Sermon Notes for November 5, 2000

The Ten Commandments

The Sixth Commandment

“So You Say You’ve Never Killed Anyone . . .”

Exodus 20:13

Matthew 5:21-26

Introduction

We Live In A VIOLENT AND MURDEROUS World.
There are 38,000 gun deaths annually with another 65,000 additional serious injuries by guns.
Of the 38,000 deaths, a majority will be suicides.
There will be 1 million criminal misuses of guns annually.
Medical care for gun violence is 1.5 billion dollars annually.
By 1990, state violence (war, collective programs, revolutions and ethnic cleansing) have been responsible for the unnatural deaths of 125 million people during this century, which is more than the state had succeeded in destroying in all of human history up to 1900!
There have been over thirty million abortions since 1973.
We Live In A VIOLENT AND EMOTIONAL World.
HOWEVER, we must not limit murder to physical killing, for the Bible does not.
Lest you think that you have kept the Sixth commandment because you are not part of these statistics regarding murder.
Breaking the Sixth Commandment is a whole lot easier than you think.

I. PHYSICAL Murder

What Is PROHIBITED In Killing Another?
We can get confused about the Sixth Commandment because God says: “Thou shalt not kill.”
If we take that view literally, then we will never be allowed to participate in the death of another – NO MATTER WHAT THE SITUATION.
And there are well-intentioned Christians who take such a view.
Christian pacificists
Quakers
The word “killing” in the Hebrew means:
Murder, manslaughter, premeditated murder; an avenger
The wrongful killing of another by your hands.
We can conclude then:
That the correct translation should not be thou shalt not kill – but thou shalt not murder.
To kill another by sinful means.
What Is ALLOWED In Killing Another?
The danger is obvious if you say that you could never kill another.

Can a person protect himself if he/she was attacked by an attacker with a gun?
What about a war of aggression by another nation?

In my opinion, there are BIBLICAL reasons why a person may lawfully kill another.
Maintenance of law and order.
Civil authorities may use physical means to keep the peace in our world.
And because criminals use guns and knives, policemen must use forceful means to control our society.
Self defense.
There is nothing Biblical about letting someone kill you without a fight.

a. The text for turning your cheek is not talking about self-
defense.

b. It is talking about being insulted because you are a

Christian.

2. Every child and adult should be allowed and trained to defend themselves.

Capital punishment.
It is my view that the Bible allows and teaches capital punishment.
Genesis 9:6 – “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made man.” (lextalionis)
You have killed one:

a. Made in the image of God.

b. God’s master creation, a priceless property.

A just war.
A just war is a war of non-aggression.
A non-imperialistic war.

a. Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor war murder.

b. America’s defense of itself was not.

II. EMOTIONAL Murder.

The PROCESS Of Emotional Murder.
We MUST realize that the Bible does not define murder only as the physical killing of another.
THAT is exactly what the Jews believed.
Michael Horton in his book on the Ten Commandments recounts a conversation with a Jewish rabbi – “You know, one of the greatest differences between our two religions is this idea that you’ve committed a sin just by desiring or thinking it. We believe you have to actually commit the physical act before it’s really sin. Otherwise,” he concluded with an credulous chuckle, “we’d be sinning all the time!” “We are,” I replied. “That’s the whole point.” But it is quite natural for us to think legalistically: Because I have not engaged in a violent act, I must be free of this violation.
Jesus is very, very clear about this very point. That breaking the commandment goes beyond mere physical murder. Matt. 5:21-22 –

“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder,
and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment. But I tell you
that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to
judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’ is
answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will
be in danger of the fire of hell.”

We must look at the Biblical process of emotional murder as seen by Jesus.
STEP ONE – ANGER

Vs. 22 – “I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.”

1. The meaning.

a. The word means to be provoked, aroused to anger.

b. Brooding, simmering, smoldering, “a slow boil”

c. To cherish resentment; TO REFUSE TO MAKE
ANY EFFORT TO RECONCILE.

d. The Greek tense is a Present Passive Participle.

1. Something was done to you by another.

2. But you continue to hang onto it.

2. The application.

a. Now, realize that brooding means that you probably
have said NOTHING TO ANYONE! You simply are
angry within.

b. Brooding over a wrong done to you by another and
not dealing with it is SIN!

c. In fact, in the eyes of Jesus, IT IS MURDER – THE BREAKING OF THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT!

d. How do you know if you are brooding?

1. You are uncomfortable with another person.

2. You avoid them.

3. You can’t look them in the eye.

4. You don’t wish them well; you actually may
wish them harm.

e. Frederick Buechner in his book, Wishful Thinking Transformed by Thorns, said: “Of the 7 deadly sins,
anger is possibly the most fun. To lick your wounds,
to smack your lips over grievances long past, to roll
over your tongue the prospect of bitter
confrontations still to come, to savor to the last
toothsome morsel both the pain you are given and
the pain you are giving back—in many ways it is a
feast fit for a king. The chief drawback is that what
you are wolfing down is yourself. The skeleton at the
feast is you.”

