Oh Be Careful Little Eyes, pt.2 - Selected Scriptures

What did Jesus mean when he said that if you're right, I causes you to sin, you should pluck it out. If the problem is our heart.

What good will it do pluck out and I forgot all the hand The left, I lost.

If you have one lab can the left-hand commit sin if that's the one left.

Listen, love, and you can be blind, deaf mute paralyzed on a deserted island and loss. Whether you're active or doing nothing wherever you are.

Sin seems to be always crouching at the door.

That's because more than anything else.

Our sin problem is a problem of the heart. This is wisdom for the heart. Stephen Davey is working his way through a series entitled breaking up stony ground on yesterday's broadcast. He began a message that we didn't have time to complete. So working to bring you the second half of that lesson today. It's a lesson on the topic of lust and Stevens calling it OB careful little eyes will do a little bit of review and then conclude that lesson right now Jesus is first-rate, lost with uncompromising reality of it. Sin.

Secondly, we should treat lost with uncompromising severity. Verse 29. Again, if your right eye causes you to sin terror that out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell.

If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell. Now let me clear up some potential misunderstandings here before anybody reaches for James. Also just hang tight for just a moment. First, Jesus is not saying that people have committed lustful or even physically immoral acts are destined for hell.

The point isn't that they are doing them and are going to hell. The point is they want to keep doing them and don't think their sinful is is your deceived you want to justify it and defend it and continue it. Your actually headed for hell. Secondly, Jesus is not suggesting that you get out a literal knife and perform some kind of amputation watches now. If the problem is our hearts. What good will it do to pluck out and I were cut off the hand.

The right eye can't the left, I lost. If you have one left in the left-hand commit sin if that's the one left. Listen, beloved, you can be blind if mute paralyzed on a deserted island and lost because we bring our hearts with us now to the Jewish world the right way represented the best vision became to refer to your best plans your cherished possessions. Jesus is effectively saying you need to give up that which you are cherishing. You need to give up whatever those plans are those goals. If in fact they keep you within the grip of lost deal with it.

Treat sand with uncompromising severity this point, he clambered right in his book finally free on the same text of Scripture. He writes this I quote him Jesus want you to understand that you will need to get tough with your sin, you will need to employ extreme measures to limit access*temptation if you want the life God offers you will have to get serious about resisting sin will have to be aggressive get radical amputation even in this figurative sense will not be easy, as I research this text, I was reminded of a dear couple in our church who are thriving in their walk became the mind never forget when they came up to me after one of our morning services. Some time ago. The husband said let my wife and I we stayed up until 2 AM yesterday morning, throwing stuff away in our pursuit, we were tired of being on the fence. We were tired of of being lukewarm and wishy-washy and we just went around our house and we we erase stuff, pull stuff down bag stuff up and we threw stuff that's dealing with temptation severely it is and how much temptation we can manage. It's how far away from it we can stay it will detract us dilute our testimony and and and deceive our minds and it will eventually attempt to snuff out that fire for holiness that we want as we allow God's spirit to break up stony ground and become sensitive to his voice into his word again. Remember though throwing stuff away isn't going to change a lustful heart into a pure heart, you'll just be better looking Pharisee, make sure it's an issue of the heart first. That is repentant before God, and then get real and in your gonna call it sin, and then by means of the grace of God, whatever you throw away is coming out of a hard attitude to pursue the holiness of God by way of encouragement.

We looked at that text in first Thessalonians. For the sake of time will look again. But in chapter 4 Paul made that strong command. We studied to abstain from sexual immorality. Keep in mind that before Paul said that he began the paragraph by writing finally, brethren, brothers and sisters is telling believers to abstain to resist to Ron to repent so this is for us and all of us start fresh every day. If you go over one chapter in first Thessalonians to chapter 5 you find this wonderful balance in chapter 4 were told not to be involved in any sexual immorality were to make decisions. We are to choose to abstain. In chapter 5 he refers to sanctification in verse 23 and he says it this way now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely.

There's a balance is about in chapter 4 were told to make choices that work toward our sanctification to establish disciplines to set up parameters to throw stuff away in chapter 5 were told that God will sanctify us entirely. There is that one sentence that sanctification is the work of God on our behalf, and he will complete it and perfect us when we see Christ and were glorified in holy perfection. We long for the day. There is then the other sense, however, that we as believers choose to abstain. We choose to battle sin like John Bunyan said we post guards at our senses. We keep the gates shut. We present our bodies a living sacrifice to God. We make right choices and battles in the air gate in the nose gay. The eye gate in the field gate in the mouth, gazing every day we battle temptation was to come through one of those gates and where never allowed to say you know what I think I'm in a sit this one out to guide you take care of that when all by yourself. That's imbalance nor should we say you know what got in going to help me some have to do this all by myself.

