“Thought,
Word, and Deed”
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus
Christ. Amen. During the Epiphany Season this year we have a series of Gospel Readings from
Jesus’ famous Sermon on the Mount. The Sermon on the Mount
begins with the familiar and inspiring Beatitudes, which is the Gospel Reading
appointed this year for the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the
kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for
righteousness, for they will be filled. “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called
sons of God.” Last week, the Gospel Reading for the Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany
continued with Jesus’ well-known words about his followers being a salt and
light: “You are the salt of the earth. . . You are the light
of the world. . . let your light so shine before men, that
they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” Today’s Gospel Reading for the Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany is less
familiar, and has parts that are hard to understand: “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 your whole body to go into hell.” In those verses Jesus is speaking in a form of speech called hyperbole, an
exaggeration, to emphasize the point that God requires nothing less than
perfection. But, of course, Jesus does NOT want his followers
to literally mutilate ourselves. On the other hand, it is NOT just hyperbole when Jesus declares in today’s
Gospel Reading that evil thoughts, in and of themselves, are subject to God’s
judgment and deserving of damnation: “You have heard that it was said to the
people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to
judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be
subject to judgment. . . in danger of the fire of hell. . .
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.” On another occasion the Gospel of John tells us, “Many of his disciples, when
they heard this, said, ‘This is a hard saying; who can accept it?’”
Perhaps that is how you feel about this teaching from our Lord, that evil
thoughts, in and of themselves, are subject to God’s judgment and deserving of
damnation. “This is a hard saying; who can accept it?” Because, to us it seems odd to punish people for something they only think,
but don’t actually do. Traditionally, our government
prosecutes words and deeds, but not thoughts. The whole idea
of “thought police” is something right out of the novel “1984.”
Some people are concerned that recent “hate crimes” legislation is the
first step toward trying to outlaw certain thoughts, which seems so contrary to
our basic rights and freedoms. But, actually, the concept of “thought police,” punishing people on the basis
only of what they think, is entirely Scriptural: “You have
heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who
murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry
with his brother will be subject to judgment. . . in danger
of the fire of hell. . . 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.” The problem is not punishing people on the basis of their thoughts alone, but
who is qualified to make such a judgment. How is the
government, or any other human, supposed determine what you are thinking?
It seems arbitrary and unfair. But, Paul says in Galatians, “God does not judge by external appearance.”
“You make yourselves look good in the eyes of others,” Jesus says, “but
God knows your hearts.” God’s complete knowledge of us, not only of our words and deeds, but also of
our thoughts, is a theme running throughout Scripture: Genesis: “The Lord saw how great man’s wickedness on the
earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was
only evil all the time. And the Lord was
grieved.” 1st Kings: “[O Lord] deal with each man according to all
he does, since you know his heart, for you alone know the hearts of all men.” 1st Chronicles: “For the Lord searches every heart and
understands every plan and thought.” Psalm 44: “God knows the secrets of the heart.” Psalm 90: “You have set our iniquities before you, our
secret sins in the light of your presence.” Acts: “God knows the human heart.” Romans: “God searches the heart.” Hebrews: “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s
sight. Everything is uncovered and laid
bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” Revelation, “I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I
will repay each of you according to your deeds.” This is why we confess to God at the beginning of our Liturgy, “We have
sinned against you in thought, word, and deed . . . we justly
deserve your present and eternal punishment.” It is true that in this world there are gradations of sins, according to what
we call “civil righteousness.” If you actually murder
someone, the consequences in this world will be much worse than harboring hatred
for them in your heart but not actually hurting them. But,
Jesus is God, and he is therefore speaking from God’s perspective when he says,
“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and
anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who
is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. . . in
danger of the fire of hell. . . ” Because, although there are gradations of sins in this world, according to
what we call “civil righteousness,” from God’s perspective, as far as eternal
righteousness and salvation is concerned, all sins are equal.
For getting into heaven, hatred in the heart is equal to murder. Because getting
into heaven requires nothing less than complete perfection. That’s what Jesus means when he says, “For I tell you that unless your
righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you
will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven. You have
heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who
murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry
with his brother will be subject to judgment. . . in danger
of the fire of hell. . . 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.” But, who can do that? Who can go through life without ever
being angry, without ever having a lustful thought? Absolute
perfection is impossible for us! And, that is the point.
None of us is worthy of heaven. That is why God sent
his Son to be your Savior. Jesus put it this way, “The Son of
Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for
many.” Jesus gave his life as a ransom for you, to pay for your sins, and earn for
you eternal life. As Hebrews says, “He has appeared once for
all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. . .
we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once
for all.” Paul says in Romans, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s
mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God. . .
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be
transformed by the renewing of your mind.” As Paul says, in
view of God’s mercy, because of his gift of forgiveness to you in his Son, you
will strive in response to serve him and please him with your whole life and
being. You will strive to serve him and please him, not only
with your words and deeds, but also in your thoughts. As Paul
says in Ephesians, “Put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its
deceitful desires, and be renewed in the attitude of your minds.” There is also a very practical reason, for your own good in this world, why
your loving heavenly Father forbids even sinful thoughts. It
is a lie of Satan that sinful thoughts are harmless, as long as you don’t
actually do anything about it. James says, “Each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged
away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives
birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” God forbids
sinful thoughts because they build within us and eventually lead to sinful words
and deeds, hurtful to ourselves and others. Probably the most difficult thing a pastor does is visit people in prison.
I never fully understood the meaning of the verse in Psalm 51, “a broken
and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise,” until the first time I visited
someone in prison and encountered a truly “broken” individual.
The people that I have visited in prison over the years all once had a
comfortable middle-class life like you and me, but, because of their crimes,
their lives were shattered, and in some cases everything was lost: home, job,
family. But, think about this: In every case, the path that
led them to that point always all started with “just” a thought.
“Each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and
enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to
sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” That is why God forbids even sinful thoughts, and puts them on a par with
words and deeds. There’s an old saying that if the salesman
can just get his “foot in the door” he’s got you trapped.
That’s what Satan is trying to do with you: If he can just get you to think that
sinful thoughts are no big deal, so that you don’t struggle against them, but
instead entertain them and let them stay lodged in your mind, then he’s got his
Satanic foot in the door of your life. In contrast, Paul tells the young man Timothy, in a passage that applies to
us all no matter what our age, “Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue
righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out
of a pure heart.” Return to Top | Return to Sermons | Home | Email Church Office
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