Craig A. Brittingham, Pastor
Hillside Baptist Church
July 25, 2021
“Adultery and Lust” – Matthew 5:27-30
1A. “You have heard it said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’”
1b. This is the seventh of the Ten Commandments.
2b. Moses spoke these words to the children of Israel at the foot of Mount Sinai.
2A. “But I say to you, that whoever looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
1b. This is the second of the six so-called antithesis Jesus spoke to His followers in the Sermon on the Mount.
2b. Jesus is clearly and directly contrasting what someone said to people in antiquity.
1c. The simple meaning would be that Jesus is contrasting Moses who spoke these very words to Israel when He made His covenant with them.
2c. It is not evident He is contrasting someone’s earlier interpretation of this the seventh commandment.
3b. The Law of Christ prohibits adultery, but also prohibits lust.
4b. Jesus demands that His followers deal in a radical way with the sin of lust.
1c. Jesus urges the drastic measure of plucking out the right eye to prevent the sin of lust.
2c. He also advocates cutting off the right hand if it causes you to sin.
3c. Of course, Jesus is speaking in hyperbole here to stress the serious nature of sin and its consequences.
4c. Hell is a real place where people are cast, and must be avoided at all costs.
5c. Perhaps, Jesus anticipated the exhortation to put to death body parts and the sins committed with them.
Questions…
1. What is an antithesis, a term often used to describe what Jesus is making in this passage (Matthew 5:21-48)?
2. What are the six antitheses found here?
3. Does Jesus contradict Moses? Does He simply interpret him? Or does He contrast the Law of Moses, thereby establishing His own law?
4. What is adultery?
5. What is what Jesus calls committing adultery in one’s heart?
6. What can we do (short of plucking out our eyes) to avoid this sin…avoid even the temptation?
7. How does the later New Testament teaching (still Christ’s teaching) exhort us to deal with sin, including lust? See Romans 8:13; Colossians 3:5; cp. Eph.4:25-32
8. On what basis can we put sins to death along with the body parts with which we commit them? See Romans 6:1-6; Colossians 2:11-2, 20, 3:1-4; cp. Eph 4:20-24
9. By Whose power can we put sin to death? Romans 8:13
