Live and Help Live
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And God spoke all these words, saying, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. “You shall have no other gods before me. “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments. “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain. “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. “You shall not murder. “You shall not commit adultery. “You shall not steal. “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”
The setting for .
But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”
Introduction
Introduction
‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”
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Introduction
Introduction
In the Bible God’s law always comes to us after he has demonstrated his love for us.
In 1958 MLK, Jr. made the following statement about the Civil Rights Movement.
Introduction
Introduction
In 1958 MLK Jr. made the following statement about the Civil Rights Movement.
From the beginning a basic philosophy guided the movement. This guiding principle has since been referred to variously as nonviolent resistance, non-cooperation, and passive resistance. But in the first days of the protest none of these expressions was mentioned: the phrase most often heard was ‘Christian love.’ It was the Sermon on the Mount, rather than a doctrine of passive resistance, that initially inspired the Negroes of Montgomery to dignified social action. It was Jesus of Nazareth that stirred the Negroes to protest with the creative weapon of love.
to variously as nonviolent resistance, noncooperation, and passive resistance. But in the first days of the
Rev. Dr. Greg Thompson is a friend of mine and the former pastor of Trinity Presbyterian Church in Charlottesville, VA. He did his Ph.D. there at UVA. His doctoral dissertation was titled, “AN EXPERIMENT IN LOVE: Martin Luther King and the Re-imagining of American Democracy.” In the introduction to his work he says,
AN EXPERIMENT IN LOVE:
My basic question is this: How can people with deep differences live together in peace? By “peace” I do not mean the mere cessation of war, nor the attainment of uneasy coexistence, but something along the lines of the Hebrew Bible’s concept of shalom, which I take to mean, “justice, wholeness, flourishing, and joy.” …What sort of social imagination and what sort of social ethic will be required of us if we, in the midst of differences of every conceivable kind, are to live together in a way that nurtures the experience of shalom?
protest none of these expressions was mentioned: the phrase most often heard was ‘Christian love.’ It was the
Listen, we do a great job of calling uneasy coexistence “peace.” And every time the horrors of what we saw in Charlottesville, VA this weekend rise up and confront us, we want to delude ourselves into believing that it’s an aberration—that it’s somehow not reflective of the deep seated corruption that not only resides in the fabric of the nation, but also resides in the fabric of our own hearts. We want to delude ourselves into believing that the racial caste system deeply embedded in the founding of this country no longer has any impact on ordinary American life, on in American churches. In a very real sense this morning, I pray that God comforts those of us who are disturbed and disturbs those of us who are comfortable.
Martin Luther King and the Re-imagining of American Democracy
Sermon on the Mount, rather than a doctrine of passive resistance, that initially inspired the Negroes of
You see, one of the things that makes life in this world so messy is the fact that we cannot attain or manufacture a permanent state of shalom. Over and over and over again, the most permanent reality seems to be the deep differences that engender hatred, violence, and vitriol instead of justice, wholeness, flourishing, and joy.
What are we to do? How are we to respond? Part of the answer is found in our passage. It’s just a few words, but there is an almost immeasurable depth to their implications.
Montgomery to dignified social action. It was Jesus of Nazareth that stirred the Negroes to protest with the
In this commandment we find God removing an illusion. He removes the illusion of control. Particularly the removal of the illusion of control over life and death. Understand that at the heart of this sixth commandment, “You shall not murder,” is the issue of who has control and authority over life and death. This commandment has an A side and a B side. It says on the A side that life and death are God’s business. He is the Author of life. He is the Lord of life. We don’t get to take human life without his authorization. On the flip side, on the B side, it says his people, therefore, are to be about pursuing the things that make for life and the flourishing of people. The question is how do we live as those who are called to promote life in a world permeated with death? How do we live and help others live in a world that is permeated by death?
creative weapon of love.
I’m going to use two P’s to drive home two things in this sermon on the sixth commandment—Prevention, and Preservation. We need to grasp the immense value of human life by understanding how seriously God takes sin that leads to the loss of life. We need to grasp the immense value of human life by seeing how God calls us to pursue the things that makes life flourish.
Prevention
Prevention
The newly freed people of Israel encamped here at Mt. Sinai have heard the first four commandments that summarize the law that is to govern their lives as God’s people living in the Promised Land. When we look at the Ten Commandments, the first four commandments primarily reflect our obligations to God, and commandments 5-10 primarily reflect our obligations to one another because of our obligations to God. After making clear that they were to honor those in authority in the fifth commandment, the Lord says, “You shall not murder.” And on one level that’s just as clear as day, and we get it. You can’t live as my people and go around killing people because you want to. We don’t have to stretch our imaginations to understand that this commandment involves prevention. It serves to prevent the unauthorized loss of human life.
