CARRYING IN THE MIND
Oct 13, 2025
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SERMON STORIES: LAUGH & LEARN
#4: CARRYING IN THE MIND
Two monks were on their way home to their monastery. They came to a river and saw a beautiful young woman standing by the bank. She told them that she needed to get across but was afraid.
The older monk took her into his arms, and carried her across the river. He put her down on the other side, and the two monks continued their journey.
An hour later, the younger monk asked, “How could you do that? You touched a woman; you carried her in your arms.”
The older monk replied, “Yes, I carried her. But I put her down. Now, one hour later, you are still carrying her in your mind.”
Jesus gets to the root of sin. It begins in the mind and heart. Murder begins with hatred. Adultery starts with lust. What goes on in the mind, though unseen and hidden, is as bad as (even worse than) what happens outside, though seen and obvious.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Matt 5.27-28 ESV
