Warning Against Adultery

in Proverbs chapter 5.

Proverbs 5 · chapter mention

So that's what we're opening to,

is the whole chapter from verses 1 to 23.

And please join me in prayer

as you open up to Proverbs 5.

Heavenly Father,

thank you so much for your word.

Thank you for giving us your instruction,

your wisdom.

God, we pray that you would give us

open hearts that are willing to receive,

that are eager to obey,

for your glory and for our good, Father.

And we pray in Christ's name, amen.

All right, Proverbs chapter 5.

Proverbs 5 · chapter mention

My son, be attentive to my wisdom.

Incline your ear to my understanding,

that you may keep discretion

and your lips may guard knowledge.

For the lips of a forbidden woman drip honey,

and her speech is smoother than oil.

But in the end, she is bitter as wormwood,

sharp as a two-edged sword.

Her feet go down to death.

Her steps follow the path to Sheol.

She does not ponder the path of life.

Her ways wander, and she does not know it.

And now, O sons, listen to me,

and do not depart from the words of my mouth.

Keep your way far from her,

and do not go near the door of her house.

Lest you give your honor to others,

and your years to the merciless.

Lest strangers take their fill of your strength,

and your labors go to the house of a foreigner.

And at the end of your life,

you groan when your flesh and body are consumed.

And you say,

how I hated discipline,

and my heart despised reproof.

I did not listen to the voice of my teachers,

or incline my ear to my instructors.

I am at the brink of utter ruin

in the assembled congregation.

Drink water from your own cistern,

flowing water from your own well.

Should your springs be scattered abroad,

streams of water in the streets?

Let them be for yourself alone,

and not for strangers with you.

Let your fountain be blessed,

and rejoice in the wife of your youth,

a lovely dear, a graceful doe.

Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight.

Be intoxicated always in her love.

Why should you be intoxicated, my son,

with a forbidden woman,

and embrace the bosom of an adulteress?

For a man's ways are before the eyes of the Lord,

and he ponders all his past.

The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him,

and he is held fast in the cords of his sin.

He dies for lack of discipline,

and because of his great folly,

he is led astray.

This is God's word.

Over the last six weeks,

we took a hiatus from our sermon series in Proverbs

to study 1 John.

So this allowed us to focus

on some Christian fundamentals,

such as the person and work of Jesus Christ,

and the importance of Christian obedience and love.

This week, we're returning to the book of Proverbs.

So I think it's helpful to do a quick recap

of where we've been in Proverbs.

A few weeks back,

Sean unpacked the three different contexts

we need to pay attention to

as we study scripture.

The historical context,

the literary context,

and the theological context.

So the historical context answers questions like,

who wrote the text?

Who's the audience?

When was it written?

Why was it written?

And for Proverbs,

we learned that King Solomon was the lead author,

though not the sole author.

So since he wrote most of it,

or came up with most of it,

most of the Proverbs dates back to the 10th century BC.

In terms of audience,

it wasn't specified to one person,

but given to all people

across class and profession and gender.

It's not intended just for the young and uneducated,

but it was given to the simple and the wise,

so opposite ends of the wisdom spectrum.

Therefore, it includes everyone in between.

And also we learned from Sean

that the collective masculine is used,

or that the masculine pronoun is used

to refer to a group of men and women together.

So this is relevant for our chapter today

because though chapter five addresses men

to beware of the adulterous,

women can and should apply this instruction

to avoid the adulterer.

So that's the historical context.

Next, there's the literary context,

which asks questions about words,

syntax, grammar,

as well as the genre.

So Proverbs belongs to wisdom genre,

as opposed to say narratives or epistles.

And it's written in the style of poetry.

In poetry, not only is an idea communicated,

but the text tries to do so beautifully

and with imaginative and figurative language.

So reading Proverbs will be a different experience

than reading example Paul's epistle to the Romans.

Finally, there's the theological context,

which asks questions like,

how does this fit with the rest of scripture?

What does it teach us about God?

How does it relate to Jesus?

This book helps us to live life in the fear of the Lord,

to live every moment before the presence of God,

under the authority of God,

and for the glory of God.

As Proverbs chapter one, verse seven says,

the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.

Fools despise wisdom and instruction.

A person who trusts God,

who loves him,

who lives for him,

this will be a person who lives in the fear of God.

And it is a life entered into by humbling ourselves

and receiving the message of Christ crucified for us.