Why is this commandment necessary? Why did they, and why do we need to be given this commandment? It is because human life has immeasurable value, but when sin, disobeying God, entered the picture, the result was death. And not simply our growing old and dying, but the killing of one another, death and violence. Let’s go back to the beginning. , God gives a commandment to Adam.
And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden,
And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
Adam and Eve gave in to the devil’s temptation, and they ate from that tree. Death entered the picture. They died spiritually in that they were now separated from God. They died judicially, in that they were now guilty instead of innocent. They died physically in that their bodies were now going to decay. After Adam and Eve sin and death enters the picture, what is the very next sin we see humanity committing? It’s murder. It’s brother killing brother. Cain and Abel, Adam and Eve’s sons gave offerings to God. The Lord had regard for Abel’s offering, but he had no regard for Cain’s offering. Cain was very angry. His brother hadn’t done anything to him. But what does he do in his anger? He kills his brother. Then the Lord asks Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” Cain lies and says, “I don’t know. Am I my brother’s keeper?” From the beginning, when sin entered the picture, what came with it is our propensity for our sin to be expressed in the diminishing of or the taking of the lives of other people.
“You shall not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. For in the day when you eat from it you will surely die.” You know the story. Adam and Eve gave in to the devil’s temptation, and they ate from that tree. Death entered the picture. They died spiritually in that they were now separated from God. They died judicially, in that they were now guilty instead of innocent. They died physically in that their bodies were now going to decay. After Adam and Eve sin and death enters the picture, what is the very next sin we see humanity committing? It’s murder. It’s brother killing brother. Cain and Abel, Adam and Eve’s sons gave offerings to God. The Lord had regard for Abel’s offering, but he had no regard for Cain’s offering. Cain was very angry. His brother hadn’t done anything to him. But what does he do in his anger? He kills his brother. Then the Lord asks Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” Cain lies and says, “I don’t know. Am I my brother’s keeper?” From the beginning, when sin entered the picture, what came with it is our propensity for our sin to be expressed in the diminishing of or the taking of the lives of other people.
Israel is situated here a Mt. Sinai, and we need to remember the 10 Commandments isn’t the only thing that Moses told them. Moses also narrated the book of Genesis for them. You have the repeated incidents of murder, or attempted murder, or desired murder running through Genesis. In the very next chapter, after Cain kills his brother Abel, Lamech, a descendant of Cain writes a little song. He sings to his two wives in
Lamech said to his wives: “Adah and Zillah, hear my voice; you wives of Lamech, listen to what I say: I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for striking me. If Cain’s revenge is sevenfold, then Lamech’s is seventy-sevenfold.”
Lamech said to his wives: “Adah and Zillah, hear my voice; you wives of Lamech, listen to what I say: I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for striking me.
GEN. 4:23-24
“Adah and Zillah, hear my voice; you wives of Lamech, listen to what I say: I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for striking me. If Cain’s revenge is sevenfold, then Lamech’s is seventy-sevenfold.”
After the flood, in , the Lord says to Noah, “for your lifeblood I will require a reckoning…I will require a reckoning for the life of man. Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.”
We we find in the commandments are the implications of what it means for people to be made in God’s image. God says your lifeblood is valuable because you’re an image bearer. Yet what do we find in Genesis, even after the Lord makes that declaration in chapter 9? Abraham and Sarah go to Egypt in because of a famine. He tells Sarah to lie and say that she’s his sister because he’s afraid that if Pharaoh finds out that they’re married, he’ll have Abraham killed. What about Abraham’s descendants? What do Jacob’s sons decide to do to their brother Joseph? They were upset and angry that their father favored Joseph. When they were out away from their father in , and Joseph was sent to check on them, what did they do? They saw him coming to them from afar, and it says they conspired against him to kill him. They said, here comes this dreamer. Let’s kill him and throw him in to one of the pits. Then we’ll say a fierce animal has devoured him. The only reason they didn’t kill him is because one of the brothers, Rueben, intervened. So they threw him alive into a pit, sat down to eat, then sold him into slavery.
This commandment is necessary to foster the prevention of the unlawful taking of human life because human life is of immeasurable value because we bear God’s image, but we are constantly being tempted to diminish and devalue the lives of other people. You say, “Pastor, I don’t want to kill nobody.” First thing I’ll says is, “You sure?” “You sure you’ve never been that mad at somebody that you didn’t want to cause them harm?” Anybody in here have a brother or a sister, or brothers and sisters? You ever got so mad at your sibling that you hit him? You ever got so mad at your sibling that you threw something at her? You ever got so mad at your sibling that you threatened them? Well wait a minute? I thought you loved your brother? I thought you loved your sister? Why in the world would you want to harm them? I ain’t even going to talk about what some of us are tempted to do to our bosses, or what athletes sometimes want to do to their coaches! These are people were supposed to love, or at the very least, respect. I’m not talking about the temptations we face in the extreme cases. I’m talking about the temptations that we face in these relationships simply because people are not doing what we want them to do.
