Aristotle defined justice as treating equals equally and unequals unequally. On his definition, God is unjust, for he treats unequals equally. And he expects us to do the same.  Consider Jesus’ words: “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward … Continue reading Love Your Enemies (Matthew 5:43-48), Part 1

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-style-parent:””; font-size:10.0pt;”Times New Roman”;} Yesterday, I drew a distinction between the way of justice and the way of mercy, between the state punishing sin (Rom. 13.4) and the church reforming sinners (2 Cor. 5.18–19). Each way accomplishes God’s purposes, although for the Christian, the way of mercy must take precedence at the present time because Christ came to call sinners to repentance (Luke 5.32). But how should we practice the way of mercy? Jesus offers several examples: “Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you … Continue reading Do Not Resist an Evil Person (Matthew 5.38–42), Part 2

How should we respond to a person who hurts us?   There are two ways: the way of justice and the way of mercy. In Matthew 5.38–42, Jesus instructs his disciples to follow the way of mercy:   “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, Do no resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right check, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go … Continue reading Do Not Resist an Evil Person (Matthew 5.38–42)

This week’s devotionals on Matthew 5.31–32 addressed divorce—how it is contrary to God’s will, why it is always a tragedy but sometimes a sin, and when it is morally acceptable. Today, I want to address marriage.   What can we do to promote successful marriages?   This topic is on my mind for several reasons. First, it is easy to condemn divorce. The Bible says it is wrong, and divorced people themselves experience it as a personal failure—even when their divorces are justified. What we need is guidance about how to avoid failure and make our marriages successful. Second, I … Continue reading Promoting Successful Marriages

Over the past two days, I have made some pretty strong statements about marriage and divorce based on Matthew 5.31–32. To recap: The will of God for our sexuality is marriage, the lifelong “one flesh” relationship between a man and a woman (Gen. 1.23–24, Matt. 19.4­–6). From a biblical perspective, whatever tears the “one flesh” fabric of marriage is contrary to God’s will for our sexuality and is therefore sinful. This includes lust (Matt. 5.28), sex outside marriage (1 Cor. 6.9–10), adultery (Ex. 20.14), and divorce (Matt. 5.31–32).   We know that lust, extramarital sex, and adultery are always sinful, … Continue reading Anyone Who Divorces His Wife (Matthew 5.31–32), Part 3

The will of God for our sexuality is marriage, which may be defined as the lifelong union of a man and a woman.   The writer of Genesis, after describing the creation of Adam and Eve, comments: “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh” (Gen. 2.24). Paul cites this passage in his argument against prostitution (1 Cor. 6.16) and Jesus in his argument against divorce (Matt. 19.5). From a biblical perspective, whatever tears the “one flesh” fabric of marriage is contrary to God’s will … Continue reading Anyone Who Divorces His Wife (Matthew 5.31–32), Part 2

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-style-parent:””; font-size:10.0pt;”Times New Roman”;} In 2003, for every two new marriages beginning in America, an old marriage was ending in divorce. According the National Center for Health Statistics, there were approximately 2,187,000 marriages celebrated in the United States in 2003. That results in a marriage rate of 0.75%, or 7.5 marriages per 1,000 people. The divorce rate for the same year was 0.38%, or 3.8 divorces per 1,000 people. (The divorce rate is actually higher since four states, including California, do not collect or report … Continue reading Anyone Who Divorces His Wife (Matthew 5.31–32), PART 1

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-style-parent:””; font-size:10.0pt;”Times New Roman”;} Jesus says the craziest things. For example, in Matthew 5.29–30, he says, “If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for you whole … Continue reading If Your Right Eye Causes You to Sin (Matthew 5.29–30)

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-style-parent:””; font-size:10.0pt;”Times New Roman”;} In Matthew 5.27–28, Jesus says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” If adultery begins in the heart, then a lot of us are adulterers. But we don’t like to think of ourselves as adulterers. We usually rationalize our lust—what a strong word!—with the phrase, “I was only looking,” as if looking were a morally harmless activity. Looking … Continue reading Adultery in His Heart (Matthew 5.27–28)