Eunuchs

Matthew 19: 12: For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother’s womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it.

A eunuch was a man who had been castrated so that he could no longer procreate. Jesus taught us that there are three types of eunuchs. The first is those who were born a eunuch from their mother’s womb. This means that they were born lacking sexual desire or the ability to engage in sexual activity. Others were born with a gift of celibacy, having no desire for companionship, and can happily live an unmarried life without a deep longing for a spouse and a family of their own. Also included in this group are those who were born with physical complications, making them unable to engage in sexual activity.

The second class of eunuch are those who were made into eunuchs by man. In some ancient eastern courts, male servants who tended to the royal women were castrated in order to prevent the possibility of them engaging in sexual activity. Even advisors and others of close and important positions to kings were castrated, so that they would not be distracted by sexual urges or by a family.

The third class of eunuch are those who made themselves such for the Kingdom of Heaven’s sake. These are not men who have been castrated or those who are born without strong sexual desire, but instead are those who willfully choose to lay aside their natural sexual desires and the right to be married and have a family, in order that they might focus themselves entirely upon the service of the Lord, with a single-minded devotion without other distractions disturbing them. The Lord Jesus and the Apostle Paul are the best examples of men who laid aside the married life and a family of their own for the sake of fulfilling their heavenly calling.