Daisy Smith was hosting a scrap booking party and had invited the moms in the congregation along with their daughter to join her in the fellowship hall of the church to work on their pictures. To her delight there was a rather large turn out and they spent hours pouring over pictures, drinking coffee, eating various deserts, and laughing at family stories.
One such story involved Bernadette
Henderson and how she managed to mix things up on another of the ten
commandments. It all started, according to Martha Peterson, when
Bernadette stopped by to play with Stella, or at least that what she
thought she was doing there but in Bernadette's words, she had come
to warn her.
“Warn me?” Martha said, “Warn me
of what? I asked her.” “Weren't you listening to the sermon on
Sunday?” Bernadette asked me and that started rambling on about how
I was breaking the seventh commandment. And if she was here today
she would have probably told us that most of us were.” When the
ladies heard that several of them gasped in horror for they knew what
the seventh commandment was.
“'WHAT?' I gasped, I never broke
that commandment.” Martha said she told Bernadette. “'Yes you
did.' Bernadette insisted, 'You grew up.' 'Well, yeah', I told her
'But what does that have to do with the seventh commandment? And here
is what she said, 'It says “Thou shalt not commit adultery and you
became an adult.”
After a bit of laughter, Martha
continued her story, “'I think you’re a little mixed up.' I told
her, 'I didn't brake the seventh commandment.' 'Are you telling me
you never grew up? Bernadette asked when I said that, 'You sure look
older than 18.' I am older than 18 I assured her. ' Than that means
your an adult and if you’re an adult you broke the seventh
commandment.' Bernadette insisted to me.”
“It took me nearly half an hour,”
Martha continued, “Before I was able to convince her that becoming
an adult doesn't mean you commit adultery. 'You mean it’s safe to
grow up?' She finally asked. 'Yes, I told her, She could grow up and
become an adult.' Still she said she didn't want to become an adult
but stay a kids forever. When I asked her how she was going to keep
from growing up, she said she was just going to quit having
birthdays.”
“Sounds like all of us.” someone
piped in when they heard that. “I quit having birthdays years
ago.” someone else added and then everybody laughed. Once the
laughter settled down, Martha finished her story telling them how
Bernadette said she had to go tell a whole bunch of people, including
her mom, that they had not committed adultery.
When I think of adultery there are two
things that immediately come to mind – the seventh commandment -
Exodus 20:14 You shall not commit adultery. (NASB) and the
story of David and Bathsheba. What doesn't come to mind is growing
up / becoming an adult.
The story of David and Bathsheba can
be found in 2 Samuel 1. Here is a part of that story - Now when
evening came David arose from his bed and walked around on the roof
of the king's house, and from the roof he saw a woman bathing; and
the woman was very beautiful in appearance. So David sent and
inquired about the woman. And one said, "Is this not Bathsheba,
the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?" David
sent messengers and took her, and when she came to him, he lay with
her; and when she had purified herself from her uncleanness, she
returned to her house. The woman conceived; and she sent and told
David, and said, "I am pregnant." (NASB)
So, what is adultery? The Holman
Illustrated Bible Dictionary describes it as follows: An act of
unfaithfulness in marriage that occurs when one of the marriage
partners voluntarily engages in sexual intercourse with a person
other than the marriage partner.
When you read through the Bible, you
can find many stories of adultery besides that of David and
Bathsheba. You can also read that God is serious when it comes to
keeping the 7th commandment.
- Deuteronomy 22:22 If a man is found lying with a married woman, then both of them shall die, the man who lay with the woman, and the woman; thus you shall purge the evil from Israel. (NASB)
- Leviticus 20:10 'If there is a man who commits adultery with another man's wife, one who commits adultery with his friend's wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death. (NASB)
Remember the woman in the New
Testament that was brought before Jesus. She had committed adultery
– not sure why they didn't bring the man – and her accusers
wanted Jesus to say she deserved to be executed for they knew what
the law said. Jesus agreed but showed her mercy after the accusers
walked away.
Jesus lets us know in the New
Testament that adultery goes beyond the physical act in Matthew
5:27-28 "You have heard that it was said, 'YOU SHALL NOT
COMMIT ADULTERY'; but I say to you that everyone who looks at a
woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in
his heart. (NASB)
Of course, this doesn't mean all sex
is out, after all God created it. I don't quote from the Message
paraphrase very often but here Hebrews 13:4 Honor marriage, and
guard the sacredness of sexual intimacy between wife and husband. God
draws a firm line against casual and illicit sex. (MSG)
Here's Something To Ponder
- How serious are you willing to take the 7th commandment?
- How guilty are you in light of Jesus word's in Matthew?
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