AM Sermon preached at Central Christian Church February 25, 2007
God’s Top Ten sermon series. The 6th Commandment “Value Life”
[SERIES TITLE SLIDE WILL AUTOMATICALLY TRANSITION TO SERMON TITLE SLIDE THAN TO BLANK SLIDE…(Lord willing…)]
Just this past week one of the little guys in our church’s Friendship Company preschool program broke into song as he was doing some artwork---He sang, “Jesus loves me this I know---for the Bible tells me no.” What is it they say? From the mouths of babes??? Now while that little guy didn’t sing the right song lyrics he did hit on a truth---the truth that when I want to do something---sometimes the Bible says “yes” and sometimes “the Bible tells me no.” In our current series on the Ten Commandments we’ve seen how the Bible says “no other gods besides God” “no misusing of God’s name” “no disrespecting of parents” among no to some other things. Before we finish this series we’ll find the Bible saying “no pre-marital, extra-marital or homosexual sexual activity” “no stealing” “no lying” and “no coveting.” But today our focus in on the sixth commandment--- Today we find the Bible saying “no” to murder. Here’s how it reads in the NIV--- [SLIDE #4] Exodus 20:13 "You shall not murder.” Four words in our English translation. Two words in the original Hebrew--- they simply say “no murder.”
Murder is nearly as old as the human race. Look into it and you’ll find the first recorded sin committed outside the Garden of Eden is a murder. We know that almost daily the evening news and our local newspapers carry stories about murder. And friends, God hates it. [SCRIPTURE SLIDES] Proverbs 6:16-19 make this clear---
“There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: 17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, 18 a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, 19 a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers.” God hates “hands that shed innocent blood”; He hates murder.
[SLIDE #7]
At this time I’d like for the people I recruited to help me with an illustration to come forward. As they’re coming up let me give you a little background on this illustration---
The local ministerial association I worked with back in Indiana worked out a special time release program with one of the local elementary schools. The program gave us about an hour and a half each week to bus the kids who wanted to come to our program to a local church. There we’d lead them in worship and teach them biblical truth. At one point in time we attempted to drive home to them the importance of the Ten Commandments. My turn for teaching came with the 6th commandment. Now I knew I would be talking to children who regularly attended church as well as kids who never went to church but who participated in our time release program because they decided it was more fun to join us than stick around at school. That’s why I wanted to do more than tell the kids it was wrong to murder---I wanted them to help understand why it was wrong to murder. So I came up with this elaborate lesson about creation that used a lot of visual aids---and while I don’t want to take the time to go through that entire presentation---it would take a good 15 minutes, I will very quickly show you how I brought out the fact that human life is special. Before the time came for the lesson, I’d decorated balloons to represent the different animals God had created----fish, birds, cattle and so on. And when I read about how God created the different animals on the different days I had kids come up on the stage and hold the balloons I’d made. Today, I’ve recruited some volunteers already to speed this process up. The Adam and Eve balloons came out last because humans were created last. Then---after I’d given out all the balloons I’d made, I began asking the kids questions like---when we kill a fish is that murder? When a hunter shoots a rabbit or deer is that murder? When someone butcher’s a cow is that murder? And as I asked each of those questions, all the kids in the room would shout out “No!” Then I’d pop the balloon for that animal. So how about you play along right now and help me out this morning, okay… is it murder when we kill a fish? _______________? ______________? _________________? You know where this is leading, right? I eventually got around to the Adam and Eve balloons as asked the kids, “What about when someone kills another person---is that murder? And is it wrong to murder?” And of course they all shouted “Yes!” I then explained to the children that I was going to pop one of the people balloons. I said to them “Now I won’t go out and murder someone but I am going to pop the Adam & Eve balloons for two reasons”---1---I like popping balloons and 2 there’s something special about these balloons that I want you to see.” Now you all need to watch really close cause you’ve only got to chances to see what happens… Did you see the difference? Did you notice the little puff of smoke that occurred when I popped the people balloons---that puff of smoke wasn’t there when I popped the animal balloons. Obviously---there was something in the people balloons that made that smoke that wasn’t in the animal balloons I’d made. The point----there’s something in people that is not present in animals----and that something is a soul. We humans are like animals in many ways---like fish, birds, cattle we have bones and flesh and blood. But we’re very different than animals in the fact we are living souls and we have been created in the image of God. Look at Genesis 1:27 with me…[SLIDE] 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And let’s also look at [SLIDE] Genesis 2:7 which says, “the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” The King James reads “and man became a living soul.”
