Introduction: Let's review what we covered in the past five studies. Some hyper dispensational Bible teacher would have us to believe that we are living in the age of grace while those in the Old Testament times were living under the law. They say that those in the Old Testament were saved by the keeping of the law and that violation that law would mean not only certain death, but also the loss of one's salvation. You see, if salvation is gained by the works of the law, then it can be lost by breaking that law. But, salvation is not gained by the keeping of the law nor has it ever been that way.
- "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified." (Galatians 2:16)
The truth is, salvation has never been by the keeping of the law. It was not that way in the Old Testament, it is not that way now, and it will not be that way in the future or during the Millennium. This is why Hebrews tells us that salvation has always been through Jesus, "For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it." (Hebrews 4:2)
The purpose for the law was never to save but to show us our need of salvation. It is compared to three things in the Scriptures:
- A schoolmaster; Galatians 3:24-25, The schoolmaster was not the teacher, but brought the student to the teacher.
- A plumbline; Amos 7:7-8, The plumbline did not straighten a wall, but showed its need of straightening.
- A mirror; James 1:23-25, A mirror does not clean a man's face, but shows the need for washing the face.
The Ten Commandments can easily be divided into two groups of five:
- Commandments 1-5 have to do with our relationship to the LORD. The phrase "the LORD thy God" is found in each one. They have to do with piety.
- Commandments 6-10 have to do with our relationship to one another. The word "thou" is found in each one. They have to do with probity.
In the original language of the Old Testament, these 10 commandments were neither numbered nor divided. The Roman Catholic Church has traditionally divided them into two groups, the first of which consists of the first four commandments while the second is made up of the last six. However, the Jews have, from their earliest records, divided them into the two groups of five I mentioned above.
There is another interesting fact concerning these Ten Commandments. All of them deal with three areas; thought, word, and deed.
- Commandments 1-2 = thought; verses 2-6
- Commandment 3 = word; verses 7
- Commandments 4-5 = deed; verses 8-12
- Commandments 6-8 = deed; verses 13-15
- Commandment 9 = word; verse 16
- Commandment 10 = thought; verse 17
** The first commandment is found in Exodus 20:1-3, "And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me." We found that idolatry is a grievous sin and God puts it first on His list of ten commandments. Why first? If our foundation is wrong, our structure will be shaky.
** The second commandment is found in Exodus 20:4-6. The second commandment is not a restating of the first, but rather the stating of another commandment. "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments." Not only is it forbidden to have other gods before God, it is equally forbidden to make and have other gods in your possession.
** The third commandment is found in Exodus 20:7, "Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain." The third commandment goes much further than the mere mispronunciation of His name. Taking His name in vain also included how we use His name and how we live as Christians.
** The fourth commandment is found in Exodus 20:8-11, "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it." The Sabbath Day of the Old Testament was given as a sign for the people of Israel and was to be observed until was fulfilled in Jesus. There is no Christian Sabbath; never has been and never will be. Today but there is the principle of rest and the example set by the early New Testament believers to meet for worship on the first day of the week. We do not have a Christian Sabbath to observe but we do have a command to not forsake the assembling ourselves together as the manner of some is.
** The fifth commandment is found in Exodus 20:12, "Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee." This commandment completes the first grouping of five commandments. As I mentioned earlier, the first five commandments deal with our relationship to God and piety toward Him. What is piety? Piety is the state or quality of being pious, especially concerning devotion and reverence to the Lord. It also means a devotion and reverence to parents and family. (American Heritage Dictionary)
With this message, we begin the second division of the Ten Commandments. These commandments do not deal with piety but probity. What is probity? It is uprightness and honesty and, as stated earlier, these commandments deal with our relationship to one another.
** The sixth commandment is found in Exodus 20:13, "Thou shalt not kill." Is this kind of killing simply the taking of a human life? Does it include the taking of human life no matter what the reason?
There are 10 words in the Old Testament used for the word kill. Exodus 20:13 uses the ninth meaning, which is, to break or dash in pieces; to kill, to slay, in a violent, unjust manner. It means to murder. This same word is used only a few other times throughout the Old Testament. In addition to our text, the same word is found only in the following places in the Old Testament:
- "And the revenger of blood find him without the borders of the city of his refuge, and the revenger of blood kill the slayer; he shall not be guilty of blood." (Numbers 35:27)
- "That the slayer might flee thither, which should kill his neighbour unawares, and hated him not in times past; and that fleeing unto one of these cities he might live." (Deuteronomy 4:42)
- "Thou shalt not kill." (Deuteronomy 5:17)
- "And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Hast thou killed, and also taken possession? And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the LORD, In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine." (1 Kings 21:19)
- "Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land. By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood. Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein shall languish, with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven; yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away." (Hosea 4:1-3)
The New Testament word for this word is used only 10 times in the New Testament. It is interesting to note that this word is never connected with capital punishment or righteous wars waged to protect God-given rights and freedoms. It is always used in connection with the brutal slaying of the innocent.
