In Matthew 5, the Scripture says:
“You have heard that it was said to those [d]of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother [e]without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’[f] shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, [g]‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of [h]hell fire. 23 Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift." - v. 21-25
and
“You have heard that it was said [i]to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to [j]sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to [k]sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell" - v. 27-30
A thought that occurred to me the other day was this:
When a Christian tries to point out to someone else (either a nonbeliever or fellow Christian) how easy it is to fall into sin and that sin begins in the heart, why is the lust & adultery passage used much more often than the anger & murder passage?
Is it because it's generally easier to lust after someone sexually than it is to be angry at someone without just cause? Related to that, is it easier to keep lust hidden than to keep unjust anger hidden?
Your thoughts?
“You have heard that it was said to those [d]of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother [e]without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’[f] shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, [g]‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of [h]hell fire. 23 Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift." - v. 21-25
and
“You have heard that it was said [i]to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to [j]sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to [k]sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell" - v. 27-30
A thought that occurred to me the other day was this:
When a Christian tries to point out to someone else (either a nonbeliever or fellow Christian) how easy it is to fall into sin and that sin begins in the heart, why is the lust & adultery passage used much more often than the anger & murder passage?
Is it because it's generally easier to lust after someone sexually than it is to be angry at someone without just cause? Related to that, is it easier to keep lust hidden than to keep unjust anger hidden?
Your thoughts?
- 1
- 1
- Show all