2018-07-08 Exodus 21:12-14, 22-25

Exodus 21:12–14 CSB

“Whoever strikes a person so that he dies must be put to death. But if he did not intend any harm, and yet God allowed it to happen, I will appoint a place for you where he may flee. If a person schemes and willfully acts against his neighbor to murder him, you must take him from my altar to be put to death.

Exodus 21:22–25 CSB

“When men get in a fight and hit a pregnant woman so that her children are born prematurely but there is no injury, the one who hit her must be fined as the woman’s husband demands from him, and he must pay according to judicial assessment. If there is an injury, then you must give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, bruise for bruise, wound for wound.

Exodus 21:22–25 CSB

“When men get in a fight and hit a pregnant woman so that her children are born prematurely but there is no injury, the one who hit her must be fined as the woman’s husband demands from him, and he must pay according to judicial assessment. If there is an injury, then you must give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, bruise for bruise, wound for wound.

I.

Human life matters to God.

(CSB) 12 “Whoever strikes a person so that he dies must be put to death. 13 But if he did not intend any harm, and yet God allowed it to happen, I will appoint a place for you where he may flee. 14 If a person schemes and willfully acts against his neighbor to murder him, you must take him from my altar to be put to death.

12 “Whoever strikes a person so that he dies must be put to death. 13 But if he did not intend any harm, and yet God allowed it to happen, I will appoint a place for you where he may flee. 14 If a person schemes and willfully acts against his neighbor to murder him, you must take him from my altar to be put to death.

12 “Whoever strikes a person so that he dies must be put to death. 13 But if he did not intend any harm, and yet God allowed it to happen, I will appoint a place for you where he may flee. 14 If a person schemes and willfully acts against his neighbor to murder him, you must take him from my altar to be put to death.

God created men and women differently than all other creation.

(CSB) 12 “Whoever strikes a person so that he dies must be put to death. 13 But if he did not intend any harm, and yet God allowed it to happen, I will appoint a place for you where he may flee. 14 If a person schemes and willfully acts against his neighbor to murder him, you must take him from my altar to be put to death.

Illus: I have come to realize that our sermon series has started a conversation about what God’s heart and desire for our lives. I was talking with a member this week and their teenager came to them talking about what they have learned in the series.

The teenager took from the sermon on murder that God’s intent is not to kill in any way, whether humans, or animals.

I want to clarify that God views humans very differently than he views animals.

I love my dogs. I talk about my dogs, take pictures of my dogs. Frankly my dogs have run of my house. Every animal should be treated ethically.

That said, my dogs are not my kids. My kids are my kids.

God views animals differently than he views humans.

When God created the world, he created men differently. He created men and women in his image. We carry the image of God upon us.

Every human life is sacred as every human is created in the image of God. That is something separate from all other created beings.

The way we treat other people, whether they have the same skin color as us, are from the same country as us, have disabilities, think differently, vote differently, or even sin differently should be rooted in first that they are created in the image of God. Being created in the image of God we treat them with the dignity of being God’s special creation.

That means that every word that comes our of our mouth, or through our phone, should give others the dignity of being an image bearer of God.

That means every action, whether personal, political, business, or moral should ask question, am I giving my fellow man the dignity of one created in God’s image?

How often do we give dignity to those like us, but refuse it to those who may not look like, act like or think like us?

(CSB)

26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, the whole earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.”

27 So God created man in his own image;

he created him in the image of God;

he created them male and female.

Not only do your actions matter, but your intentions matter as well.

(CSB) 12 “Whoever strikes a person so that he dies must be put to death. 13 But if he did not intend any harm, and yet God allowed it to happen, I will appoint a place for you where he may flee. 14 If a person schemes and willfully acts against his neighbor to murder him, you must take him from my altar to be put to death.

Illus: Intent matters to God. God not only sees your actions but he also sees your heart. If the act of harm to another person was accidental, God does not judge you through the same lens as if it were malicious.

This is also why we understand that war, often necessary, is not the same as malicious killing. War is not the intentional killing of others, but he pursuit of better good, or the end of an evil. This is also why our leaders need us to pray, because God sees their hearts as they make decisions of war and peace.

Frankly, the fact that God looks at the heart should scare us in a greater way. Why?