You are 100 things to start balance as you battle each gate, especially the eye gate may provide in in the remainder of our time. Several steps to take in the right direction. We give you six steps in the right direction. By the way, this doesn't mean your sin or fail. But as one person said it so well it does mean that your toes are pointed in the right direction alike. Let's make sure toes are pointed in the right direction. First, enlist the help of anonymous phenomena, jump over the fact regular call it sin is going to be viewed as sin. We know it's wrong and when we really want to stop and think that was to jump to the enlist the help of anonymous French word accountability bring a mature friend of the same sex. By the way into the battle you're attempting them you're trusting them to hold you accountable.

By the way an accountability group. I have found over my ears and pastoring is absolutely ineffective. If you don't want to be accountable. You can actually be unaccountable in an accountability group. You can as easily lie to the other men or women in that accountability group as you want your own heart for those who truly want to do battle and break habits enlist the aid of a godly friend who will ask you those hard putting this is the proper context of James chapter 5 were told to confess our sins to to another one another to pray for one another, that you may be healed. That text is in a guaranteeing some quick fix to the physical healing affected stalking that spiritual and mental or emotional healing by breaking the bonds of sin enlist the help of a godly friend who will help you post a guard at the eye gate and every other gate. Secondly, rebuild the fences and bar the door. In other words, you need to fence yourself in as much as you possibly can know it then that what that means is you're going to need to eliminate the cut off your access to sinful temptation. You're not going to move to an island. You take your heart with you, but while we live in this world, let's be honest let's let's rebuild some fences that may have fallen over to get creative. Stay tough, don't. Don't cut yourself any slack. Put your computer in your master bedroom with the screen facing the bed where your wife or your husband can see it put stronger filters on your computer give access to your computer to a friend who can remotely come on at any time. I can tell you the blessing, knowing that we have an IT director here colonial in all of my stuff is connected here and he can come on at any time and sometimes he does. All of a sudden the mouth of the cursor starts moving and I know he's commended to work on something. It's actually very good for me to no income on it any time. I told him about those pictures to. By the way, in case he did put a GPS on your smart phone and have that friend be able to track your movements at any given moment to know exactly where you are, work, home, Krispy Kreme, whatever the temptation might be again. He Flamer writes this wonderful phrase he says our sin catch this RCN has turned us into inventors of evil, and we may end up finding more creative avenues for accessing pornography, especially as technological advances make it even more accessible so be diligent to apply these steps with each new invention built fences.

Some call them hedges bar that will only ask you question how serious is this issue to you a serious is how serious are are are we to breakup stony ground to allow the seed of God's word to 22.

Bring fruit fruit in the holiness maybe you need to throw away your computer or your laptop or go back to an old flip phone without any Internet access. You can barely even text. Get ready cable television is like an amputation that my getting closer to paying some of your wincing stop going to the movies stop staying up at night like you're reading a book. A good book, the Bible will do take cold showers sleep in the freezer if you have to. I don't care take steps because this is serious. Rebuild some fences and bar the third restock the shelves of your mind. The Bible doesn't just tell us to stop sinning.

It doesn't just say stop loss thing. It doesn't just say abstain from sexual immorality. We don't just lay aside the old self, which is corrupted with evil loss. Paul writes, but we also put on the new self, which is right in holy living. Ephesians 422 so so don't just empty the shelves and sweep it out your mind and and harden get rid of everything that's marginal and or compromising more sinful. Restock those shelves with good books, good music, good activities, good friend. Good movies if I asked you what book are you reading having none in the hopper is not a good sign. Pick something by Spurgeon purchase the Valley of vision or read from the little bit we've Artie referenced read something forth. Remember you're being watched. I think that's good enough and it will be careful little eyes. What you see that when you were little. For the father up above is watching down in love will be careful little eyes.

What you see is good for old eyes to one of the dangers of pornography online is anonymity alone. No one sees really went at that poor in our theology are we does not.

The host of heaven swirl about us do not. The angels observe even our worship tonight do not. The demons also swirl about us. Do they not take notes on what seems to work in our lives is not God watching. Do we really think there are no visible effects of secret sin. I remember as a 16-year-old getting my drivers license me up to think way back like me to the old days, 16 years old and sweet freedom. I was the kind of kid that I took driver's ed at the very earliest time I could get it and I got my license at the very earliest time I could get it. So I got it in May on my birthday. I can remember I was 16.

My father had this huge Buick LeSabre when they made cars really big number. The fins on those things home. Great stuff for 33 miles to gallon those kind of days you didn't have air-conditioning but then again neither did our home that was before the days of central air, but we just roll the windows down and that was our air-conditioning member of the summer. After I got my license.

