November 4
So not worth it
If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched… Mark 9:43 (NKJV)
“Hang on…I didn’t just read that, right? Tell me that’s not really in the Bible.” It is, and not only that, it’s something Jesus said, so it’s as authoritative as you can get. “If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to hell.” What exactly is Jesus saying here?
We know that there are two things Jesus is not saying. First, He isn’t saying sin can be fixed through external measures. When you step back and look at the language Christ is using here, it’s obvious He’s using hyperbole. As a communicator, He’s exaggerating something for the sake of greater effect. Jesus wants people to stop and say, “Wait, what did He say?” And it really works in this case! But cutting off our hands won’t solve our struggle with sin, because it’s not the hand that causes us to sin. That comes from the heart, and our desire to sin can only be changed internally as God’s Spirit makes us holy from within (Galatians 5:16-18).
Second, He isn’t saying our sinful failures send us to hell. God’s Word is undeniably clear that people are already on their way to eternal judgment because they’re born into a sinful condition (John 3:18). But once they recognize this and believe Jesus died on the Cross to cancel their sinful debt, they are fully forgiven…not based on what they do but on what Christ has done.
So what does this passage mean?
In the most graphic way possible, Jesus paints a picture for us that says, “Sin is so not worth it.” It’s not worth it on any level, and we need to take its presence in our lives seriously…serious enough to get it out of our lives. Sin always gets more out of us than we get out of sin, and that’s worth remembering the next time we’re tempted to entertain it.
Think About It…
What does this passage reveal to me about God?
What does this passage reveal to me about myself?
Based on this, what changes do I need to make?
What is my prayer for today?
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