|
Favorits •
Web Domain Directory •
ODP •
Annuaire FR •
Directorio ES •
Directory EN •
Diretório PT •
IT Katalog •
Czech Katalog •
Polski Katalog •
Maps •
Satellite Photos •
View Card
|
||
|
|
Religion |
|
|
| ||
 |
Cut Off Your Hand!
Cut off your Hand! Arguably the most bizarre command of Christ is found in Matthew 5:29-30, where he tells us to pluck out our eyes or cut off our hands if they cause us to sin. "It is better to enter heaven blind and lame," he says, "than to have a healthy body and be cast into hell." This passage is often quoted as proof that Jesus never meant for us to take him literally. To be honest, we've never plucked out an eye or cut off a hand ourselves, and we know of no saint who ever did. We have heard of a few mental patients who did, however! So maybe Jesus did not mean for it to be taken literally... and if he did not mean for us to take that literally, then maybe he didn't mean for us to take anything else he said literally either. No way! We cannot accept that line of reasoning. If Jesus is really the Son of God, then trying to make him conform to our finite wisdom is blasphemy. Let's start with the mental patients. If you or I cut a hand off, wouldn't we be committed to a mental hospital too? So what if the hand choppers aren't all crazy? And is it really true that people who are widely recognised as being sane have never cut off a hand or plucked out an eye? Check the medical records of any hospital and you'll find that amputations and organ removals are commonplace. Life threatening conditions like gangrene or cancer often lead people to take such extreme steps. A railway worker in outback Australia was bitten on the hand by a deadly brown snake. He had no hope of getting to a hospital before the poison killed him. So he grabbed an axe and chopped off his own hand. He was not locked up. In fact, he was commended for his courage. Obviously he showed good sense too. The loss of a hand was of lower priority than life itself. Try this experiment. Get a very sharp pocket knife and put it in your pocket or purse for one day, with the understanding that you will cut your hand off (or maybe just put a big gash in it) before you will let it lead you into sin. Just do it for one day. And see if you don't think very seriously about everything that you do that day. With a knife in your pocket, you begin to confront the seriousness of sin. It is so easy to make spiritually fatal decisions without thinking about their consequences. Physical threats are usually visible and immediate, so we tend to act more quickly to avoid them. A chopped off hand (or even the threat of it) might be just what we need to get things back into correct perspective. The whole context of Christ's command was to show us that, if physical life is worth such drastic action, then spiritual life is worth even more. Most of us would lack the courage to do what that railway worker did to save his physical life. But we should be much more motivated if we thought that our failure to act would mean eternal death. And in either case we should be able to recognise the good sense of such an action even if we lack the courage to do so ourselves. Muslims practise such 'atrocities' as cutting off the hands of thieves; and Jews teach "an eye for an eye". America actually executes dozens of people each year in the name of morality. All Jesus asks is that we show this same kind of discipline on our selves. Is that so bizarre? And now for the loophole you've all been hoping for. (Though, to be honest, if you don't go through the stage of being willing to cut off your hand or pluck out your eye, you may not qualify for the loophole.) Obviously it is not your hand or your eyes that actually cause you to sin. Cutting a thief's hand off does not stop the greed that caused the theft in the first place. What we need to think more seriously about is a 'heart' transplant! Jesus said "Where your treasure is, there will your heart be." (Matthew 6:21) And he says to forsake our treasure if we want to be his disciple. (Luke 14:33) Paul says the love of money is the root of all evil. (I Timothy 6:10) So this is what we must cut out. As extreme as amputation may be, most people would rather lose an arm or leg than give up their wealth and their source of income. But Jesus says to pick up that axe and hack away at the real causes of sin in your life. We think he is quite literal about forsaking the root of all evil. Smash your pride. Pluck out your emotionalism. Cut off your visible means of support. So that you can begin (right now!) to live by faith in the eternal kingdom of heaven. (See also the article "The Root of All Evil".) Dave McKay, and his wife Cherry, are co-founders of the Jesus Christian communities, in Australia, England, Kenya, and the U.S. The community is dedicated to at least trying to literally obey the various teachings of Jesus. Visit their website at http://www.jesuschristians.com or email Dave at
MORE RESOURCES: |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
