April 11, 2023

Matthew 5: 29, 30 If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. . . . 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 your whole body to go into hell. (NIV)

God can tell me how to relate to other people, but when he tells me how to relate to myself, I resist.*

In 2003, Aron Ralston was hiking alone in Canyonlands National Park when a boulder became dislodged, trapping his right arm against the canyon wall. After being trapped for five days, he was finally able to free himself by breaking the bones in his arm so that he could saw through them with his dull pocketknife. Painful as the ordeal was, he had to have determined that it was better to go through life with one arm than to die with two.

In this passage, Jesus is not advocating self-mutilation; he is making a point: drastic times call for drastic measures. Do you harbor some secret, favorite sin in your heart? Rip it out before it festers and infects your whole life. Are you holding onto something that comes between you and heaven? Amputate it lest you go to hell with it. Is there someone in your life who influences you to sin? Turn your back on them before the Father turns his back on you.

Poor Aron Ralston pulled off his drastic measures alone with inferior tools. We are never alone and our equipment is first-rate. The Holy Spirit is our secret weapon. When we pray, we activate his power to help us overcome temptation and to make the lifestyle changes that help us avoid further temptation.

Drastic measures may be painful but the pain is temporary. Hell is forever.

We have a unique weapon of immense power the world cannot match.*