Exodus 20:14 “Thou shalt not commit adultery.”
Adultery has taken on a whole new meaning in our world today. It is a sin that has been accepted in our society. One party of the marriage decides they don’t love the other person and that is supposed to be an acceptable reason for infidelity. The hurt this causes has not changed, but because of the frequency it happens, we have been desensitized to God’s view of this sin. God’s view has not changed, and the consequences have not changed.
The seventh commandment brings us to a vital principle if we are going to have the marriage God intended for us to have. There is no other relationship that God gave us where we become one with another. It is a human relationship that supersedes any other relationship. It is one that God is well pleased with when he is the center of it. Yet, it can also be the most destructive to us when one or both do not follow God’s command for the marriage.
The definition of adultery is to have a sexual relationship with someone other than your spouse. That is the strictest sense of the word. However, Jesus takes it a step further in his explanation in Matthew 5:27-28. He gets to the heart! If a man or woman looks on another to lust after them, he or she has already committed adultery in their heart!
Matthew 5:27-28 “Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.”
Our society is sex-crazed and sees nothing wrong with “lusting” after someone else. I’ve heard many say, “it’s ok to look at the menu, as long as you don’t order.” That must be the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard! Looking is the first step to adultery. It is through the eye gate that adultery begins. Jesus declares that they who look on a woman to increase their lust, have already, in the sight of God, violated the commandment, and committed adultery in the heart. They are guilty!
The Psalmist said in Psalm 101:3 “I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me.”
The Psalmist understood how sin enters our minds and hearts. If Christians followed this one verse, it would take care of a multitude of sins. Pornography would never take hold of a man’s mind, lustful thoughts would not enter the heart, and adulterous acts would not defile the marriage. Satan knows how to destroy our homes. He does it one look at a time.
We must stay on guard to avoid the trap that Satan sets. Everywhere you look sex is in your face. It’s bad when sex is the vehicle used to sell a hamburger, but that is our world today. However, in Galatians 5:24 Paul tells us that if we are in Christ, we are to crucify the flesh. The corrupt passions of the soul are put to death, and they no longer have power over us.
Galatians 5:24 “And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lust”
How do we do this? Romans 13:14, “make no provision for the flesh!” In other words, don’t watch programs where unmarried people are having wrong relationships, use the remote to skip the commercials, and when someone walks before you that is dressed in a sensual manner, look away. Don’t go to places where you know you will be tempted: swimming pools, public beaches, water theme parks, etc. I know that sounds foreign to most of you, but there are ways of enjoying the water where you are not enticed to think wrong, or you are not enticing someone else.
The other aspect of this verse is to “put on” the Lord Jesus Christ. The more you study, pray, and serve, the more you will want to please him. When wrong thoughts and things come in your path, your heart will long for a change of scenery and you will flee.
Romans 13:14 “But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.”
Ladies, I can’t leave this topic without addressing our responsibility in the act of lust. We have been taught by everything around us that we are to be sexy. That word means “to sexually attract, to arouse or entice.” Why would a Christian woman want to entice or arouse someone other than her husband? We are not to dress in a way that we think looks “sexy.” We are not to try to attract others using our bodies. If that is our purpose, we are guilty of the thoughts we have caused someone else to have. Paul makes this clear in I Timothy 2:8-9. He is teaching us not to draw attention to the areas of our body that would cause men to lust. If you do your research, you’ll find your sensual areas start at the thigh and extend to the top of your cleavage. The areas in between are the areas that entice a man the most. It is important that we cover them in a manner that does not draw attention. This is a topic on its own, but must be mentioned here because of the thought process that “we bear no responsibility for the lust of others.”
You may think I have suggested some drastic measures, but we are dealing with very important issues. We are talking about your moral purity and your marriage. I’ve sat with many women and children who are the byproduct of an adulterous affair. It’s devastating for them. It’s a betrayal that is like no other. James makes it clear that Satan is clever and seeks to destroy you. He has a progressive path that traps many and the end is death!
James 1:15 “Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.”
If we stay as far away from the cliff as possible it will be almost impossible to fall off! My husband often quotes “an old Chinese proverb” as he calls it, “man who breaks leg in two places better stay out of two places.” We laugh, but there is much truth to it. Don’t be deceived and think you are the exception and you can get away with sin.
Galatians 6:7 “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.”
Numbers 32:23b “be sure your sin will find you out.”
