Hi Gang,

First off, I must reassure you that I am drinking coffee right now… my 2nd pot of Aldi’s brand of Kona. Whether it is really Kona, I suppose I shall never know. But it is delightful nonetheless. *Sip*… ahhhh 😉 And what a nice hot drink for a snowy day!

Today I want to discuss the 6th commandment given to Moses. And when I say discuss, I suppose I mean to say that I give my estimation, what I believe to be true. And you all either add your points or your opinions or challenges or whatever…okay…

Exodus 20:13
You shall not murder.

Pretty easy huh? But get this right off the bat; the word used is murder, not kill. Not too long ago (Last Thanksgiving) I had a debate about this with one of my friends who grew up going to Catholic churches. And the Catholic versions of Bibles use the word “kill”. The word “kill” is too broad. The manner/ method/ motivation is ambiguous. However, the word “murder” is used (coming from the Hebrew) and is more specific. It involves a sense of injustice.

If the word was “kill”, then Almighty God Himself would have violated His own command many times in the Bible. But the Hebrew word is “murder”. And just as a footnote reminder… what is right and wrong is determined by God, not man’s opinion. Agreed? 😉

Jesus helps us to understand this command on a deeper level.

Matthew 5:21-22
You have heard that it was said to those of old, “You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment”. But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, “You fool!” will be liable to the hell of fire.

When you think about murder, perhaps you think of someone who devised a plan and carried out the act. Where was that plan devised? Not at the local diner, silly! But initially in that person’s mind. What do you suppose would cause a person’s thoughts to be postal? That person may have been angry, shouting insults like “You fool! Do you think I would never find out??”

Perhaps a famous football player learned his wife was cheating on him… would he be happy? No… he would likely be super duper angry. And suppose someone was angry from childhood… bitterness, resentment, more and more leading to a seething with rage. This is not too far from “murderous” thoughts. In fact, Jesus is saying that the attitude of anger, or the seed of anger finds its ultimate culmination in murder, if left unchecked or removed by the grace of God.

This is why such 11’o-clock news bits that say “An SUV killed 3 people when it drove on the sidewalk” or “An innocent bystander was killed by an AK-47 on South Street last night” are really misstating the reality. Both an SUV and an AK-47 are inanimate objects that need an
operator… a person to make it go.

So thinking “I wish they were dead” is a serious deal to God. In fact, I would even say that anything other than righteous indignation is not good. A bitter and resentful attitude is really a cancer to the spirit. Trust me on this! If you find yourself unwilling to be forgiving towards others, you need to sit yourself down and get to the bottom of why not. In my many such “sit-downs” with myself, I realized my pride was the culprit. My ego had been wounded. Certain people were indebted to me, and I would not give them any stimulus money 😉 But in the end, I knew I had to forgive them and let it go.

Have you experience the same thing in your life? Would you like to share your story?

And this leads me to the other point to be made…

In terms of love… the 6th command is showing us that we are to be humane… compassionate, considerate, etc.

Just think of it this way… If someone deliberately hurts you, consider their standing before God. If they were able to do what they did, could they have done that in good standing before God? Probably not. Therefore, we should pray for them, that God would stir their hearts to be kind and compassionate and sensitive to others.

Jesus said
Matthew 5:44 “But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,”

So lastly, if all this is true, how do you think the 6th command applies to Capital punishment or on the battlefield??

Comments and questions encouraged!

Peace,
Jim