What is a pandemic? According to Merriam Webster’s online dictionary, a pandemic is an “outbreak” occurring over a wide geographic area and affecting an exceptionally high proportion of the population. I would consider adultery to be of pandemic proportions considering the high rate of marital suffering, divorce, sickness and disease among a high proportion of the world. What do you think? Let’s take a closer look and examine this issue.
If you knew of a dangerous virus going around in the city where you lived that caused fever, chills, nausea, severe diarrhea, and vomiting, and death to those with a weak immune system, you would probably stay as far away from the city as possible? At the least, you would wear a hospital mask over your face to avoid the harmful germs, right?
Adultery is like a virus but much worse. It spreads from person to person like a virus and if a person is not spiritually well, it will entangle them within its insidious hold and cause much spiritual and mental anguish, not to mention, in many cases, physical illness, deterioration, and death.
As with any pandemic that we learn about we always go out of our way to avoid the offender, lest we too become sick. Viruses become a pandemic only because people do not take the needed precautions in the beginning of its destruction. Sometimes it is because of filthy conditions or lack of knowledge but once we figure out the cause we avoid it like the plague, no pun intended.
Do we avoid sex outside of marriage? Why not?
I would very much consider adultery to be a disease since it damages many more individuals as does any bird or swine flu virus or cholera ever will. In fact adultery symptoms carry with it all kinds of harm to those affected by it, not only in the mental and spiritual sense but also in the physical sense. Adultery is the main cause of disease and sickness in people, not bird/swine flu, influenza, cholera, or the Ebola virus. But is anyone avoiding sex outside of marriage? Is anyone avoiding sex before marriage?
Proverbs talks about what adultery and fornication can do to the human soul, mind, and body. People spray insect repellent on their bodies to stop mosquitoes from sucking their blood, and people stop eating contaminated meat so they will not contract the bird flu virus and Mad Cow disease. But what do people do to stop from having sex outside of marriage? Absolutely nothing!
God does not stand over people with a paddle and tell them to stop having sex outside of marriage or to stop having sex before marriage. He lets them make their own choices in life. God lets us know that adultery and fornication are forbidden but the majority is not listening. What a disservice we are doing to our Creator by not staying spiritually fit and healthy. He has blessed us with wisdom and knowledge and yet we take it all for granted.
What do you think temptation is?
Temptation is not a sin – giving in to that temptation is. Everyone on this planet gets tempted, but not everyone gives into it. Why is that? How is your spiritual wellness? Are you spiritually able to say no? Why or why not?
This is why Jesus said for us to not even “look” at another with lust in our heart because we will cave in. Isn’t that what happens, “we look and we think” and then we cave in? But what if we did not “look” with lust in our eyes? What if we ask God daily to be our protector and watch over us? Is anyone making that choice?
The pandemic of adultery is trying to suck everyone in with it, and doing pretty good job at it. Are you going to cave in and become entangled within its grip too? The consequences of adultery can actually result in people getting weak and diseased. That is why it is a sin! I believe there will be consequences of our actions, if not now then later.
God wants us to be rich in love and healthy in our bodies and minds, but adultery and fornication cause us to be poor in love and sick in our bodies and minds. Do you see then, WHY God wants us to avoid adultery and fornication? Both will take away our health and wealth.
Now then, my sons listen to me;
do not turn aside from what I say.
Keep to a path far from her.
Do not go near the door of her house,
lest you give your best strength to others
and your years to one who is cruel,
lest strangers feast on your wealth
and your toil enrich another man’s house.
At the end of your life you will groan
when your flesh and body are spent.
Proverbs 5:7-11
It is never to late to accept purity and love for your marriage – It is NOT too late. “Come out of her my people.” If you have been weak in the past but want to turn your life around, God will make you strong and prosperous. You can begin to make your marriage important to you and be a responsible and loving spouse. Faith in your Creator is all you need. He gives us the ammunition we need to stay away from temptation, but it is up to us to make the choice with our eyes and with our mind.
We have choices. When someone is sick with a pandemic virus, we stay away from him or her. When someone we know is trying to lure us into temptation we have to stay away from those kinds of situations and people. The adultery pandemic will never go away. It is here to stay. But YOU do not have to be a part of it. Just say no!