STEP TWO – APATHY.

Vs. 22b – “Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the Sanhedrin.”

1. The meaning.

a. The word “raca” in the Jewish world was an Aramaic
term of derision and reproach to demean a person.

b. It meant:

1. Empty, senseless

2. Brainless; idiot; bonehead; worthless.

c. The sense of the word is that YOU THOUGHT SO
LITTLE OF THIS PERSON THAT YOU
THOUGHT AND TREATED HIM AS
WORTHLESS.

1. Not worthy of your time

2. Not worthy of a relationship

3. That person is a joke!

2. The application.

a. Raca suggests two things by way of application:

1. One – that you were finally verbalizing your
feelings about another; which is slander.

a. You have no problem whatsoever telling
anyone who will hear what you think
about that person.

b. Usually these comments are behind their back where they can’t defend themselves.

2. Two – That you have proceeded from simple anger to apathy.

a. I would rather see a person angry than
apathetic.

b. Because apathy suggests that this condition of hatred has gotten to a dangerous level of hate.

1. Hatred that is so intense that you
don’t even see the need to treat them as a person; they are empty, worthless, a joke, a waste of their precious time.

2. Illustration:

a. Israel/Jordan – “right to exist.”

b. Biff B.

b. Apathy is much, much more serious than anger.

c. STEP THREE - ATTACK.

Vs. 22c – “But anyone who says ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire
of hell.”

1. TheMeaning.

a. The word fool is the most serious of all words.

b. It is a word meaning: godless, impious.

c. It is a verbal assault on a man’s character.

2. TheApplication.

a. The seriousness of the word is two fold:

1. You have finally SAID SOMETHING.

a. You can’t hold it in anymore.

b. You have to say it.

2. YOU WANT TO HURT THEM.

a. Verbally.

1. You want to say something that will cause them pain.

2. And words will do it.

a. WHERE DID WE EVEN GET THE IDEA THAT . . . “Sticks
and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.”

1. Scripture TOTALLY disagrees with thatview:

Prov. 17:22 - “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a
crushed spirit dries up the bones.”

2. Words can devastate a life!

a. How many of you are STILL affected by the unkind
words of another?

1. John Timmerman tells a story of what happened to him when he was a little boy visiting a new boy who had just moved into his neighborhood. “Finally, one day he invited me to his house after school. Because Theo rode his bicycle the half mile to school, we stopped by my house to pickup my bike. It was double excitement—riding a bike to a friend’s house.

I remember how cold it seemed when we entered his house. There
was no one else home. No parent calling hello. No after-school snack.
Theo was chattering nervously. We climbed narrow stairs to his bedroom.
It was bare and gloomy up there. His room was a small cube at the end of
the hall, a broken shade hung from the one dirty window.

He opened the door, letting me go in first. The room stood in
shadows.

He had made no effort to hide them. He stood waiting, his eyes
fierce, until I saw them. His bed was a mattress on the floor. His dresser
was a wooden box. And on the box were my missing toys. I heard the
door shut behind me.

I don’t remember all the words now. I remember choking, “Those
are mine.”

“You wanna bet?” he said. His fists were clenched.

He stood in front of the closed door, slowly pulling the leather
belt from his waist. He wrapped it around one hand, the buckle
dangling.

“I think I better go,” I said.

He shook his head. Then the words that burned like acid in my
ears. “I hate you,” he hissed.

As he dangled the belt, he said, “I’m going to kill you.” I stared,
unbelieving, into his eyes. Two dark coals burning.

He lifted the belt. Then stopped. “Wanna see what it feels like?”
he snarled. Suddenly he dropped his baggy pants and turned around. His
buttocks, his upper thighs, were a welter of stripes, deep purple and red
bruises, some old, some still raw-edged and scabbed.

I sucked in a terrible breath and bolted. While he stood there,
pants down, I ripped open the door and ran. As I careened down the steps he screamed after me, “Hey, come back! I didn’t . . .”

Then I was pounding the bike back toward Neland Avenue.

2. Ron Mehl tells a story:

Let me tell you about a lady—a strikingly beautiful woman—who went to her pastor for counseling. During the course of the appointment, she told him that she was having difficulty responding romantically to her husband because, she said, “I’m so unattractive.”

The Pastor was thinking to himself, You’ve got to be kidding!