[SLIDE #10]
It’s that difference---it’s the fact we’ve been made in the image of God and the fact we’re living souls---that lies at the heart of the 6th commandment which we’re looking at today. I feel however, before we dig any deeper into this 6th commandment I need to clarify a couple of things so we’re all on the same page. You see, because there’s so much confusion in the world about right and wrong---because there’s so much blurring of the lines, it’s really important that we understand that murder is not limited to one form of killing----just as it’s important that we understand that all killing is not murder.
[SLIDE #11]
The way I read the scriptures-- intentional homicide, suicide, abortion, euthanasia and genocide are various forms of murder---they all involve the pre-meditated taking of life in ways God condemns. On the other hand there are four forms of killing, four instances where human life is taken which God does not call murder and which God does not call sin. [SLIDE #12] They are: 1. unavoidable accidents which cause death (this is addressed in Numbers 35), [SLIDE #13] 2. self-defensive actions that kill an attacker (you’ll find this brought out in Exodus 22), [SLIDE #14] 3. capital punishment (according to Genesis 9:6 this is the form of punishment God ordered for people who committed a murder)
And [SLIDE #15] 4. war (Romans 13 and its discussion about governments having the right to use swords goes into this).
[SLIDE #16]
I can tell you this---I’m especially thankful for three things regarding the killing that is not considered murder or sin. I’m thankful that accidental killing is not considered murder because there were two separate occasions in the last two weeks where there were near accidents which could have ended another person’s life. On that first Friday night of Mardi Gras, when Shannon and Jacob were driving near the Metro Link in Belleville, some guy who had apparently partied a little to hardy---who was dressed in a black costume ran out into the middle of the road in front of them and they nearly hit him. Thursday afternoon, just three days ago I almost hit a guy over here on Kyle. I’m guessing he was a Junior Higher. Anyway he and a friend decided to cut across in front of me at the last moment. I hit my brakes hard. The one boy veered hard to his left and stopped his bike----the other boy, a kid with long red hair, decided to chance it and he shot in front of me. He was lucky. I just missed him. I hate to think what would have happened if I’d not guessed what he was going to try to do and hadn’t hit my brakes the way I did. So while I’m thankful God doesn’t call the accidental taking of a life murder, I’m especially thankful that in both circumstances where there could have been an accident there wasn’t one.
I hope you’ve been realizing that all along in this Ten Commandments I’ve been trying to help us all to understand that the commandments weren’t given just to stop us from doing evil things----they were also given to encourage us to do good things. [SLIDE #17] The same is true with this sixth commandment---On the negative side of things God is telling us ---don’t murder----on the positive side of things God is telling us do value life.
I want to share with you some ways I think we can best value life----[SLIDE #18] the first is to recognize and affirm the worth of EVERY person. I’d like a little more audience participation in the next few moments. Here’s what I’d like you to do. If you’re 34 years of age or younger---I’d like for you to stand up….some on, go ahead it’ll just take a couple of moments. Okay you can be seated. And I hope you count yourselves as some of the lucky ones. Because it was 34 years ago, back in 1973 when the courts ruling on the Roe vs. Wade case was to allow for abortion on demand for any reason. [SLIDE #19] Since 1973 more than 40 million innocent babies have been aborted in the United States---[SLIDE #20] last year in America one child was legally aborted for every 4 children born.
Let’s jump to the other end of the spectrum…if you’re 65 or older would you mind standing up for just a moment? Thank you. You can be seated. I came across some stats on suicide concerning your generation that really caught me off guard. [SLIDE] I read that in the year 2000 ---28,332 Americans committed suicide---and that more Americans die from suicide than homicide. Now I don’t know about you---but I’ve always had it in my head that troubled teens are the most likely people to commit suicide---not true. [SLIDE #22] The statistics show that suicide rates increase with age and that the highest rates of suicide are among Americans aged 65 and older. [SLIDE #23]
If you were to ask me what’s up with all this I’d tell you that both the high number of abortions and the high rate of suicide among senior citizens are the result of people’s failure to recognize that every person’s life is unique, precious and valuable. Great numbers of women have abortions because they’ve been told that the thing inside their womb is not a person and yet the Bible teaches us that preborn individuals are in fact human beings made in the image of God. Many Senior Citizens are taking their lives because they’ve come to believe our culture’s lie that since they’ve lost the beauty and productivity of their youth they no longer matter---they’re just burdens on their family and society when nothing could be further from the truth. The Bible says to you Seniors---you have not lost your value--- you have a wisdom from the years that you can share with younger generations---and while you may be losing your physical strength you will never lose the fact that you are a person of value because you been made in God’s image and has always loved you and He still loves you.
