Matthew 5:21a, 31b-32 - [Jesus said] "You have heard that it was said to those of old, ... 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.' But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery."

What in the world does that mean—everyone who divorces his wife makes her commit adultery? That's a really weird way to say it. How can you make someone commit adultery? How can you force a sin?

The more I learned about the ancient world, the easier it was to understand this. Women in those days didn't have many ways of supporting themselves. If their husbands divorced them, their two main choices were prostitution or remarriage. Either would involve breaking the sexual union of their first marriage. Or, I suppose, they could starve—they and their children.

What a choice they faced! Small wonder if they fell into adultery. The sin might have been theirs, but in Jesus' own words, it was their husbands who "made them" do it.

"Oh," we might say, "but things are different now." But the truth is, there are still many ways that a powerful person can practically force a sin upon someone else. Suppose you have a parent who refuses to pay child support—who exactly is to blame if the other parent starts stealing in order to have enough money to feed the children? It's not the thief alone, is it? Or suppose you have a boss who puts impossibly high standards on his workers and punishes them severely if they don't meet the standards. The workers will start falsifying their records, almost guaranteed—but their bosses are joined with them in that sin.

All this makes me wonder if there are situations in my life where I might be using my power to put someone else in an impossible situation—to make the temptation to lie or cheat or steal almost irresistible. As I live my ordinary Christian life, is it possible—God forbid—have I turned myself into a walking, talking temptation for a fellow Christian?

If so, there's only one thing for me to do—to repent and throw myself on the mercy of Jesus Christ, our Savior. He is the only one who can take away the sin of all of us, both the tempted and the tempters. He is the only one who can clean up these impossible messes and set us free to be pure, kind, honorable children of God.

Jesus knows all about these situations—after all, He Himself was forced into a situation where He either had to lie or lose His life (see Matthew 26:63-66). And He can help us when we are trapped in similar ways. We are not heroes, not great saints—but He is. And Jesus lives in us, because He gave His life for us and rose again, and we trust in Him. He will give us wisdom and courage even when we see no way out. And He will have mercy on us when we fall, picking us up again and making us clean and forgiven in the eyes of God the Father.

WE PRAY: Dear Lord, if I am hurting someone in this way, make it clear to me—and forgive me. Amen.

This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.

Reflection Questions:

1. When have you been severely tempted to sin by the pressure of a fellow Christian?

2. Did they even realize what they were doing to you? If so, how did they learn it?

3. When you are under severe temptation, how does Jesus help you?

Today's Bible Readings: Exodus 7-8    Matthew 25:1-30

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