bookgirl:
My counseler always tells me you can’t “think” a mortal sin, you have to DO it.
This is not true. A sin can occur either by
comission or
omission. Thus, you can commit a mortal sin by
not doing something.
Furthermore, a thought of one’s heart can most certainly be a grievous sin:
Acts 8:22 Do penance therefore for this thy wickedness; and pray to God, that perhaps this thought of thy heart may be forgiven thee. 23 For I see thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bonds of iniquity.
Matthew 5:28 But I say to you, that whosoever shall look on a woman to lust after her, hath already committed adultery with her in his heart.
Matthew 12:34 O generation of vipers, how can you speak good things, whereas you are evil? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
Matthew 15:19 For from the heart come forth evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false testimonies, blasphemies.
The fact is, we should seek to be pure in our hearts
Matthew 5:8 Blessed are the clean of heart: for they shall see God.
Matthew 6:21 For where thy treasure is, there is thy heart also.
Philippians 4:8 For the rest, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever modest, whatsoever just, whatsoever holy, whatsoever lovely, whatsoever of good fame, if there be any virtue, if any praise of discipline, think on these things.
Still, it is true that
involuntary thoughts are not
necessarily sinful, because they can be representations of communication from outside ourselves, such as temptations. But they can also be our own evil dispositions manifesting themselves.
John 8:34 Jesus answered them: Amen, amen I say unto you: that whosoever committeth sin, is the servant of sin.
In either case, how we respond to them is important. In one, we must reject it to avoid falling into servitude; in the other we must acknowledge our sin and seek deliverance from our servitude.
hurst