That we who are sinners condemned to death,

we were loved so much by God

that he sent his only son into the world

to die on our behalf on the cross.

And those who trust in Christ for salvation

will be saved from death to eternal life.

That's what we humbly receive and trust.

This is the ultimate wisdom that this world foolishly despises

because it disagrees either with the idea

that it needs saving

or it doesn't like having to be saved

through faith in Jesus.

But for us, Christ is our wisdom from God.

It's in this Christ-centered life

that the wisdom of Proverbs comes alive

and that it makes sense.

So that's the theological context.

We've covered the first four chapters so far.

And in the first four chapters,

we've hit themes like

the importance of getting wisdom,

entrusting ourselves completely to God,

seeing the signposts from God's word

that tell us to beware of sin,

turn away from sin,

to walk in his ways, God's ways.

And one of the signposts back in chapter two

was about adultery.

And our chapter today goes into more depth

on this topic of adultery.

It serves as a huge signpost that says,

warning, danger, don't commit adultery, turn away.

That's what this chapter says.

So the main message of our passage today

is that we should stay away from the adulteress

and take pleasure in our spouse

as God intended us to do.

The passage is organized into three parts.

There's verses one through six

on the end of adultery as death.

Verses seven through 14

on the consequences of adultery as ruin.

And verses 15 through 23

on the ways of God as the light.

A quick pause here for our parents

to point out that the content of this chapter

involves the topics of adultery

and intimacy in marriage.

And I know we have a broad age group

tuning in to our worship service.

So I'll do my best to keep this child friendly.

That being said,

the passage itself is relatively racy

as we've already read.

And God's word is very good

and does not require any censorship.

So anyway,

I want to give that quick heads up

for parents before we dive in here.

So let's look at the first section

in verses one through six.

It talks about the end of adultery being death.

So verse one says,

my son, be attentive to my wisdom.

Incline your ear to my understanding.

You know, a child might make bad life decisions

because no one's around to tell him any better.

Or he might be getting good advice,

but choosing to ignore it.

So it's helpful for us to be told

to listen up to wisdom.

And in verses two through four,

we see a contrast between

the lips of the son

and the lips of the forbidden woman.

The son having received wisdom into his heart,

he must now guard this knowledge

with his lips, it says.

In other words,

he must carefully consider this knowledge.

He's got to think about it,

ponder it,

which will lead to him eventually speaking it

and even teaching them to other people.

This is in contrast to the lips

of the forbidden woman,

which drip honey

and are smoother than oil,

but lead to death.

What's translated in verse three

as forbidden woman

is literally foreigner or stranger.

In this context,

it refers to someone

who is outside the circle

of a man's proper relations,

is foreign to that.

So here it's an adulteress

who is forbidden to a man.

And here her words are described

as dripping honey

and smoother than oil.

They are seductive,

sweet to listen to.

They promise pleasure and satisfaction.

And maybe in our lives,

they might appear as subtle compliments

about our appearance

or caring questions

that try to make an emotional connection.

They might be flirtatious

or suggested innuendos,

but all that seek entrance

into the intimate spaces of our hearts

that are reserved solely for our spouse.

So don't be fooled by these sweet words.

They are initially sweet,

but they hide the poisonous aftertaste of death.

It says in verses four through six,

but in the end,

she is bitter as the wormwood,

sharp as a two-edged sword.

Her feet go down to death.

Her steps follow the path to shale.

She does not ponder the path of life.

Her ways wander,

and she does not know it.

Her words start sweet as honey.

But in the end,

it's bitter as wormwood.

They're smoother than oil,

but then they're sharp like a sword.

I think this is a helpful description for us

of how sin operates

and how the devil tries to lure us in.

Sin does have something pleasurable about it.

It's appealing,

or else we never get tempted by it.

But it's important for us to consider

what it's going to end up like.

I have this image of Satan

walking the streets of East Cambridge,

and it's sadly a common occurrence

to find a lot of dog poop around

because people don't pick up the dog poop.

So I think of Satan,

like picking up one of those pieces of dog poop

and covering it with a few coats of honey,

and then he hands it over to you.

So that's what it's like to be offered sin,

to be offered adultery.

He likes to tell us

about the initial pleasures of sin

while hiding its bitterness

and hiding its death

that inevitably come and destroy us.

It's like when he deceived Adam and Eve

in the garden,

but he lied.

He lied,

and he said that they wouldn't die,

which was exactly contrary

to what God had told them.

