The Sixth Commandment
The=
Sacredness of
Life
Protecting
and Honoring Human Life
Exodus 20:13
Do not murder.=
Introduction
God
highly values human life.
Therefore, He cares greatly about human life.
It is sacred to Him.
QUOTE: Albert
Einstein
“Life is sacred, that is to =
say,
it is the supreme value to which all other values are subordinate.”
Life is precious in God’s si=
ght.
He
expects us to hold human life up as of priceless value.
Life is the sin=
gle
most valuable gift God has given to us.
Murder
is wrong because life is a gift from God.
God knows abou=
t the
violent destruction of human life.
You =
and
I witness countless, senseless murders every night on the
By t=
he
time a child grows up in
If t=
hat
wasn’t enough, we can now “act out” violent inclinations =
with
a video game or on a computer screen.
One =
game
has the players driving cars and running over little old ladies with walkers
for points!
Anot=
her
has players be a beserk postal worker who goes on a murdering rampage and g=
ets
points for killing innocent bystanders!
Then=
you
have other games like Grand Theft A=
uto and
Manhunt that celebrate bloodlet=
ting,
and the senseless, sickening destruction of human life!
Two
teenage boys apparently desensitized to the value of human life by violent
computerized video games walked into their high school in
From=
Columbine
to the 9-11 destruction,
From
gang murders to convenience store robberies
From=
the
abuse and killing of little children to shooting spouses
From
drive-by shootings to the murdering of rape victims
From=
From=
the
From=
the
genocide in
R=
11;
violence is filling our nation and our world!!!
This is a Ten &=
#8211;
der Commandment because God is re-straining the hate and violence that comes
from man’s depraved heart!!!
But positively,=
also,
this
commandment affirms that an almighty God is the creator of life and therefo=
re
has ultimate authority over the issues concerning life and death.
1. The Seriousness of the Sin of Murder
A.&=
nbsp; Murder
is a forbidden sin!
There is a sin forbidden – the unlawful ta=
king
of human life!
There is a duty implied – the preservation=
of
human life!
The specific sin is murder and the crime is homi=
cide.
B. Murder is an abominable sin!
It is one of three sins that are s=
aid to
cry out to God for justice or judgment:
&n=
bsp; 1. Sodomy or Homosexuality
Genesis 18=
:21
2. Oppression
Psalm 12:5=
3. Bloodshed or Murder
Genesis 4:=
10
And He (God) said, "What have=
you
done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to Me from the ground.
It is
the destruction of a creature that is made in the image of God! &=
nbsp;
<= o:p>
Genesis 9:=
6
"Whoever sheds man's blood, B=
y man
his blood shall be shed, For in the image of God He made man.
<= o:p>
Its nature is an imitation of the Devil himself!
John 8:44<= o:p>
"You are of [your] father the
devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from
the beginning,
2. The Commission of the Sin of Murder
The Law of God clearly indicates th=
at
taking human life is justifiable under certain conditions:
=
(1)&=
nbsp;
Capitol punishment
=
(2)&=
nbsp;
Defending life and property
=
(3)&=
nbsp;
Just warfare defending your nation =
and
its liberties
In f=
act,
the Hebrew word for murder is tirtz=
ach a
word reflecting wrongful killing. And in the Old Testament wrongful killing=
is
different from capital punishment, war, and self-defense that are permitted=
.
Abor=
tion
is the # 1 killer of human life worldwide!
There
are approximately 46 million abortions annually.
A
126,000 abortions globally each day!
Appr=
oximately
1,370,000 abortions occur annually in the
=
-&nb=
sp;
Statistics from the Alan Guttmacher Institute
Since
1973 Roe vs. Wade decision by Supreme Court
45
million babies have been aborted in the U. S.
(Source: The Ten Offenses by Pat Rober=
tson)
The =
sad
truth is, for the majority of Americans who seek abortion, terminating the =
life
of their unborn child is a matter of personal convenience to attempt to avo=
id
the responsibility of taking care of the child.
Euth=
anasia
is often practiced with the excuse of the victim not enjoying a significant
quality of life.
But =
the
ending of life is not our call, but God’s!
Suic=
ide
is a crime against self and against God.
The
rejection of suicide is an attempt to force a person to find meaning to his
life rather than taking the easy way out.
Matthew 5:21-22
"You have heard that the ancients were told, 'YOU S=
HALL
NOT COMMIT MURDER' and 'Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the
court.' "But I say to yo=
u that
everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; an=
d whoever
shall say to his brother, 'Raca,' shall be guilty before the supreme court;=
and
whoever shall say, 'You fool,' shall be guilty [enough to go] into the fiery
hell.
To de-value someone is the very
beginning of an attitude that can lead to murder. It is the attitude of mur=
der!
Every
human life is to be high valued because it has enormous worth as made in the
image of God.
Anger is most often the driving
motivation of murder.
Anger
and hatred distort our faces so that our very countenances reflect murder a=
nd
death.
In
Genesis 4 God faced Cain, the first murderer, with the question about his
anger.
And =
then
in anger, Cain went out and killed his brother!
Like=
the
Pharisees, we had rather deal with externals.
We
don’t want to admit that the evil of murder lurks in our hearts.
Many of us would murder if we follo=
wed
through with what is in our hearts, but we are restrained.
We a=
re
held back by
fear of what people would think of us,
fear of the actual act of terminating someone else’=
;s
life,
fear of years in prison or even capital punishment,
fear of God’s retribution in eternity.
In o=
ur
anger and hate, we can murder with our words!
The
power of death is in the tongue!
James 3:8-9
But no one can tame the tongue; [it=
is]
a restless evil [and] full of deadly poison. With it we bless [our] Lord and
Father; and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God=
.
Conv=
ersely,
the power of life is also in the tongue that is controlled by the Holy Spir=
it!
Matthew 15=
:19
"For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders,
adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders.
There are three sins of anger Jesus
tells us about in this passage that are equivalent to murder, and thus break
the sixth commandment.
=
(1)&=
nbsp;
Violent rage toward another person =
that
causes us to feel like we would like to kill them
=
(2)&=
nbsp;
Demeaning a human being who is made=
in
God’s image by calling them or considering them to be worthless and
beneath contempt. Jerk, slimeball, retard, geek,airhead =
or “He
is nothing but a worthless piece of _____ (human excrement).”
=
(3)&=
nbsp;
Being angry with someone so that you
name them a fool, meaning a God-rejecter, while in your heart wishing them =
to
be eternally damned to hell.
Ultimately, valuing human life
strengthens our attitude to value our own life which is a great and generous
gift from God.
The
attitude that results is expressed by the Psalmist in Psalm 90:12
Teach us to number our days carefully so that we may dev=
elop
wisdom in our hearts.
Conclusion
So since life is sacred, and of precious value, and is= the greatest gift God has given to each of us, then what are you doing with this incredible gift God gave to you?
May I suggest to you what you should be doing with it?=
In the words of William James:
The greatest use of life is to spend it for something that will out=
last
it.
Invest your life in serving God and in serving others –
By doing so your life and legacy will never fade away =
And your eternal retirement will be richly provided fo= r.