PLUCKING and CUTTING

By Michael K. Farrar, O.D.

© God’s Breath Publications

 

Matthew 5:29-30

“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.”

 

What in the world is the Lord asking us to do here? If we took this literally I really believe that many Christians would be found wandering around blind, their eyes having been plucked out to prevent themselves from sinning. Very likely these same Christians would be seen rolling around on the ground in contorted confusion, as they would have cut off their arms and legs to avoid falling into sin. Similar statements of organ and appendage removal are made in Matthew 18:8, 9 and Mark 9:43-47. These are strange statements when taken on face value and are probably rather confusing or frightening to those who are unaware of the intent of such verses. Perhaps we should attempt to understand what these verses mean not only for our sake, but so that we can explain such statements to our non-believing acquaintances.

 

If we are to understand what these verses mean, we should look at the context of where they appear. In Matthew 5 we see the account of the Sermon on the Mount by Jesus. He finishes the Beatitudes and gives instructions on how to live a Holy life, pleasing to God. Jesus hoists the standard for holiness up a notch when He addresses the issue of adultery. He states that you can commit adultery in your heart if you just look on someone with the intent of such an action in thought. Jesus is challenging those present with the fact that true holiness is not just dependant on their outward actions, but also on the thoughts and intentions in their hearts and minds. Centuries later this lesson can be taken to heart by us as well.

 

Jesus is so concerned about emphasizing the importance of the holiness of our inward being, that He uses an extreme example to illustrate His point. He shares that if we can’t look with our eyes at individuals in an appropriate manner, possibly it would be better if we plucked them out to avoid the penalty of sin. He doesn’t stop there though. He says that if our hands were to cause us to sin, we should cut them off rather than be condemned to hell. Something you also notice here is the fact that it is the right eye and right hand that are mentioned. These can be assumed to be the dominant forms of these body parts. It is not just an eye or a hand that could be removed; it is the most crucial ones that are necessary for survival that should be sacrificed. I believe Jesus is attempting to convict all those present as well as us, that it is a life and death matter to avoid sin and lead a holy life. He is attempting to convince all of us that we should consider the way we live very seriously and be careful not only of how we act, but also of how we think.

 

The passages in Matthew 18 and Mark 9 mention not only the eyes and hands, but also feet. Jesus has just addressed how children and those tender in faith should be treated. He gives a solemn warning that anyone who causes a child professing faith in God to stumble, it would be better for him or her to be thrown into a lake with a huge stone tied around his or her neck. He then shares that it would be better to enter heaven without organs and limbs than to allow such body parts to rule your thoughts and actions in sin. Jesus is not telling those present how to live a holy life by mutilating themselves. He is stressing the importance of letting God rule their lives through their outward actions; but especially in their inward thoughts and attitudes. We need to listen to what Jesus is saying here and pursue a life of holiness that is pleasing to our Heavenly Father.

 

A prime example of the eyes leading someone to sin is the situation of David and Bathsheba. David saw Bathsheba bathing on her rooftop. What should he have done? We all find ourselves in similar situations where we are presented with an opportunity for sin. If we do what David did and continue to gaze, entertain, dwell on, pursue and scheme in our hearts, we enter into sin. But if we allow the Holy Spirit to convict us and respond to His promptings we can avoid the sin that could so easily entangle us.

 

Does living a holy Christian life mean we must pluck and cut our bodies to avoid the sins of the world? No, we live a holy Christian life through the power of the Holy Spirit and by wearing of the armor of God mentioned in Ephesians 6. We need to heed the teachings of Jesus and take to heart His concerns about the importance of living a life pleasing to God. We are here to glorify Him, not allow the members of our bodies to become instruments of sin.

 

Romans 6:13 14

“Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.”