Or when he advertises the fun

of getting drunk

while hiding the hangover,

bad decision-making,

long-term health risks

like liver disease,

if that's kept up.

Or when we're tempted to vent our anger

and verbally abuse someone

because, honestly,

it just feels so good sometimes

to let loose.

But we don't see the hurt

and the pain that comes

and the healing that's needed

because we fail to speak truth in love.

Or here in this chapter,

when we're tempted to enjoy sex

outside of marriage,

and we only see the gratification,

we only see the immediate opportunity,

but not the pain,

the emptiness,

our opening the way up

for possible divorce

and abortions

and health issues.

But again,

coming back to

what Proverbs,

the book,

is about,

here we see the importance

of the fear of God

being the foundation of wisdom

because

even with these examples

that I've mentioned,

it's possible to weigh

the pros and cons

without God in the picture

and say,

yeah,

it's still worth it for me.

There are ways

that I can protect myself

enough from the risks.

But if God is

our Heavenly Father

who loves us,

if Christ is the one

who died for us,

if the Holy Spirit

is within us

to empower us

to become more like Christ,

then the pros

never outweigh the cons.

It's never worth it

for us to sin.

So here we see

the importance

of the fear of God.

Finally,

at the end of the section,

notice in verse 6

how the adulterous woman

is lost.

She's not seeking

the paths of life

and wisdom.

She doesn't know

that she's lost.

This person

who's speaking smoothly

and sweetly to you,

who's pleasant,

but trying to get you

to stray from God's ways,

this person doesn't have

your best interests

at heart.

She doesn't even have

her own best interests

at heart.

So we see that

the end of adultery

is death.

And there is wisdom

in considering

the end

of our decisions.

Moving on to

the second section

of verses 7 through 14,

there's another plea

to listen to these words

of wisdom

because the consequences

of adultery

is ruin.

The specific advice

in verse 8 is,

it says,

keep your way

far from her

and do not go near

the door of her house.

Adultery is not something

to be played around with.

We need to take it seriously.

We need to flee

from this temptation.

A great biblical example

of doing this well

is Joseph

in Genesis 39.

So Joseph

is one of the

12 sons of Jacob

and he's sold

into slavery

by his brothers.

And he ends up

being bought

by a man

named Potiphar.

So listen with me

as I read

a few verses

from Genesis

Genesis 39 · chapter mention

chapter 39.

Now,

Joseph had been

brought down

to Egypt

and Potiphar,

an officer of Pharaoh,

the captain of the guard,

an Egyptian,

had bought him

from the Ishmaelites

who had brought him

down there.

The Lord was

with Joseph

and he became

a successful man

and he was in the house

of his Egyptian master.

His master saw

that the Lord

was with him

and that the Lord

caused all that he did

to succeed in his hands.

So Joseph found favor

in his sight

and attended him

and made him

overseer of his house

and he put him

in charge

of all that he had.

From the time

that he made him

overseer in his house

and over all that he had,

the Lord blessed

the Egyptian's house

for Joseph's sake.

The blessing of the Lord

was on all that he had

in house and field.

So he left all that he had

in Joseph's charge

and because of him

he had no concern

about anything

but the food he ate.

Now Joseph was handsome

in form and appearance

and after a time

his master's wife

cast her eyes

on Joseph

and said,

Lie with me.

But he refused

and said to his master's wife,

Behold,

because of me

my master

has no concern

about anything

in the house

and he has put everything

that he has

in my charge.

He is not greater

in this house

than I am

nor has he kept back

anything from me

except you

because you are his wife.

How then can I do

this great wickedness

and sin against God?

And as she spoke to him,

as he spoke to Joseph

day after day,

he would not listen to her

to lie beside her

or to be with her.

But one day

when he went into the house

to do his work

and none of the men

of the house

was there in the house,

she caught him

by his garment

saying,

Lie with me.

But he left his garment

in her hand

and fled

and got out

of the house.

So what does

Joseph do well here?

First,

we see that

he maintained

a strong connection

and a strong relationship

with God.

His primary objection

was,

How can I do this wrong

against God?

Even through

his very difficult

circumstances,

he cultivated

this deep

relationship

with God

and he didn't

turn away

from him.

Second,

we see that

he didn't

justify adultery.

He doesn't think

to himself,

you know,

I've had a hard life.

I deserve this.

It's not that big

of a deal.

My master

is a loser anyway.

I mean,

I'm doing all the hard

work around here.

