Think long

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TODAY’S SPECIAL: Matthew 5:21-37

TO CHEW ON: “‘If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast t from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than that your whole body be cast into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish than for your whole body to be cast into hell.’” Matthew 5:29,30


While I don’t think Jesus was seriously suggesting self-immolation here, His radical instructions do make us take notice. What His comparisons say to me are: if something you see or do is causing you to sin, that organ, reaction, or habit demands serious action.

Why?

Because the consequence of giving in to sinful patterns can reach into eternity.

This is an apt warning in our day when we make so many snap decisions without much thought to how they will impact the next hour, not to speak of forever. Our online life alone encourages quick Yes’s or No’s as with the almost imperceptible movement of a finger we “Click,” “Like,” “Share,” “Send.”

I like a “rule” I heard about on Christine Caine’s “Propel” DVD teaching series—the 10-10-10 rule: When making a decision, ask: How will I feel about that / how will it affect my life in 10 minutes, 10 months, 10 years?

Jesus would extend that even further. He might ask us: “How will your decisions today affect your eternity?"

PRAYER: Dear Jesus, please help me to consider the eternal consequences of each day’s decisions and actions. Amen.

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.