Stumbling

Every now and then the public gets a collective view of a private affair.  Our society is so jaded, though, that adultery alone doesn’t faze us; we need an interesting twist to get our attention, like a governor gone missing in Argentina or a sports star taken out in a murder-suicide.  We drive by, ogle the scene, sift the facts, maybe say a prayer or two, and keep moving with our own lives.

But have we learned anything?  Have we taken heed?  Adultery happens all the time.  And with or without an interesting twist—or a national name—it’s sin.  We might think we’re immune, but the fact is, it happens way before the bedroom.  It happens first in the heart.  “…[E]veryone who looks on a woman to lust for her has committed adultery with her already in his heart” (Matthew 5:28).

So how do we keep from stumbling?  Wisdom.  Proverbs tells us, “Keep sound wisdom and discretion, so they will be life to your soul, and adornment to your neck.  Then you will walk in your way securely, and your foot will not stumble” (Proverbs 3:21-23).

Last week we pictured wisdom and discretion as parts of a beautiful necklace.  But they’re much more than adornment.  They guide us, helping us to walk securely.  They keep our feet from stumbling.  Think about it.  If we know adultery starts with lust in the heart, wisdom tells us to avoid people and situations that would entice us to lust.  We need to draw huge boundary lines that we dare not cross.

I know one married woman who was an active Facebook user, until it became a source of possible temptation when she connected with a man from her past.  Rather than take a chance, she deleted her account entirely, refusing to give the enemy a foothold.  Her jewels of wisdom and discretion watched over her.

Right after Jesus warned of adultery and lust, He said, “If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out, and throw it from you….  And if your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off, and throw it from you….” (Matthew 5:29-30).  He was speaking figuratively, but His point is clear—the sin of adultery is serious, so serious that we need to do everything we can to rid ourselves of the least temptation.

Jesus’ words are wisdom.  Will you heed them?  What are you willing to do to keep from stumbling?

 

Heavenly Father, help me to keep sound wisdom and discretion, that they may guard me from stumbling.  I pray to keep holy boundary lines, avoiding even the appearance of impropriety.  May lust never be conceived in my heart, in Jesus’ name, Amen.