I'm earning the money.

Plus,

his wife wants me

more than he wants.

than him.

Right?

So he doesn't

think these thoughts.

And the situation

is not about himself

and what he wants,

but it's about

loving God.

It's about loving

his master

who's treated him

so well.

Third,

he makes no space

for temptation.

He refuses

to even be

with Potiphar's wife

in verse 10

once he identifies

this temptation.

And when she

tries to trap him,

he bolts.

He just gets out of there.

He even leaves

his clothes behind him.

What does this look

like for us?

Maybe it's

in a work situation.

Maybe there's

someone at work

who's making advances

towards you.

Someone that you

have a ton

of contact with

and honestly,

you can't avoid

not seeing this person.

You know that

he or she

is going to be

a problem

for your marriage.

So then maybe

it's time to look

for another job.

or there's a friend

of the opposite sex

that you spend

a lot of time with.

You get along

with really well

but you guys

are getting

uncomfortably close.

You're sharing

too many deep things,

being more

emotionally connected

with this person

than with your spouse.

Maybe it's time

to cut that friendship off.

Whatever it might be,

again,

this is something

to take seriously.

It's something

to flee.

We've got to identify

its sources

and kill it.

It also helps

to share

this temptation

with a close

Christian friend

so you can be

prayed for,

you can be

kept accountable

and so that's helpful.

Moving on

in the passage,

verses 9-14,

they talk about

the consequences

of adultery.

Verses 9-10 say,

Lest you give

your honor to others

and your years

to the merciless,

lest strangers

take their fill

of your strength

and your labors

go to the house

of a foreigner.

These verses

talk about

the economic ruin

that come from

infidelity.

So the words

your honor,

your years,

your strength,

your labors,

these talk about

the effort

and the good yield

of one's life

and they're being

funneled

because of adultery

to others.

It's unclear

exactly who

the others are.

There are a few

possibilities.

It could be

the jealous husband

of the adulteress.

It could be

that man's family.

It could be

the family

of this person's

cheated wife.

And in terms

of what we see

and what we might

see in our lives,

the financial consequences

of adultery,

you know,

they can be

a divorce settlement,

they can be

child support payments,

they could be

blackmail

from the person

that you had

an affair with,

but it's pointing

to the fact

that adultery

can ruin you

economically

and financially.

Verse 11

speaks of

groaning

at the end

of one's life.

It says,

when your flesh

and body

are consumed.

This could refer

to the ill physical

effects

of sexual immorality,

for example,

from sexually

transmitted diseases,

though this

doesn't necessarily

have to be the case

in this passage.

It might just be

saying that

at the end of life,

when this person's

physical vitality

has left him,

he looks back

on his life

with regret

at the decisions

he's made.

So that's

verse 11.

In verse 14,

it refers to

the social

consequences

of

this person's

mistakes.

So it says,

I am at the brink

of utter ruin

in the assembled

congregation.

When infidelity

comes to light

in a public setting,

there could be

dishonor

and humiliation

for those

involved in the affair

and also those

related to those people.

There might be

professional consequences,

for example,

for those in government

whose roles

involve

and require

public trust

and opinion.

And so

the takeaway

from this section

is that

adultery

can bring

ruin

to your life

economically,

physically,

and socially.

Finally,

in the last section

in verses

15 to 23,

we read about

the ways of God

as the light

and how we

should live.

Remember that

repentance

involves

a turning away

from sin,

but it's not

just a turning

away from sin.

It's a turning

to God

in faith

and obedience.

So they're

two sides

of the same coin.

So this chapter

has already

instructed us

that the sin

that we're

turning away

from is

adultery

and we're

turning to God

and walking

in His ways

of being

sexually satisfied

in our spouse.

the imagery

of drinking

water

is present

throughout

these verses

referring to

our thirst

being quenched.

There's

drink water

from your own

cistern

in verse 15.

In verse 16,

it says

it points to

streams of water.

Let your fountain

be blessed

in verse 18.

And this points

to the fact

that God

has created us

as sexual creatures

and He has

provided for us

with marriage

to meet our

sexual desires

where we can

satisfy our thirst

and we can

drink deeply

from our spouse.

This idea

of drinking

water

from your

own cistern

is referring

to the water

pit that people

in the dry

area of Canaan

would hollow out

in the rocky

ground.

So they would

dig this pit

and then they

would use it

to collect

and store

rainwater.

for its owner.