So then she told this story. As a teenager, acne covered her face. She had crooked teeth and wore coke-bottle glasses. But an amazing thing happened. She turned fourteen and began to develop faster than other girls her age. One day she was on her way to school and the big man on campus saw her walking to class. She felt his eyes on her as she walked, and he spoke to one of his friends so that she could overhear him.

“Woo-eee. Wouldja look at her!” he said. “Put a bag over her head and she’d be terrific.”

In time, she outgrew the bad complexion. Braces straightened her teeth, and contact lenses replaced the thick glasses. She became a beautiful young woman, and everyone knew it.

Everyone but her.

The words that young man had so carelessly, hatefully spoken had crushed her spirit and strangled any confidence or feelings of self-worth she might have begun to develop. So much so that twenty-five years later she couldn’t respond to the admiration of her husband and kept thinking, “All I really need to do to be attractive is wear a big bag over my head.”

3. One of the worst cases of hatred I have ever come across is found in a will written in 1935 by a Mr. Donohoe. It says, “Unto my two daughters, Frances Marie and Denise Victoria, by reason of their unfilial attitude toward a doting father . . . I leave the sum of $1.00 to each and a father’s curse. May their lives be fraught with misery, unhappiness, and poignant sorrow. May their deaths be soon and of a lingering malignant and torturous nature. May their souls rest in hell and suffer the torments of the condemned for eternity.”

b. So you kill by:

1. Unkind words

2. Slander

3. Rumors

b. Physically

1. The danger here is that when you verbally say
something to hurt another, you are not very far from
doing something physically as well.

2. You are on the brink of doing something you may
regret.

3. But you may cause yourself to physically suffer.

a. Angry cynical people die young. Men who
score high for hostility on standard tests are four
times more likely to die prematurely than men
whose scores are low.

b. The 18th-century British physician John
Hunter, who was a pioneer in the field of
surgery and served as surgeon to King George
III, suffered from angina. Discovering that his
attacks were often brought on by anger, Hunter
lamented, “My life is at the mercy of any
scoundrel who chooses to put me in a
passion.” These words proved prophetic, for at
a meeting of the board of St. George’s Hospital
in London, Hunter got into a heated argument
with other board members, walked out, and
dropped dead in the next room.

c. Doctors from Coral Gables, Fla., compared the
efficiency of the heart’s pumping action in 18
men with coronary artery disease to nine
healthy controls. Each of the study participants

(doing math problems in their heads, recalling a
recent incident that had made them very angry,
and giving a short speech to defend themselves
against a hypothetical charge of shoplifting).
Using sophisticated X-ray techniques, the
doctors took pictures of the subjects’ hearts in
action during these tests. For all the subjects,
anger reduced the amount of blood that the
heart pumped to body tissues more than the other
tests, but this was especially true for those who
had heart disease.

The PARAMETERS of Emotional Murder.
So, you see that just because you have not killed someone physically, you may have still struck them with a severe blow.
Look at these other methods of wounding others:
To slander them behind their back – the cheapest form of harm because they cannot defend themselves –
Causing rumors about others, that they may or may not be true.
Mocking or making fun of another either in front or behind their backs.
Making cynical sarcastic or cutting remarks to another.

3. It is always sinful when your tongue is used as a weapon – you have broken the
Sixth Commandment.

III. DEALING With Physical and Emotional Murder.

Dealing with PHYSICAL Murder.
If you have ever committed a murder, you have two problems:

a. With the authorities:

1. Turn yourself in.

2. Submit to the civil authorities placed there by God.

b. With God:

1. It is not the unpardonable sin.

2. God will forgive you; He forgave King David and the Apostle
Paul.

If you have ever had an abortion:

a. I believe Biblically that abortion is murder . . . of the worst kind.

b. And I believe that you will suffer guilt until you confess that sin to God.

c. It too is not the unpardonable sin. He will forgive you.

Dealing With EMOTIONAL Murder.
Dealing with our emotional murder IN THE CHURCH.

a. JESUS IS VERY CLEAR ABOUT WHAT WE ARE TO DO.

Matt. 5:23-24 – “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and
there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your
gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your
brother; then come and offer your gift.”

1. Jesus is apparently clear that Christians WILL HAVE
DIFFERENCES IN THE CHURCH. He accepts that!

2. BUT DON’T CONTINUE TO WORSHIP UNTIL YOU
HAVE CLEARED UP THIS PROBLEM WITH
ANOTHER PERSON. (He won’t accept that!)

a. Leave it, let it go, abandon it.

b. So repair that broken relationship FIRST.

b. AS IS THE APOSTLE PAUL

Ephesians 4:26-27 – “In your anger do not sin. Do not let the sun go
down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.”

1. DON’T EVEN GO TO BED ANGRY!

2. Otherwise, you will give the devil a foothold or a toehold.

a. When you climb a wall, all that you need is foothold or
a toehold; a beachhead.