My cousins arrived from Minnesota for a little holiday in my favorite cousin Mark was among them. I told him I had my license in and say hey let's go for a fork for drive and this I asked my dad for the keys whole families, their uncles and aunts, cousins, I asked him in a very chaotic moment when he wasn't thinking straight. He gave me the keys, but he did give me that look.

He often gave me communicated to me that I was his favorite son 12. Read the way I interpreted he sits on the Care Plus of… Words can circle the block.

I didn't tell him to break the sound barrier which is can circle the block.

I probably went 5 miles an hour down the red brick road that Rhode Island on for 18 years and it empties out in a dead end.

I turn right on that road.

Mark sitting next to me, that they go Buick LeSabre. It was 15, 16, 17 years old.

My parents were missionaries. Nothing was new, but it can't along just fine and that road emptied into military Highway fear from that area.

That's the main Dragon. The light was red. I looked over my cousin as we sat there, he looked at me and that light turned green, I know this is surprise you when that light turned green eyes slammed that accelerator down and we shot for all the windows rolled down after about 15 minutes.

We got up to 3030 miles an hour we were flighted all as I looked in my rearview mirror and all of a sudden there was smoke billowing out behind me. I mean, clouds of smoke was coming up on the right side of the car in the left-sided we were in both in this cloud and I thought, I'm not a mechanic but this can't be good. That was the thought I had in my mind, I pulled over on military Highway in.

We sat there we we finally got out, hiked across the service road to a dealership in use their phone and called my dad and my uncle Loel hopped in his car with my dad and they drove over to where we were to come a couple minutes to get there on the way back. Mark and I were sitting in the backseat, hoping there wouldn't be too many question in my father.

I still remember looking over at uncle Loel and saying he really was asking my uncle was more of a mechanic. He said the low house or something like that happen in my uncle slammed the accelerator down. We shot forward. I have never forgiven my uncle for doing that. By the way, we still don't speak.

I thought be sure your sins will live fine kids often to their detriment.

Sneak around adults. We think we can sneak around God.

Sin has a way of showing up. Consider pornography as the smoke pouring out oven and consecrated heart warning from the goodness of God that it's time to deal honestly and realistically and severely with sin. Fifth respondent to every temptation with alarm respond to every temptation with alarm be frightened by sin, hate sin.you see it coming and alarm bells start ringing deal with it. In fact, I love the Lee advice John Piper gave in his writings, he gave this perspective. He said we must not give lustful thoughts or any sinful images or impulses more than five second before we mount a violent counterattack with the mind, he writes, I mean that five seconds in the first two seconds shout to yourself.

No, get out of my head.

Then the battle begins. See, this is a mind the war the absolute necessity is to get the image and the impulse out of our mind. How he suggests this get a counter image into your mind, it must be an image that is so powerful that the other image cannot survive. For example, have you ever in the first five seconds of temptation focused on the scene of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Let me recommend that picture that you've just seen something that invites fantasy. You have five seconds to get it out of your mind immediately demanded of your mind, you fix its gaze on Christ dying for you on the cross. Use all your mental power to see his lacerated back focus 39 lashes of left little flesh intact. He heaves with his breath up and down against the rough vertical beam of the cross, each breath put splinters into the lacerated way. He tries to pull away from the wooden the massive spikes through his wrist, ripped into the nerve endings and he screams with agony and pushes up with his feet to get some relief to his wrist.

The bones and nerves in his pierced feet crush against each other with anguish and he cries out again. There is no relief. His throat is raw with thirst, his voice reaches a high pitch of pain and sobs break over his pain wracked body has every cry brings more and more pain now. He says I am not thinking that sinful thought any I am Calvert, behold, the man upon the cross my sin upon his shoulders, ashamed I hear my mocking voice call out among the scoffers. It was my sin that held him there until it was accomplished.

His dying breath. This brought me life. I know that it is finished.

It was my sin is that that held finally. Six. Rehearse often your total weakness and need for the strength of Christ. We give you another him lyric worth remembering. Did we get our own strength confide, our striving would be losing were not the right man on our side. The man of God's own choosing.

Does ask to that may be Christ Jesus. Is he Lord Savio's name from age to age the same. He must. The battle with that.

Stephen concludes today's lesson entitled OB careful little eyes here on wisdom for the heart. Today's lesson was a practical look at how to effectively deal with sin.

It might help you to listen to this lesson again or even read a copy of Stephen's manuscript we have those available for you on our website which you'll find@wisdomonline.org or there also on our smart phone app so using either of those resources, the website or the app you can listen to each day's lesson and read the printed manuscript that Stephen speaks from I want to take a moment right now and read a note that came in from one of our listeners.

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