Sacrosanct Relationships

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Opening Prayer

Father, thank You for Your love and patience with me. Help me to hear Your Word to me today.

Read Matthew 5:21-32

^[21] “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ ^[22] But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell. ^[23] “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, ^[24] leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift. ^[25] “Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. ^[26] Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny. ^[27] “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ ^[28] But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. ^[29] If your right eye causes you to stumble, 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. ^[30] And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell. ^[31] “It has been said, ‘Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.’ ^[32] But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

Meditate

Uncontrolled, inappropriate anger and rampant sexual desires can destroy relationships. God gives us new desires. We can hunger and thirst after him.

Think Further

I once knew a family-court lawyer who observed that most murders involving family members take place because a weapon happens to be at hand. Otherwise there is just another family dispute. Jesus is talking about dealing with what goes on inside us before any of it gets translated into action. The central point is that to utter, or even entertain, anger against another person is to reveal an attitude of contempt that God takes very seriously. Depending on the circumstances, that contempt may or may not result in some kind of action. We are all of us infinitely precious in God’s sight. That needs to be a bedrock value in all our relationships.

The same bedrock value underlies all our relationships with the opposite sex. Jesus advocates drastic measures for dealing with problems here. I can remember being so impressed by his logic that I wondered why we shouldn’t take it literally–and then I realized that there wouldn’t be much of us left! Jesus is using intentional hyperbole, or overstatement, to get his point across. Let’s just beware that in recognizing the hyperbole we don’t throw out his point. Disregard for another person is something that God takes very seriously. His words on divorce need to be read in conjunction with what he says elsewhere on this topic (Matt. 19:3-9; Mark 10:2-12; Luke 16:18). What we have here is the bottom line.

As I wrote the title above (I actually wrote “Sacrosanct relationships with all other Christians!” but there wasn’t room for it all), I experienced that tingle in my spine that thrills me whenever I reflect on the ideal that is God’s intention. Then I get back into the fray of relationships–family, church, work and people everywhere. It’s been helpful to stop and remind myself of that tingle before I go back and get involved again in the tangle of ordinary life.

Apply

Reflect honestly on all of your relationships where there’s tension. Pray for every person you have difficulty with.

Closing prayer

Heavenly Father, I pray for healthy relationships. For this to happen I need to learn from You. Thank You for Your gift of wisdom for wholesome living.

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