‘Sin’ is the trouble that breaks relationships

Morning: Psalm 78:1-39; 2 Kings 5:19-27; I Corinthians 5:1-8

Evening: Psalm 78:40-72; Matthew 5:27-37

The ‘Sermon on the Mount’ is full of wisdom; challenges too! Jesus’ hyperbole – “cut away an eye or hand that causes you to sin” – shows how important right relationships are for him.  ‘Sin’ is anything that breaks down right relationships. In Jesus’ day, men used divorce to escape their responsibility to women, treating women like chattels, and leaving women very vulnerable. So, for Jesus, adultery was a serious disordering of human relationships.  Swearing oaths in God’s name puts people’s relationships with God in jeopardy too. Why? Because people forget their oaths, and, when they do, other people stop trusting God.

Graham