Exodus 20:13 “Thou shalt not kill.”
Another one of those, “I got this” verses, but not so fast! 😉
This commandment seems straightforward and easy to understand and follow. This is referring to murder not to all killing. Certainly, self-defense and capital punishment are reasons to take a life that is not murder. Capital punishment was enforced in Genesis 9:5-6. God said that those who shed innocent blood must be put to death at the hands of those in authority. In our world today, we have truly perverted the meaning here because we have made the murder of the innocent legal. That is what abortion does, it murders the innocent! We are just like the Pharisees! They were very good at keeping the letter of the law. If the law said it was ok there were no questions asked. It was what they did best, but they never dealt with the intent of the heart.
We all know it is wrong to murder anyone. We’ve been taught that all our lives. We think that if we are good moral people and don’t physically murder someone that we are off the hook. However, Jesus takes this commandment one step further. He takes it to a level of the thoughts and intentions of the heart, where all of us live. He gives insight into the original purpose of the sixth commandment. He takes them back to the root of murder. Jesus wants them to see we are all guilty of murder because we have been angry in word, thought, attitude or action. Just because you refrain from pulling the trigger doesn’t mean you are not guilty.
Matthew 5:21-22 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.
When I read the response of Jesus to this command I think of the young man David. None thought he was capable of killing Goliath but in 1 Samuel 16:7 it is very clear that God does not judge on the outward, but rather what is in the heart. The outward can dress up and put on a good appearance, but God deals with the reality of the heart. God sees what is real! We may cover up how we truly feel about someone from man, but nothing is hidden from God.
Jesus goes further in his indictment. He pronounces them guilty enough to go to hell! Fortunately for us even though we have been guilty of murder by hating someone, by abortion, or by the actual physical murder of someone, we can be forgiven. Jesus makes it very clear, guilty is guilty any way you look at it. The Pharisees look down their nose at others feeling they are better, but in God’s eyes, sin is sin, and unless the blood of Jesus has covered our sin we all get the same consequences, hell!
How can we avoid violating this commandment? We must stay in tune with God to keep a sweet spirit and see the big picture. We must deal with sin when it happens instead of allowing it to fester in our souls. When someone does us wrong our first response is usually hurt. If we don’t deal with the pain there it can easily lead to bitterness, unforgiveness, resentment, retaliation, anger, hatred and murder. All of this can happen without you lifting a finger because it happens in the heart. A good way that I have learned to deal with these feelings is to understand that I am accountable to God for myself, and no one else. When I am in a right relationship with God I can pray for the person that offended me. I see clearly that the person who intentionally hurts me is far worse off than I am. They have placed a wedge between them and God, and until they repent, God will not even hear their prayers. They have greater issues than me. I just happen to be a good easy target.