Through this 6th commandment God is calling for His people to not only not commit murder but He’s calling for us to recognize and reaffirm the worth of every person. God wants us to help others to understand that the aged, the unborn, the handicapped, the troubled---they’re all people of worth. Affirming the worth of every person may mean we offer financial support to the local crisis pregnancy center---or it may mean we write letters to our congressmen concerning abortion laws to let them know we support public policy that protects human life and we oppose legislation that threatens it---or it may mean we serve as a volunteer at a local nursing home. Affirming the worth of every person may mean we adopt an orphaned child or we stand up for that kid at school that everyone else in the class picks on or we stand and hold open the door for an elderly woman making her way into the store no matter how long it takes her. However we can, in God-honoring ways, we will want to help others to understand that every person has value because they are made in the image of God and they are a living soul.
[SLIDE #24]
Another thing we can do when it comes to valuing life would be to keep our hearts from harboring unChristlike hateful, angry thoughts towards others. Jesus brought out the spirit of this “no murder” commandment in His teaching. In Matthew 5:21-22 we find this bit of commentary…Jesus is speaking and [SCRIPTURE SLIDES] He says, “21"You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ’Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ 22But 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.” Those are powerful convicting words and from them we learn an important truth-[SLIDE #27] --we’ve already established the fact that all killings aren’t murders---Jesus here tells us that all murders aren’t killings, at least in the physical sense. Rick Atchley writes, “Murder is an act, but it’s also an attitude. It’s a deed but it’s also a motive.”
[SLIDE #28]
I wonder if you’ve heard the story of the old woman who was bitten by a dog. From some tests it was learned that the dog did indeed have rabies. When the doctor called the woman to his office, broke the news to her and told her she’d have to begin treatments immediately. Without a moment’s hesitation she pulled a piece of paper out of her purse and began writing on it. The doctor assuming that she was writing out a will said to her, “Now it’s not that bad---you don’t have to write out a will. We can treat this.” The woman rather sharply replied, “A will, are you kidding? I’m writing out a list of everyone I plan to bite.”
Listen to me now, a person doesn’t have to pull a trigger, thrust a knife or poison another person to be guilty of harboring an attitude of murder. [SLIDE] I John 3:15 says “anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him.” We need to sift through our attitudes towards others. We need to as Paul wrote to the Ephesians, [SCRIPTURE SLIDE] 31Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice…. We need to let go of the hurt and the anger that would have us wanting to seek revenge. We need to [SCRIPTURE SLIDE] 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
[SLIDE #32]
And here again with this sixth commandment we find that the key to our keeping it lies in our loving God because after all, every person has been made in His image. Jesus said, ’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: ’Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
Someone else has said, “only when God counts for everything does man count for anything.” In other words, we’ll never get the last six right if we don’t get the first four right.
As our praise team comes forward to lead us in our decision song this morning I want to share with you one last thought about this sixth commandment. I’ve come up with an idea as to what makes murder such a terrible sin----it’s because we each have only one life to live. Think about it. Someone who steals money can return the money to its rightful owner. Someone who tells a lie can retract their lie and tell the truth. Someone who makes an idol can turn around and destroy the idol. But the murderer cannot return the life of his victim. But you know as terrible as the sin of murder is, it can be forgiven if the murderer repents of his sin and seeks forgiveness from God. And that folks is why in comparison to murder, refusing to accept Jesus during one’s lifetime is an even greater sin. Jesus once said, [SCRIPTURE SLIDES] "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. 26What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?” Matthew 16:24-27
The answer---we can give nothing in exchange for our soul. You and I, we each have one life to live, one soul to face eternity. That’s why it’s so important that we accept Christ before we die. If you haven’t yet done that I encourage you to do it this morning. Please join me down front as our praise team sings….if you’d like to become a Christian or it you have any other kind of public decision you’d like to make this morning.
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NOTE TO THOSE WHO READ AND OR CHOOSE TO MAKE USE OF ANY OR ALL OF THIS SERMON: I am sharing this sermon with the hopes it will be an encouragement to others. I apologize for any blatant typing errors! If you find any I’d appreciate hearing from you so I can correct them. I try to give credit where credit is due, noting writers and or sources to the best of my ability. I have for years been drawing from a wealth of sources including this website. I recognize that my mind and writing processes are fallible. I may occasionally fail to properly identify a source. Please do not take offense if you see anything of this nature. I never intend to plagiarize. Having said that I want you to feel free to draw from my message. When appropriate I hope you will give credit as I do. But most of all I hope Christ will be lifted up and God will receive the glory in all things.