And verses

16 through 17

say,

should your springs

be scattered

abroad,

streams of water

in the streets,

let them be

for yourself

alone and not

for strangers

with you.

These verses

are saying

enjoy the spouse

that only

you have access

to.

It's referring

to the idea

of privately

owned property

versus common

property.

As in

only you can

drink from

the cistern

in your

backyard

that you

dug

while the

water fountain

in the park,

I mean,

anyone can

drink from

there,

right?

So within

a faithful

marriage,

husband and

wife are

enjoying one

another

exclusively,

whereas with

an adulteress,

she or he

is less

concerned about

exclusivity

and more

concerned about

availability,

right?

So these

verses are

saying,

don't let the

source of your

satisfaction be

common and

shared,

but let it be

private,

special,

belonging to

you only.

There's also

the alternative

interpretation

that this

warning of

not letting

your springs

be scattered

abroad,

that it's

a warning

that your

spouse might

be unfaithful

to you if

you are

unfaithful.

I think

this interpretation

is problematic

for a couple

reasons.

First,

the wife

in verse

15 is

referred to

in the

singular as

your own

sister and

your own

well,

but in

verse 16,

it talks

about springs

and streams

in the

plural.

So there's

no good

reason that

a wife

would be

changed from

singular to

plural from

one verse

to the

next.

And also

a second

problem is

in terms of

cause and

effect,

it's difficult

to think

that just

because you

are unfaithful

you would

automatically

cause your

spouse to

choose to

be unfaithful.

He or she

might be

deeply hurt,

yes,

extremely angry,

yes,

but making

the same

foolish

decisions

that you

make,

that is

not necessarily

true.

So I

would go

with the

previous

interpretation.

Moving on

to verses

18 to

19,

notice the

imagery and

language used

here.

It says,

rejoice in

the wife

of your

youth,

a lovely

dear,

a graceful

doe.

Let her

breasts fill

you at all

times with

delight,

being intoxicated

always in

her love.

The husband

is to be

intoxicated,

drenched,

lost in

his wife's

love.

This phrase

of being

intoxicated

again is a

bit racy as

I mentioned

earlier and

it can have

negative

connotations

when referring

to alcohol

or even

the adulterers

in verse 20.

But when it

comes to the

love of your

spouse,

it's a

good thing

to be

lost in

her love

and in

his love.

note that

this enjoyment

of one's

spouse is

both

qualitative

and

quantitative.

Qualitatively,

the husband

rejoices and

is filled

with delight.

And

quantitatively,

it is at

all times

and always.

Of course,

there's more

wisdom that

goes into

the practical

implications

of a

healthy love

life.

So if

your husband

planning on

coming to

shop for

counseling and

complaining that

your wife

isn't

intoxicating

you enough

since she's

not at

all times

and always

providing for

you when

you want

it,

and you

want him

to call

her out

that she's

a bad

wife,

you should

prepare to

be surprised,

disappointed

when he calls

you out as

a bad

husband.

But still,

it's important

here of the

idea that

the wife is

available to

quench the

husband's

thirst and

vice versa.

That's how

God meant

it to be.

In verses

21 through

23,

it ends

the chapter

by pointing

out God's

omniscience

and justice.

So God

is omniscient.

He knows

all,

he sees

all,

all the

paths of

men are

before him.

And God

is just.

The wicked

will face

the consequences

of their

sin and

their foolishness.

And though

we're talking

specifically about

adultery in

this chapter,

these verses

help to zoom

out onto

all sin.

it's not

just adultery

that arises

from a

lack of

discipline,

as it says

in verses

23,

but all

wickedness.

So let's

wrap up by

talking a

few application

points here.

Why might

we be tempted

to commit

adultery?

What lies

does the

enemy throw

into our

faces to

tempt us?

One thought

is around

our needs

being satisfied.

We might

think my

needs aren't

being met.

My marriage

is really

difficult.

And honestly,

it has been

for a long

time.

This chapter

paints a

rosy but

unrealistic

picture of

marriage.

I deserve

to be happy,

even if that's

not with my

spouse.

So that

is one

thought.

First,

let me address

that marriage

is difficult.

It's really

difficult.

We are all

sinful people.

And two

people in

marriage,

it's like

two pieces

of rough

metal that

come really

close and

rub against

each other.

There's going

to be

friction.

There's going

to be

sparks flying

sometimes.

We should

expect this

and not be

surprised by

it.

