Whenever the subject of adultery is discussed anywhere, the following reactions are expected: Anger, disgust, pain and then shame.
The fact that adultery is unfortunately quite common and is responsible for the breakdown of most marriages in today’s society doesn’t make it less of a scandal.
As Christians we do know that God abhors adultery. You’ll find evidence of this fact all over the bible. It’s stated categorically in the 10 commandments, carved in stone for effect. In fact, according to the law of Moses, the punishment for adultery is death.
Leviticus 20:10 (NLT)
“If a man commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, both the man and the woman who have committed adultery must be put to death.
That being said, adultery in New Testament realities, go far beyond physical marital relationships.
When we got born again, we become joined with Christ. One with him. As a church, he calls us his BRIDE. We are currently betrothed (Engaged) to him and the wedding ceremony will happen when we get to heaven. See 2 Corinthians: 11:2, Revelation: 19:7, Therefore if we are his bride, then he’s our bridegroom and he requires our faithfulness.
Ephesians 5:22-33 compares the relationship and responsibilities of the husband and wife to the relationship of Jesus and us, the church. Verse 25 tells husbands to “Love your wife as Christ also loved the church.” And the 27th verse shows the Lord’s desire to “Present to Him the church in all her glory having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.”
This clearly shows how intimate Jesus wants us to be with him and how pure the relationship he wants us to have with him is.
But are we really faithful?
This post is titled “the Christian and the adulterer” because I have realized that so many of us are with Christ our bridegroom, yet unfaithful to him. In what way you ask?
Matthew 5: 27 -28
27 “You have heard the commandment that says, ‘You must not commit adultery.’[j] 28 But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
In the light of what Jesus said here, whenever we are attracted to the ways and pleasures of life outside Christ, we have committed adultery. We have looked outside “lustfully”.
James 4:4 (NLT)
4 You adulterers! Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God
When we become friends with worldliness, comfortable with the world’s view of living, we have abandoned faithfulness and have become adulterers
Look around you. The 21st century Christian is comfortable with bribery, comfortable with unmarried couples cohabiting, comfortable with financial fraud at work, makes excuses for pornography, and even accepts homosexuality in order to be politically correct.
More and more Christians comprise on Gods standards just to “fit in” with the worlds system of doing things.
We are not called to fit in. We are called out to stand out.
No wonder we are encouraged to “set our sights on the realities of heaven”. (Colossians 3: 1-3) Because on this earth, there are distractions that will test our faithfulness to our bridegroom. We cannot afford to be like the foolish virgins who were unprepared when their bridegroom came.
Jesus wants an intimate relationship with His church. In Philippians 3:8, the apostle Paul says, “More than that, I count all things to be a loss in the view of knowing Jesus Christ my Lord.” This is the kind of intimacy we should desire to have with him. An intimacy that shuts out the world and its temporary pleasures.
May we all repent of our unfaithfulness and make a commitment to remain faithful today, looking forward with anticipation to an eternity of perfect union with Jesus Christ, our bridegroom.