The Lord calls a people to himself, and he has to put law into place that helps to prevent the unlawful taking of or diminishing of human life.
Preserve
Preserve
So, it follows that an aspect of preventing the loss of human life is the preserving of life. Listen to how God begins to apply this law as he expands its implications in greater detail. As the Lord gives them instructions for how the land is to be divided up he tells them that they are to set aside cities of refuge throughout the territories. In the Lord says to Moses,
“Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then you shall select cities to be cities of refuge for you, that the manslayer who kills any person without intent may flee there. The cities shall be for you a refuge from the avenger, that the manslayer may not die until he stands before the congregation for judgment. And the cities that you give shall be your six cities of refuge.
The word translated as “manslayer” there and in other texts is the same word translated as “murder” in the sixth commandment. You can find this provision repeated in , , and . The example of a manslayer given in is of someone who goes into the forest with his neighbor to cut wood. When his hand swings the axe to cut down a tree, the axe head slips from the handle and strikes his neighbor and kills him. This person can run to a city of refuge. This was an accidental killing. But it’s significant that the same word for murder in the 6th commandment is also used to describe the person who kills accidentally. The word is broader than simply a willful killing of another person.
Again we see how seriously God takes the loss of human life. Even if it’s accidental there’s a penalty. Here’s the point. We’re not just told to abstain from murder. It’s also necessary to be careful to preserve human life. The manslayer pays a penalty in this text and in other texts because, as John Frame writes, he didn’t guard against the possibility that someone might be killed. He wasn’t alert to correct the life-threatening elements in the situation.
Lest we think that this aspect of the commandment, being careful to do the things that make for the preservation of life, is only a matter of OT Law, Jesus lets us know that this is an aspect of how people in his kingdom live. He picks up on this in the Sermon on the Mount in . Here is a bridge for us. The 10 Commandments is the Lord of the covenant giving his people instructions on how they are to live when they enter the Promised Land. He is the King, and they are citizens of his kingdom. They have been delivered from Pharaoh, the ruler of their world, and brought under the rule of the true King. Well, what is Jesus doing in the Sermon on the Mount in ? Jesus is the Lord of the covenant. At the end of we’re told that Jesus went through all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom. Great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decapolis, and from Jerusalem and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan. Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he begins to teach them.
The Sermon on the Mount is Jesus’ message to his disciples, those who have come to him, about what life in his kingdom looks like. What do we hear him saying to them?
“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; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison. Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.
“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; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison. Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny. ( ESV)
Do you hear what he does? He says, “You want to live as my disciple? You say you want to follow me? You need to stop thinking that murder is only about causing physical death. You know what also counts as murder? You know what also counts as breaking the sixth commandment? Anger and hatred. John says in
Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.
, “Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.” James says in , “Know this my beloved brothers and sisters: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, fro the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” Not only that, Jesus says that verbal abuse counts a murder. “Whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.” Understand that Jesus is dealing with the heart. All of these things come out of our hearts, anger and hatred, verbal abuse and insults. And they are very often about us wanting to exercise some type of vengeance on another person. They are often about us wanting to get somebody back. They are about us wanting to make our own justice, and not leaving it in God’s hands. We live under the illusion that we have ultimate authority over the matters of life and death.
James says in
Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.
Not only that, Jesus says that verbal abuse counts a murder. “Whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.” In other words, racism is murder. In the eyes of Jesus, you can’t hold alt-right views and be right with him. Jesus says, viewing others in that way is murder. You don’t even have to have lifted a finger against someone.
Understand that Jesus is dealing with the heart. All of these things come out of our hearts, anger and hatred, verbal abuse and insults. And they are very often about us wanting to exercise some type of vengeance on another person. They are often about us wanting to get somebody back. They are about us wanting to make our own justice, and not leaving it in God’s hands. We live under the illusion that we have ultimate authority over the matters of life and death.
Why is Jesus able to say these things about the sixth commandment? Remember, the sixth commandment falls in the second table of the Law. The second table has to do with our duties to one another. So, commandments 5-10 can be summarized as, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Part of loving your neighbor well in the context of the sixth commandment is to do what we can to preserve our neighbor’s lives. You can’t do that when you heart is full of anger, bitterness, hatred, and insults toward your neighbor. There’s no room for love.
