How Your Thinking Can Cause Repeated Issues In Your Life, And How To Correct It

‘ “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to stumble, 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 right hand causes you to stumble, 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 go into hell. ‘ Matthew 5:27-30

In this post, we pick up on the greatest sermon ever preached, the Sermon on the Mount. Here are the links to the previous posts:

Is It Possible That We Murder Those Around Us Everyday? Here’s What Jesus Says About It.

Do You Measure Up To the Perfect Standard God Has Set Forth? There Is A Way You Could.

Does Your Life Reflect The Light Of Jesus Christ?

What Does It Mean To Live As A Child Of God’s Kingdom?

‘ “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

We find ourselves with the same line of thinking that He presented us about murder, except this one is about lust. On the top of the sin-hit parade, we find sexual immorality.

If we look at the pattern Jesus gives us in this sermon, He shows us that sin starts with our thinking. All of the evil we experience in our lives begins with the thought. If we look at another person and say to ourselves, “What a fool!” as Jesus says, we have committed murder. In this example, it is the same with lust.

We must pay attention to our thinking. It is crucial to do so in our spiritual walk. So how do we do this?

‘For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete. ‘ 2 Corinthians 10:3-6

As Christians, we are to bring our thoughts and stand them up to the Holy standard God has set forth for us. When faced with trials in our lives, and we find ourselves at odds with others, chances are pretty good that we may be off in our thinking.

“John, how can you say?”

Here’s why I say this: the only person that we may be able to control to some degree is… ourselves.

With that, everything else outside of that is in God’s hands. And I will take this further: with everything outside being in God’s hands, it may be exactly as He wants it now. And the thing that we have to address is our heart in the situation. Difficulty Rating: Very Hard.

If your right eye causes you to stumble, 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 right hand causes you to stumble, 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 go into hell. ‘

These words sound very harsh. I would suggest that Jesus wasn’t suggesting that we gouge our eyes out or lope off our hands, but He is telling us that we should address the sin in our lives severely and harshly.

If we allow sin to continue in our lives, we will suffer consequences from that sin. Our sins, past, present, and future, are forgiven if we are saved. But we must continue to work out our salvation, examining the sin in our lives and dealing with it daily. Paul did it this way:

‘Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.’ 1 Corinthians 9:24-27

Sin in our lives is to be taken very seriously. And we must do everything in our power to deal with it.

Here is an Old Testament example to consider:

‘Samuel said to Saul, “I am the one the Lord sent to anoint you king over his people Israel; so listen now to the message from the Lord . This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt. Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.’ ” ‘ 1 Samuel 15:1-3

God through Samuel told Saul to go and attack the Amalekites and totally destroy all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.’

He was told not to spare them. But here is what Saul did:

‘He took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and all his people he totally destroyed with the sword. But Saul and the army spared Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves and lambs—everything that was good. These they were unwilling to destroy completely, but everything that was despised and weak they totally destroyed. ‘ 1 Samuel 15:8-9

I’m not sure why Saul kept Agag alive, but I do know that in history, it was not uncommon for a conquering king to parade the conquered king behind them. Not only did he not destroy Agag, but he also kept the best of their livestock. He chose what he was going to destroy instead of obeying God.

Samuel got work from the Lord:

‘“I regret that I have made Saul king, because he has turned away from me and has not carried out my instructions.” Samuel was angry, and he cried out to the Lord all that night. ‘ 1 Samuel 15:11

Being a great Prophet for God, Samuel went to confront Saul.

‘Early in the morning Samuel got up and went to meet Saul, but he was told, “Saul has gone to Carmel. There he has set up a monument in his own honor and has turned and gone on down to Gilgal.” When Samuel reached him, Saul said, “The Lord bless you! I have carried out the Lord ’s instructions.” But Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?” Saul answered, “The soldiers brought them from the Amalekites; they spared the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to the Lord your God, but we totally destroyed the rest.” “Enough!” Samuel said to Saul. “Let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night.” “Tell me,” Saul replied. Samuel said, “Although you were once small in your own eyes, did you not become the head of the tribes of Israel? The Lord anointed you king over Israel. And he sent you on a mission, saying, ‘Go and completely destroy those wicked people, the Amalekites; wage war against them until you have wiped them out.’ Why did you not obey the Lord ? Why did you pounce on the plunder and do evil in the eyes of the Lord ?” ‘ 1 Samuel 15:12-19

As Samuel confronted Saul with sinfully disobeying the Lord, Saul’s Response was:

‘“But I did obey the Lord ,” Saul said. “I went on the mission the Lord assigned me. I completely destroyed the Amalekites and brought back Agag their king. The soldiers took sheep and cattle from the plunder, the best of what was devoted to God, in order to sacrifice them to the Lord your God at Gilgal.” ‘ 1 Samuel 15:20-21

But Samuel didn’t stop there:

‘But Samuel replied: “Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord ? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord , he has rejected you as king.” ‘ 1 Samuel 15:22-23

Throughout his reign as king, Samuel had frequently disobeyed the Lord’s commands, but this was the last straw for the Lord. The wheels were in motion for his removal.

But Samuel’s work was not over with this:

‘Saul replied, “I have sinned. But please honor me before the elders of my people and before Israel; come back with me, so that I may worship the Lord your God.” So Samuel went back with Saul, and Saul worshiped the Lord . Then Samuel said, “Bring me Agag king of the Amalekites.” Agag came to him in chains. And he thought, “Surely the bitterness of death is past.” But Samuel said, “As your sword has made women childless, so will your mother be childless among women.” And Samuel put Agag to death before the Lord at Gilgal. Then Samuel left for Ramah, but Saul went up to his home in Gibeah of Saul. Until the day Samuel died, he did not go to see Saul again, though Samuel mourned for him. And the Lord regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel.’ 1 Samuel 15:30-35

Samuel had to finish the work that Saul had neglected. But this is not the end of the story for Saul. Ultimately, David ended up destroying the Amalekites, and Saul killed himself.

We need to deal harshly with the sin in our lives. But we’re not alone in doing this; we have the Holy Spirit in our hearts, and other believers who have dealt with the same sin in their lives are willing to help.

Heavenly Father, Thank You for your Word. I pray that You let it affect my heart to grow closer to You.

I pray that You give me the courage to look at the sin in my life and to deal with it. I pray that You give me the ability to look at the intentions of my heart honestly, and if they do not glorify You that You show how to change them.

Thank You for Your grace, mercy, and forgiveness.

In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray, Amen!!