Teaching About Adultery

How Jesus Embodied Self-Control Here

In this passage from the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus demonstrates profound self-control through his radical redefinition of moral purity. Rather than simply restating the external commandment against adultery, he exercises the discipline of penetrating to the heart of the matter: "whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart."

Jesus's self-control is evident in his refusal to take the easier path of surface-level morality. In first-century Palestine, religious teachers often focused on external compliance with the Law. Jesus could have simply reinforced the existing prohibition, but instead he exercised the mental and spiritual discipline to address the root issue—the interior life where true purity begins.

His dramatic imagery about plucking out the eye and cutting off the hand reveals not recklessness, but the ultimate expression of self-mastery. Jesus is teaching that true self-control requires such commitment that we would rather lose what seems essential than compromise our spiritual integrity. This hyperbolic language demonstrates his own disciplined thinking—he controlled his teaching method to create maximum impact while maintaining theological precision.

Even in addressing divorce, Jesus shows self-control by moving beyond legal technicalities to consider the vulnerable position of women in his culture. Where others might exploit loopholes in divorce law, Jesus exercises restraint and calls his followers to the same commitment to covenant faithfulness that characterizes his own relationship with humanity.

Following His Example

Guard Your Mental Environment: Just as Jesus addressed lust at the level of looking, we must exercise self-control over what we allow into our minds. This means making deliberate choices about entertainment, social media consumption, and even seemingly innocent browsing habits. Create specific boundaries—perhaps avoiding certain websites during particular times of day, or establishing phone-free zones in your home where temptation is reduced.

Practice Radical Amputation: When Jesus speaks of cutting off the hand or plucking out the eye, he's calling for decisive action against patterns that compromise our integrity. Identify one relationship, habit, or commitment in your life that consistently leads you away from self-control. Make a concrete plan to "amputate" it—delete the app, end the subscription, change your route to work, or ask a friend to hold you accountable for avoiding specific triggers.

Honor Commitments Beyond Legal Requirements: Jesus's teaching on divorce reveals self-control that goes beyond mere rule-following to covenant faithfulness. Apply this principle to your own promises and relationships. Instead of asking "What can I get away with?" in your marriage, friendships, or work commitments, ask "How can I honor the spirit of what I've promised?" This might mean staying late to finish a project properly, or choosing to speak kindly to your spouse even when you're technically "right" in an argument.

Echoes in Other Traditions

The principle of mastering internal desires before they manifest in harmful actions resonates across spiritual traditions worldwide. Whether through Buddhist mindfulness practices that observe thoughts without attachment, Islamic teachings on controlling the nafs (ego), or Stoic disciplines of examining our judgments and reactions, the recognition that true moral development begins in the interior life appears as a universal insight. These traditions share Jesus's understanding that external compliance without internal transformation is ultimately hollow, and that genuine spiritual maturity requires the cultivation of disciplined awareness and intentional restraint.