The Rapture, A coming Event; Part 2 The Rapture. Part 2. Where is God? Where is God? This is the question most often heard when things are not going right in our lives or we hear of senseless fatalities or extreme injustices. But I pose this question today because I cannot find Him in ways that I could when I was growing up. How to Solve a Wonderful Mystery The first issue we must recognize is the way God uses the word Gentile in His Word. The context will usually show you how the words are meant to be used. The New Urban Christian Who are these new Urban Christians? What's up with the afros, long hair, grunge or gangster attire? Have you been to a Christian rock concert? You can hardly tell the difference between it and a Rolling Stones Concert - there are crowds of long-haired teens and young adults, swaying to the music, holding up lighters. Have you been to a Gospel concert? It's just like going to see any popular R&B artist - everybody's in their nicest clothes (which includes low riders and midriff tees), fur coats are front and center and people drive up in Hummers, Navigators and Escalades, bling-blinging away. Following Instructions To The Letter The dictionary explains wisdom as having good judgement, understanding, comprehension and intelligence. It also explains wise as being perceptive, intelligent, and knowledgeable. Christian Universalism, Calvinism, and Arminianism: Where Do You Fit In? All of the various denominations of professing Christians may be classified as either Calvinists, Arminianists, or Universalists. While fancy titles are very impressive, the bottom-line behind these titles is unveiling the details of what these groups actually believe about the gospel of Jesus Christ. Following In the Masters Footsteps In these interesting times of change, millions of people the world over are struggling to find their personal truth - a truth that will sustain them through their present moments and through whatever the future may bring. There are as many definitions of what will happen to this planet in the next fifteen years as there are belief systems, but in the midst of the dissension is one commonality, and that is worldwide agreement that change - in whatever form it takes - is inevitable. Why The Devil Is He Out To Get You? The devil's agenda for tricking Adam and Eve into eating the wrong fruit and thus rebelling against God, was so he could be like the most high GOD himself.The devil (Lucifer) cleverly devised his plan to be like God by tricking Adam and Eve into eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil instead of The tree of Life. Is Your Life Significant? "I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it." - Matthew 16:18 (NASU)The words of Jesus above spoken to Peter conveyed many meanings. Learn How to Be Delivered From Witchcraft, Drugs, Sexual Perversion, Pain and all Addictions. Exposing Hidden SinFor nothing is secret that shall not be made manifest; neither any thing hid, that shall not be known and come abroad. (Luke 8:17). Understanding How To Pray - Part 1 of 2 Being in the Ministry for a few years now, I've noticed one major issue that most Christians seem to have trouble with that issue is understanding prayer.I can not count how many times people talk as if prayer is a foreign thing, or the numbers of prayers will equal success with getting God to move on your part. Heaven and Hell Heaven is a bribe and hell is a punishment. Be good and act a certain way and you will be granted admission to heaven and not be condemned to burn forever. Why Christian and Atheist Libertarians Get Along I'm the most religious guy in the Libertarian Party. At least that's what my friend, Charlie, decided. The Rapture Here is the 50 million dollar question - will there be a Rapture of God's saints before the Tribulation, or will all of God's people living at that time have to go through the Tribulation and possibly be martyred for their faith?I'm going to go ahead and give you the main Scripture verses dealing with the possibility of a Rapture. There is divided opinion in the Body of Christ as to whether or not there is going to be a rapture. Helping Others - What Did Jesus Say? Helping others was something Jesus did on a daily basis. He was constantly approached by people, but He always found time to stop what He was doing to help those in need. Balancing the Apple Cart About forty women squatted in small clusters on the floor in the room. They had assembled for a special meeting of the self-help groups that would be led by their supervisor. Jesus the Pharisee RESPONSE TO PAULINE CHRISTIANITY: - The whole of Christendom is not Popery or Romanized but the Pauline influence is arguably the strongest doctrine in the whole of philosophy and theology. 'The Mythmaker: Paul and the Invention of Christianity' by Hyam Maccoby say these things on the back cover:"Defying the accepted view of Jesus as creator of Christianity, Hyam Maccoby, a leading Talmudic scholar, offers a brilliantly argued, boldly provocative challenge to traditional theories about the origin of the Christian religion and leads us to a startling unorthodox conclusion. White Sun - Tao of Heaven: Heaven and Man are One Entity The whole universe originated from Tao. Mankind also originated from Tao. Abraham and the Leather Scroll The Dead Sea Scrolls continue to be found and there are many interesting discoveries about the era and region to be found in them. One of the more interesting aspects of these finds has to do with a leather scroll that was written to seem as if Abraham had been its author. The Study of Saints and Why Its Important Sainthood?that title given by the Catholic Church that seems to draw so much criticism from so many denominations. The mere mention of it angers some people.
|