Murder, Adultery, and Stealing

Text Word for today

Exodus 20:13–15 ESV

Text Word for today “You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal.”

In divine Structure, Second Tablet, Public, Apodectic

We are on second tablet. The First 5 are Vertical, These are horizontal.

Others are personal and private, these are about other people. You and God vs You and your neighbour.

These 3 are Apodictic, They are the ones that are obvious accross all societies.

In Older English we say. You shall not Murder. Was Thou Shall’t not Kill.

In hebrew, it is just 2 words. Lo Tir-tsach No Murder, No Adultery (Lo Tin-Ach), No Stealing (Lo Ti g’nov).

What is murder

Unlawful and intentional causing of death of a human being.

Unlawful meanns that there was no good reason to do it.

Self Defence

Private Defence

War

Intenional means you knew that you actions could or will kill a person - but you still went ahead. Also covers causing by delay like beating you and leaving you for dead.

of a Human Being.

Why all the Fuss? Why can I kill a cow, but not a human being?

This is obvious but it also tells us why. not apply to cows and sheep.

(LOUDER) Human beings are made in the image of God, so Killing a human being is Killing a representation of God on earth.

Killing an innocent person is killing an Effigy of God

When you attack a soldier who is wearing Amercan Uniform you are attacking america. When you attack an ambassador of El Salvador, you are attacking the nation of El Salvador. When you attack an innocent human being who is the image and likeness of God, you are attacking God.

To kill a person is to kill a commandment of God

(LOUDER) God gave them life by a commandment. Just like he said let there be Light, he also said let there be Tracy. Before Tracy was in her Mother’s womb, he knew her and had a plan for her.

When you kill Tracy you disobey God because he said Let there be Tracy, and you say let there not be. He made her for this purpose and you cut her time short. He made Tracy in his image, his Brand, his trademark, his company, you cancel that image and throw it in the dirt.

You shall not murder.

Exodus 20:14 ““You shall not commit adultery.”

Adultery is treating someone else wife or husband as your own. Taking their husband or wife.

In this Commandment he is warning us not to break out of - or break into that relationship between husband and wife because family life is very important to God.

Family is important to God, that is why there are 4 our of the 10 commandments deal with protecting and preserving family life. 40%.

There are more commandments in the 10 which are immediately related to Family life than there are immediately related to Honouring God - THAT SHOULD TELL YOU SOMETHING. HOW IMPORTANT FAMILY IS TO GOD.

Adultery - Breaking the all important family.

Family is important to GOD.

God sees us and treats us like his Children and he is our Father.

If you break up the family, the kids tend to go with the Mother so you are removing the Father from that household.

When you remove my earthly father, it become difficult for me to learn how to relate to my heavenly father.

You are leaving those children at a disadvantage.

Adultery Link to Other Commandments

How is the family at a disadvantage? .

Because Family is also where we learn to practice obeying the commandments.

How honouring your Parents and holding them above you, helps you learn how to honour God. Because God is our heavenly Father. He says The way you are respecting and honouring that man (who is in my image and likeness), I want nothing Less. He is your father, and I am your father too, I AM THE BIG DADDY.

Family loves and cares for you without reward, especially from your mom is just like God will do for you.

The protection and discipline you get, especially from father is coz he wants you to do better. Prov 3:12

Proverbs 3:12 NIV

because the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in.

Hebrews 12:8 in the New Testament goes further and says.

Hebrews 12:7–8 KJV 1900

If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.

If you are taking someones wife, it means you do not respect their family or family life that is so important to God.

Leave your wife and marry me, come live with me and my kids - Steal Father.

God gave these specific kids to these specific parents when he gave them life. When you leave your family you are becoming a Step father to your own children, and you become a father to children that God didn’t give you.

If you are a married woman and you have a child with another man’ in secret, you are making it impossible for your child to honour their real father and your are lying to the innocent father.

If you can’t control yourself, how will you stay faithful when people press you to steal, to lie, to murder?

(LOUDER) If you cannot respect a contract or covenant between people (who you can see here on earth), how are you going to respect a contract between them and God (who you cannot see). You Cannot and you will be the one who leads them into temptation.

They will be praying about you when they say Do not lead us into temptation and Deliver us from the Evil One. They will be talking about you.

If you want to go face to face with God and the Lord’s Prayer commit adultery.

But, to be safe, You shall not commit adultery.

Exodus 20:15 “You shall not steal.”

Taking something that is not yours without permission.

“Steal” is not particular or limited to things

Thinking about stealing in such a broad way is good because the Hebrew Ti-gnov does not say “What you are not allowed to steal”. It just says no stealing.

Dups or Fakes - No stealing of other peoples designs.

Like to take credit for things you did not do - No stealing of other people’s work or credit.

kidnapping or slavery - Stealing people

Selling secrets to the competition - Stealing private information. This is a fundamental commandment as it covers most other commandments.

If you do not acknowledge God, use his name in vain, or raise others above him you steal his glory and reputation.

If you do not Remember the Sabbath or Honour your parents, you steal rest and family time and respect to your parents.

If you kill you steal a life, If you lie you steal the truth and if you commit adultery, you steal a husband or a wife.

It is also linked to the last commandment not to covet or desire things of another person because you will not steal if you do not want those things.

You shall not steal

These Commandments are the basics. Jesus teaches us to do better as a People.

Setting out the worst you can do. They are Grade 2, if Genesis is Grade one. Jesus comes along and makes it clear that we must grow as Christians and do much better.

We should not even Get to murder.

Killing is going over the edge of the Cliff. If you do not want to go over the cliff, do not play close to it.

Before the cliff, there is Violence. Before Violence, there is Hate and Anger.

Because the Murder does not start with the Murder. Murder does not start with pulling the trigger or giving the poison. Murder does not even start with the plan. It starts in the heart, with Anger.

Matthew 5:21–22 ESV

“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;.

He also says.

Matthew 5:5–15 ESV

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. “ “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

You see, do not aim to avoid falling over the edge. Aim to stay away from it.

Stealing is also the edge. Does not start with taking the thing. Not with planning. But with greed and Gluttony (inordinate/uncontrolled desire) and Envy.

Adultery does not start with the deed, nor the planning. Nor even meeting the person. It starts in the heart with Lust. Jesus teaches us to stay for away from it.

Matthew 5:27–28 ESV

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

So stay far away from these things by not only focusing on the killing, the stealing, or adultery. Try to avoid the Anger, the Greed, the Jealousy, the lust.

The easiest way to do that, is to Love your neighbour as you love yourself.

Romans 13:8–10 ESV

Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.

Amen