Day Five Matthew 5:29-30
29 ”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. 30 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.” – Matthew 5:29-30 (NLT)
Learn From the Word
Jesus is obviously not advocating for self-mutilation here, but He is advocating for taking sin seriously! Using exaggeration to get our attention, He encourages us to identify the source of our temptation (eye, hand) and to get rid of it, to root it out, and take whatever extreme measure necessary. No sin is ever worth our eternity or our freedom that we have in Jesus. Its power can be broken by apprenticeship to Jesus.
Put It Into Practice
Becoming more like Jesus means loving the things He loves and hating what He hates, and what He hates is sin. He hates what sin has done to His creation, to our relationship with Him and to our relationships with others. What sin in your life are you possibly shrugging off, explaining away, or even letting hang around? Ask God for His help in taking whatever step necessary to root it out of your life. There is no sin that puts you beyond the grip of God’s grace. Repent of it and then ask God to redeem and restore what has been damaged. If you need professional help to get started, see our vetted list of counselors here.
For Families with Kids at Home
Yesterday we examined idolatry – how we elevate the good things God has given us to a level of importance they don’t deserve. One way to examine if you or your kids have any idols is to observe when something important is taken away or absent. Maybe for your kids it’s time with friends, a favorite toy or device, or a favorite activity. Ask your kids, “What’s something you dislike when you feel it’s been taken away?” When was the last time that happened and how did they react? Is it possible that they’ve elevated it to a place that is competing for their relationship with God? Point out again that God has given us good things to enjoy, but none of those things are designed to take His place as the object of our affection!