

you're struggling

with your sin,

take heart.

It can be

overcome in

the strength of

Jesus and

the Holy

Spirit.

If you've

been challenged

on your

complacency

about sin,

then do go

away and

consider what

you need to

do to take

it more

seriously.

And if you've

never put your

faith in Jesus,

then know that

he offers you

forgiveness for

sin and hope

for the future

through his

death on the

cross.

You need to

trust him

today.

I'm going to

pray now.

And I'm

going to use

the words of

Catherine Scott

as our

prayer.

They'll be

familiar to

many of us

and I think

very relevant.

So let's

pray together.

And our

prayer is,

search me,

know me,

try me and

see every

worthless

affection hidden

in me.

All I'm

asking for is

that you'd

cleanse me,

Lord.

Create in me

a heart that's

clean.

Conquer the

power of

secret shame.

Come,

wash away the

guilty stain of

all my sin.

Clothe me in

robes of

righteousness.

Cover my

nakedness with

grace.

All of my

life before you

now I

humbly bring.

Amen.

Amen.

Thank you.