God sees every word, action, and he sees the intent behind them. When God judges us, he does not just look at the act, he looks at our hearts.

(CSB)

21 “You have heard that it was said to our ancestors, Do not murder,, and whoever murders will be subject to judgment. 22 But I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Whoever insults his brother or sister, will be subject to the court. Whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be subject to hellfire., 23 So if you are offering your gift on the altar, and there you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled with your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.

21 “You have heard that it was said to our ancestors, Do not murder,, and whoever murders will be subject to judgment. 22 But I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Whoever insults his brother or sister, will be subject to the court. Whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be subject to hellfire., 23 So if you are offering your gift on the altar, and there you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled with your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.

Unborn life matters to God.

(CSB) 22 “When men get in a fight and hit a pregnant woman so that her children are born prematurely but there is no injury, the one who hit her must be fined as the woman’s husband demands from him, and he must pay according to judicial assessment. 23 If there is an injury, then you must give life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, bruise for bruise, wound for wound.

22 “When men get in a fight and hit a pregnant woman so that her children are born prematurely but there is no injury, the one who hit her must be fined as the woman’s husband demands from him, and he must pay according to judicial assessment. 23 If there is an injury, then you must give life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, bruise for bruise, wound for wound.

The bible considers unborn life as sacred.

(CSB) 22 “When men get in a fight and hit a pregnant woman so that her children are born prematurely but there is no injury, the one who hit her must be fined as the woman’s husband demands from him, and he must pay according to judicial assessment. 23 If there is an injury, then you must give life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, bruise for bruise, wound for wound.

Illus: We live in a nation of rights. The discussion is simply, when a woman is pregnant, does she have rights over her whole body, including the child within, or does the child within have the sam inalienable rights as her?

Deep down it is a question of personhood. When does a child become a person? Does a baby become a person when born or when conceived?

This decision is too big of a decision for us to make on our own as humans. Our question must look to the creator life for the answer.

When does God say life begins? When does a child become an image bearer of God, and thus take on sacred significance?

Look to scripture to when God says personhood begins.

(CSB)

13 For it was you who created my inward parts;

you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

14 I will praise you

because I have been remarkably and wondrously made.,

Your works are wondrous,

and I know this very well.

15 My bones were not hidden from you

when I was made in secret,

when I was formed in the depths of the earth.

16 Your eyes saw me when I was formless;

all my days were written in your book and planned

before a single one of them began.

God has a heart for the helpless.

(CSB) 22 “When men get in a fight and hit a pregnant woman so that her children are born prematurely but there is no injury, the one who hit her must be fined as the woman’s husband demands from him, and he must pay according to judicial assessment. 23 If there is an injury, then you must give life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, bruise for bruise, wound for wound.

Illus: There is a bigger theme coming out of this passage. The strong should always protect the week.

With babies, who cannot speak for themselves, we have a God given responsibility to speak and act on their behalf.

Our

Eye for an eye is not the standard law for all injury. It is a greater law for the helpless. When you abuse one who is helpless, you should receive justice, eye for an eye, tooth for tooth. hand for hand, foot for foot.

God has a heart for orphans, oppressed people, poor, and widows. There is a higher standard of conduct for believers when it comes to purposely working to bring justice on their behalf.

Do you have a heart for the helpless?

(CSB)

3 Provide justice for the needy and the fatherless;

uphold the rights of the oppressed and the destitute.

4 Rescue the poor and needy;

save them from the power of the wicked.”

Life has been given on our behalf.

If there is an injury, then you must give life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, bruise for bruise, wound for wound.

In punishment Christ took our place.

Illus: God looks at our actions. He looks at our intent. He looks to every time we have failed to seek justice for the oppressed. He has seen the times where we have willingly turned a blinded eye, or our hearts have become hardened to people who are made in His image.

In this we are condemned in his sight and deserve our just punishment, but Christ took it for us.

The law was not nullified by Christ, but instead it was paid for by Christ. Where we should see the eye for and eye punishment, Jesus willingly took our sentence. Our death sentence became Christ’s.

(CSB)

7 For rarely will someone die for a just person—though for a good person perhaps someone might even dare to die. 8 But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 How much more then, since we have now been declared righteous by his blood, will we be saved through him from wrath. 10 For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, then how much more, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life.