Another "But I Say To You!"

The writers of books, movies and TV shows missed this shall-not when they were in Sunday School!  

“You shall not commit adultery!”

Adultery is a noun that refers to the verb adulterate.  To make something impure!  To spoil!   To corrupt something good!  It is a violation of a trust given.  It is an infringement on God’s original purpose.

In the Old Testament, adultery brought with it death by stoning.  

In the New Testament Jesus gets very specific about adultery, to the smallest detail, of what adultery can bring to the union of trust promised in the marriage ceremony.   

However, adultery is not just a matter of Civil Law, or social standards, but a conflict with God’s Holy Will.  

Suffice to say, adultery is just wrong!

That could be the end of this discussion.  It could be if we were to keep this issue to just physical relations between human beings.  However, the same, shall not  commit adultery, refers to unfaithfulness to God as well.

So let me back-up for a moment to Jesus’ second “But I say!” when he is talking about the usual result of adultery. 

Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.  “But I say to you that anyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of unchastity, causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.”(v.31-32)

Jesus once again goes beyond the letter of the law, The Torah, and invites his listeners to think about adultery as not just an act.  But also our ultimate destiny as one of God’s children!  

By the way, in the Old Testament the Torah allows divorce!  

1 Suppose a man enters into marriage with a woman, but she does not please him because he finds something objectionable about her, and so he writes her a certificate of divorce, puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his house; she then leaves his house 2 and goes off to become another man's wife. 3 Then suppose the second man dislikes her, writes her a bill of divorce, puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his house (or the second man who married her dies); 4 her first husband, who sent her away, is not permitted to take her again to be his wife after she has been defiled; for that would be abhorrent to the Lord, and you shall not bring guilt on the land that the Lord your God is giving you as a possession.(Deut 24:1-4)

Jesus suggests that this law was made for the sake of the hardness of the human heart. That is, a heart that has become insensitive, stiffened, toughened.  A heart that has grown hard, unreceptive to God’s saving will.  This issue of the heart has a much more profound and deeper meaning then we think of our hearts today. 

I have probably told you this before.  But chronologically advantaged folks often repeat themselves.

In the Hebrew understanding, the heart is the seat of all rational function, thought and emotion.  The source of all religious and ethical conduct.  The heart is the core of our being.

The brain holds a place of non-importance in the Old Testament way of thinking. 

Now fast forward to the “But I say to you.”

Adultery also has very much to do with those who resist the truth about Jesus.  Jesus refers to those people as “an evil and adulterous generation.” (Mt. 12:39)  

This adultery issue is more about the divine human relationship.  The covenant, the promise of God’s faithfulness!  The promise made between God and his human creation.

In Genesis 9 God is quite clear: 

This is a sign of the covenant between you and me and every living creature that is with you, for all generation.  I have set my bow in the clouds.  And it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth…I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.  This is my sign.”( Gen. 9:12f)

The covenant of Marriage is a promise of faithfulness and trust.

The covenant promise with God and us is also a promise of faithfulness and trust.

Trust is something we would be wise to never tamper with.  Trust is a very fragile and precious ingredient in all of relationships. 

A violation of trust is not easily healed!

In the Old Testament journey God lost trust In His human creation.  He lost confidence that they could be relied upon to be faithful.  So he came in Jesus’ skin to level the playing field. 

When we cannot be trusted because we have adulterated a relationship; we find ourselves living in fear and secrecy.  It drives us into a terrible darkness!  Often lonely and sometimes hopeless! And often we find ourselves emotionally on the run.  Wondering if someone will discover our misdeeds.   

But, do you know what?  We can never hide form God!

We can fool a lot of people!  But we will never be successful at fooling God.

Point?

Our ultimate hope, in this life on earth, is what we have between ourselves and God.

So, at this point in the discussion Jesus might say one more:  “But I say to you”  If you want to mess with adultery!  

If you think you can adulterate God’s will!  

Be unfaithful to God by being unfaithful to human promised!  “Then you will be liable to the hell of fire…”

But then He graciously adds this interesting add-on:  So, “if you remember that you brother or sister ( or maybe your God) has something against you, leave you gifts before the altar and go first and be reconciled to those you’ve broken trust with….come to terms quickly with your accuser…(Mt. 5:23f)

In other words, eat rug before them.  Prostrate yourselves before them with true repentance.  Be sorry “from the bottom of you socks; because the bottom of your heart is simply not deep enough”(Hallmark card)

Prostrating, lowering ourselves, crawling on our hands and knees in honest regret.  Might, might, get our loves one’s attention.

But here is the good news:  we don’t have to crawl or prostrate ourselves before God.

“Those without sin cast the first stone”

God knows our deepest regret!  God accepts our honest plea for forgiveness.  

Listen to what God tells his adulterous people through Jeremiah:

31 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. 32 It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord. 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, "Know the Lord," for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more. (Jere.31: 31-34)

That is how very easy it is with God! 

That is how extremely gracious God is!

That is how God’s perfectly unconditional love and acceptance works!

When we have such a generous and forgiving God, I have to wonder!  Why would we ever even consider being unfaithful to that kind of loving acceptance?  

Why would we even be temped to ruin, or dishonor, that kind of mercy?

27 "You have heard that it was said, "You shall not commit adultery.' 28 But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to go into hell. 31 "It was also said, "Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.' 32 But I say to you that anyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of unchastity, causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.(Matt.5)