What does Jesus say about how we work toward the preservation of life? He says, “be reconciled. Come to terms quickly.” One of the ways that we help preserve life is by seeking reconciliation. Jesus never ceases to blow my mind. Because we can even seek reconciliation in a way that violates the sixth commandment, with anger and insults still in our hearts. But Jesus covers that in the same sermon. He says to them in , “Why do you see the speck that’s in your brother’s eye, but you don’t notice the log that’s in your own eye?” He says when you do that you’re being a hypocrite. “How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye?” To do the life preserving work of reconciliation means that I have to be honest about my own sin. I have to examine my own heart. If I really do that heart examining work, I’ll be humbled by what I find. The pride in my heart will start to dissolve. And the sixth commandment breaking judgmental attitude that destroys life will be replaced by the love that preserves life.
The commandment calls for the prevention of the loss of life and the preservation of life in a way that enables people to flourish. This has all kinds of implications for the things we care about. It speaks to the issue of abortion. It speaks to the issue of war. It speaks to the issue of care for those in need. It speaks to health care, and issues related to the environment. It speaks to the issue of crime and punishment. And, yes, it speaks to the issue of racism. It speaks to the issue of systemic injustice. If we really want to work through those issues, we must delve deeply into this commandment and how it plays out in Scripture. Don't just form opinions that fit a particular political or cultural narrative. Do the work of understanding what it means for Jesus to call his people not only to live, but to help others live.
Here’s the last thing I’ll say about this prevention and preservation of life that the sixth commandment calls us to. The irony is that in order to live it out, death was required. For OT Israel, God freed them by sacrifice. The slaughter of the Passover lambs when they were still in Egypt—the smearing of the blood on the doorposts of their homes—prevented their death and preserved their lives as the angel of death passed through Egypt and killed the firstborn of every household. A sacrificial death brought them life that enabled them to be people who received God’s commandment to prevent death and promote life themselves. And all of that foreshadowed the true Passover Lamb, Jesus Christ. He is the one who, through his death, gives us life. Jesus says that the thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
“You shall not murder.” Jesus submitted himself to the Father so completely that he was willing to be murdered, an unjust killing, to give us life in abundance; life that is eternal and can never be taken away. Can I tell that you can only live and help others live in the truest sense if you have received this life that Jesus came to give. This is because the only way to live it is to be willing to die ourselves. The only way to live it is to lose our lives for his sake. The only way to live it is to be people who sing, “My life is not my own, to you I belong. I give myself, I give myself away.”
The white supremacist march in Charlottesville is evil. It must be condemned in the strongest way possible. It also should cause many in the majority culture not to ask how, but why the silence for so long to speak against the racist joke, the unwillingness to teach an honest history, and the cowardice to confront. Silence in the face of evil is consent. Pastor Bobby Griffith
Prayer from Pastor Robert Cunningham
Christ, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Help us to truly see and know how to address, with unprejudiced wisdom, the systems, institutions, and practices that have formed such deep hatred in so many.
Prevent us from turning aside from, downplaying or ignoring the reality of white supremacy.
Lead us through the crucible of righteous anger and heartfelt sorrow that yields an enduring, defiant, self-giving love.
Help us to listen to and learn from the grievances of those for whom today’s event is symbolic of much larger, on-going, long-standing oppression and injustice.
Give us the humility to recognize and repent of our own complicity in these systems of oppression and injustice.
Give us a deep seated conviction of our faith - that Trinitarian love is the heart of reality, that your creation is a good gift to be cultivated and cared for, that every human being bears your image, that the way of Jesus - that of forgiving, self-giving love, even for one’s enemies - is the hard, but right way and the way of life.
Help us to reject hatred or fear as the lens through which we see our neighbors, and protect us from becoming the very thing we stand against.
Give us the courage and commitment to work toward these things in the concrete realities of our households, workplaces, churches, friendships and communities.
Give us hope. Hope in your mercy, hope in your justice, hope that the peace of your city has the last word. Help us to live as residents of that city, here and now.
Christ, have mercy.
Q 134: What is the sixth commandment?
A: The fifth commandment is: You shall not murder.
Q 135: What does the sixth commandment require?
A: The sixth commandment requires us to do our best to make every lawful effort to preserve our own life and the lives of others. We do this by not thinking about or planning, by controlling our emotions, and by avoiding all opportunities, temptations, or actions that would promote or lead to the unjust taking of someone’s life. In pursuit of this goal, we must defend others from violence, patiently endure the afflictions from God’s hand, have a quiet mind and a cheerful spirit, practice temperance in the way we eat, drink, take medications, sleep, work, and play. We should also harbor charitable thoughts, love, compassion, meekness, gentleness, and kindness. Our speech and behavior should be peaceful, mild, and courteous. We should be tolerant of others, be ready to be reconciled, patiently put up with and forgive injuries against us, and return good for evil. Finally, we should provide aid and comfort to those in distress as well as protect and defend the innocent.