So I don't

want to

devalue that.

But second,

marriage is

not about

our happiness.

That's not

what this

world wants

to tell us.

It wants

you to think

that it's

all about

you.

This world

sells us on

products and

services that

make our

lives easier,

more satisfying.

But marriage

is not

about you.

It's not

about me.

It's not

about our

happily ever

after.

Of course,

happiness does

take place in

marriage, but

it's not like

a marriage is

broken if a

person's not

happy.

Instead,

marriage is a

reflection of

Christ's

relationship with

the church.

And when we

reflect this

well, we

point to how

wonderful God

is, how

great he

is.

How does

Jesus treat

his pride?

How does

he treat us

to church?

We know

that he

loves us,

he nourishes

us, he

cherishes

us, he

chooses to

take the

worst from

us, all

of our

mistakes, all

of the

hateful venom

that will spit

out at him,

all of our

burdens.

He takes our

worst and in

return he gives

us his best.

On the cross,

he took away

our sin and

he was punished

on our behalf.

And in him,

we have every

spiritual blessing

in the heavenly

places.

He was rich,

yet for our

sake he became

poor so that

we, by his

poverty, might

become rich.

I mean, how

absurd would it

be if Jesus

treated us the

same way that

spouses so

often treat each

other in this

world?

You know, if he

said, Ray,

you know, I've

sorry, I've

decided to end

our relationship

because you're

not really

satisfying my

needs and

desires.

You've been

growing apart

from me these

past few

years.

Honestly, you

care more

about your

family, your

next promotion,

you're binging

on Netflix,

than you care

about prayer and

Bible study.

You know, you

must not know

about me, Ray,

because there are

a ton of other

people who

appreciate me a

lot more than

you, right?

That's pretty

ridiculous.

We know that

God will never

leave us nor

forsake us,

that he has

loved us with

an everlasting

love.

Jesus is

faithful to

us.

So marriage

is not about

our happiness.

It's about

reflecting Christ

in the church.

And it's also

about our

sanctification.

It's about

becoming more

and more holy,

becoming more

and more like

Jesus.

On the cross,

Jesus took our

worst and gave

us his best,

right?

So in marriage,

we get the

opportunity to

demonstrate that

to someone

else.

Because marriage

brings out the

good and the

bad and the

ugly, we can

have the

opportunity to

receive hurtful

words,

inconsiderate

actions,

gross

incompetence,

and in

response, we

get to choose

to give

kindness and

patience and

love.

this is

impossible on

our own.

We can't do

it.

And the

world doesn't

sell us

anything that

can help us

with this.

It's only

God by the

Holy Spirit

through Jesus

Christ that

we are made

new again.

Another thought

that might

tempt us to

adultery is

that I'm

strong enough

to fight this

temptation or

I'm not

susceptible to

this.

And though

it might not

be a

particular

temptation or

chronic sin

now for

us, we

shouldn't let

our guard

down.

It's when

we're tired,

when life

is hard,

when marriage

is hard,

when we're

not our

best selves,

that then

a woman or

a man who's

basically trained

himself or

herself to

be a

professional

seductress or

seductor who

comes our way,

and that's when

we can all be

caught off guard.

So don't

play with

fire, but

again, flee

from sin,

flee from

temptation.

Another reason

we might be

tempted towards

adultery is

the thought that

I'm strong

enough to

figure it out

on my own,

and here I'm

referring specifically

to marriage

struggles.

When things are

hard, I can

just plow

through it.

We are

supposed to be

sexually gratified

in our marriages,

relationships, but

that might not

be the case

due to a

lot of other

reasons that

don't have to

do with sex

directly.

For example,

ineffective

communication,

constant conflict,

emotional

disconnection,

a lack of

time in a

busy life, a

lot of things

can happen.

And so we

might be tempted

to tough it

out and figure

it out on our

own, but

honestly, it

can save us a

lot of time,

a lot of

heartache to

seek out help

from church

elders and

from professional

counseling.

So I'll

encourage you

guys to

look into

that and

feel free to

speak to me

or Sean or

Matt about

this more if

you're interested

in pursuing

this and we

can help

direct you

guys.

So in

conclusion,

brothers and

sisters,

please be

attentive.

Be attentive

to God's

words.

Keep your

way far from

the adulterer

that brings

death,

and ruin.

Seek to be

satisfied in

your spouse

and remember

that God

loves us and

he wants the

best for us.

Amen.