1. God imposed the death penalty for murder. - Genesis 9:5-6
"And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man. Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man."
- Before there were courts of law, before there were kingdoms and organized nations, before the Ten Commandments, there was God's rule concerning murderers.
- When "man" is used in these verses, it refers to mankind, which would include men, women, children, and even the unborn!
- People say this is not what a loving God would do, but it in fact IS what a loving AND JUST God will do.
2. The Mosaic law imposed the death penalty for murders. - Exodus 21:12
"He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death."
- God must hate murder to impose the death penalty on those who commit such a crime both before the law and after.
- God takes it as far as the womb. Exodus 21:22-25 says, "If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman's husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life, Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, Burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe."
- In a nutshell, this verse simply means that if a woman and/or her unborn child are injured and the result of the injury causes either the mother or the child to die or be permanently injured, "...then thou shalt give life for life..."
- The exact same penalty is demanded for injuring the mother, as well as, the child.
3. The New Testament supports the death penalty for murder. - Luke 13:1-5
"There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish."
- This is a law that transcends both Old and New Testaments. God hated murder and demanded the death of the murderer.
4. It is sin to kill in an unjust manner. - Matthew 5:21
"Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment."
- This means that murder is a sin. According to the context of the rest of the Bible, it is a sin that is punishable by death.
- This excludes the protecting of your family or any other innocent life.
- This excludes a war where right must be protected.
5. This means that abortion is murder and abortion doctors are murderers.
- Remember what Exodus 21:22-25 says? "If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman's husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life, Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, Burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe."
- An unborn child, or as the world likes to call it, a fetus or a P.O.C. (Product of Conception), is a human life from the moment of conception.* "Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me." (Psalm 51:5)
* "For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them." (Psalm 139:13-16)
* "Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me...And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength." (Isaiah 49:1-2, 5)
* "Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations." (Jeremiah 1:4-5)
* "And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost." (Luke 1:41)
* "And that from a child (Greek; brephos = child or unborn child) thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus." (2 Timothy 3:15)- To take the life of the unborn is just as much murder as the taking of any other human life no matter how old. Murder is murder and God said, "Thou shalt not kill."
* An abortion doctor is just as much a murderer as Jacob Ind or his accomplice, Gabriel.
* An abortion doctor is just as much a murderer as Charles Manson.
* An abortion doctor is just as much a murderer as Gary Davis.
* An abortion doctor is just as much a murderer as Ted Bundy.
* An abortion doctor is just as much a murderer as John Wayne Gasey.
* An abortion doctor is just as much a murderer as Hitler, Tito, or Fidel Castro.- We believe that human life begins at conception and that the unborn child is a living human being. Abortion constitutes the unjustified, unexcused taking of unborn human life. Abortion is murder.
- We reject any teaching that abortions of pregnancies due to rape, incest, birth defects, gender selection, birth or population control, or the mental well-being of the mother are acceptable! Abortion is not health care, abortion is murder!
- Remember what "kill" means in Exodus 20:13? It means to break or dash in pieces; to kill, to slay, in a violent, unjust manner. If there was ever an accurate description of abortion , it is found in the meaning of the word "kill" in the sixth commandment.
Conclusion: Is capital punishment justifiably right? Yes. Is murder justifiably right? No. Is it justifiable, while protecting the lives of others, to take the life of another human being in order to protect the innocent? Yes. Is it justifiable to take the life of another human being just because that individual is in the way, or because you don't like them, or because they are old, or unwanted, or unnecessary, or retarded, or poor, or deformed, or blind, or deaf, or ill, or unhealthy...or unborn? NO!
No woman has a right to an abortion, to slay an unborn, unwanted child. What if that child is conceived because of incest or rape? Rather than have a murder on your hands, give that baby up for adoption and give it a chance to live and serve the Lord! When God said, "Thou shalt not kill," He meant exactly what He said. Let's not justify the slaying of the innocent because of inconvenience.