Of all the commandments, the Sixth Commandment is one of the most ignored in the Old Testament. Just consider Solomon’s seven hundred wives! Another story shows the web of deceit and unintended consequences that adultery can provoke. David’s desire for Bathsheba is so intense, he arranges the murder of her husband, Uriah. The union of the king with this beautiful woman (before Uriah’s death) leads to the illness of their first child, David’s intense fasting and prayer, and then the child’s death. The affair’s cost is terrible. If the story ended there, it would be a cautionary tale, sending a loud message about adultery’s evils. But the plot twist comes through the surprising mercy of God. The second child that thiscouple conceives is Solomon, Israel’s revered king and Jesus’ great-great-grandfather. When the crowd waved palm branches, hailing Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, they called him “Son of David.” Jesus as Son of God and Son of Man blends two natures: the divine, which is splendid beyond understanding; and human, which can get us snarled in lies, infidelity, and murder. Because Jesus is our brother, we also carry the same tension. At times, we are lofty and transcendent, then lowly and deceitful.

The Sixth Commandment calls us to be the best we can be: loyal, committed, and upright. We have been criticized as a “tissue culture” in which everything, including a spouse, canbe easily discarded. We work harder at our careers than our marriages and then wonder why couples eventually become disposable strangers. Adultery usually occurs only after the marriage has begun to disintegrate. Remaining faithful and loving throughout a long marriage is one of humanity’s finest accomplishments. We can get dewy-eyed and romantic about a wedding. We want the couple’s happiness, give them lavish gifts, and pray for abundant blessings. We should celebrate a silver or golden anniversary with the same vigor. The couple may be bent and pudgy, but they have woven a life together, composed of countless stresses, joys, failures, delights, arguments, illnesses, laughter, and achievements. They have talked through many issues and survived innumerable crises. They have negotiated finances, lifestyles, household duties, and parenting. The tie that binds them is a strongfabric made of tiny threads. As the Irish say, they become the “shelter for each other.” In achaotic world of change, people need this kind of permanent relationship.

Adultery short circuits this learning curve. People who flee at the first serious argument do not learn that there is more to their union than one disagreement. A fresh face may first seem to carry less baggage than the spouse, but adultery misses the chance to grow old with the same person who intimately knows and accepts our baggage. Marriage experts say that when we make a vow, we offer ourselves the way we cup water in our hands. Adultery not only harms the other person but also undermines the best we are. When the vow is broken, the water spills out of our hands. Remaining faithful enables us to be like God, whose compassion never wavers and whose presence weathers all storms. A story about an Alzheimer’s patient in a care center ties the bow to complete this consideration of fidelity. A nursesaid compassionately to a husband who traveled a great distance to visit his wife who wasthe patient: “You really do not need to come every day. She doesn’t know you now.” The husband replied: “Ah, but I know her.” May our following of this commandment give usthat kind of commitment.

About the Author: Kathy Coffey is the award-winning author of thirteen books and countless articles on living the Christian life. She is also an educator, retreat director, mother offour children, and grandmother of six children. If you enjoyed this week’s message, be sure to check out “Bringing Home the Word.” A new edition is posted to this page every Saturday morning (see link below)! Please join us! All are welcome!

CCGR Weekly Newsletter (7-22-18) 
Bringing Home the Word (7-22-18) 

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