Lest You Sin, Cut Off Your Hand

I read an astonishing article today over at Fox News about Jessica Queller who writes and produces for the CW show called "Gossip Girl." The story reads,

In 2005, Queller, a supervising producer and one of the head writers of the ultra-successful CW series “Gossip Girl,” opted to have a double mastectomy even though she didn’t have breast cancer. And, in two years, she plans to have her ovaries removed – even though she doesn’t have ovarian cancer.

Queller, now 38, made these radical decisions after watching her mother battle breast cancer and die from ovarian cancer. Then, Queller tested positive for the breast cancer 1, or BRCA1 mutation, so she had the preventative mastectomy and reconstructive surgery.

That is amazing and I honestly couldn't get my head around it at first. Most surgeries are reactive, not proactive, especially ones involving cancer. You wait for cancer to strike, then you have surgery. But as I thought about it, it made sense. She knows what is likely to happen. Why not take your life into your own hands?

And as I thought about her physical plight, I was reminded of our spiritual one. Jesus said in Matthew 5: 30, "And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell." Jesus was being largely polemical here, but the metaphor was meant to convey deadly seriousness. Once you have been purchased by the blood of Christ, you are no longer beholden to two things: sin and the law. You are not beholden to sin in the sense that because your nature is now inextricably linked with Christ, you are able to avoid sin, even in this fallen world. Regarding the law, you now use it to delight in the Lord, not as an instrument to win God's favor. And the implication of that is you can now take direct action to avoid the sin that used to rule you. "Cut off your hand!" Or, be drastic. Get rid of your TV, get in an accountability group, pray, admit sin to your friends, install filters on your computer, etc.

Be like Jessica Queller and cut up your life. You know what is coming. Avoid it now.