Exodus 20:13 – THE BIG TEN #7 – “NO MURDER”, HE WROTE!
Exodus 20:13 – Thou shalt not kill.
- Why do news programs on television tend to sensationalize murders?
- Should Christians watch murder mysteries on television? Why? See Philippians 4:8
- How should God’s attitude towards murder affect ours?
- Why is God opposed to murder?
The Sixth Commandment forbids murder. It is a short command that has many ramifications.
DEFINING MURDER
- TRADITIONAL MURDER – Numbers 35:16-21
- What is the traditional definition of murder?
- What are some ways people kill that can be defined as murder?
- What are some ways that people kill that are not murder?
- ANGER AS MURDER
Matthew 5:22-23 – But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;
- What is Jesus’ rationale for putting anger on the same plane as murder?
- Why is anger such a dangerous emotion?
- How are unforgiveness and bitterness outgrowths from anger?
- MANSLAUGHTER – Deuteronomy 19:4-5, Numbers 35:22-25
- How is involuntary manslaughter different from murder?
- What part does anger have in involuntary manslaughter?
DIAGNOSING A MURDER – Genesis 4:1-10
- Why did Cain kill Abel?
- With whom did Cain really have issues?
- How could the whole scene have been avoided?
- What part did unjustified anger have to do with this murder?
DEFUSING A MURDER
Matthew 5:23-24 – Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.
Ephesians 4:26-27 – Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil.
Ephesians 4:32 – And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.
- How should our times with God affect our “fits of anger”?
- How can we be angry and “sin not”?
- In what way can we “give place to the devil”?
- How does forgiveness defuse murder?
DISCUSSING SOME MURDERS
Genesis 1:27 – So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
Jeremiah 1:5 – 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.
- What would you say to a person who was considering an abortion for herself or for the child he has fathered?
- What is the problem with Euthanasia?
- What is the problem with “physician assisted suicide”?
DEFENDING SOME KILLINGS
- ALLOWING SOMEONE TO DIE (Not killing at all!)
- “Physicians down through the ages have stopped treatments and extraordinary means of keeping someone alive when the end is inevitable. That is what it sometimes takes to allow another human being to die with dignity. Death with dignity is not a euphemism for euthanasia. It is not the same as so-called ‘mercy killing’ of a Jack Kevorkian.” Alistair Begg, Pathway to Freedom, How God’s laws Guide our Lives, (Chicago, Moody Publishers, 2003), p. 142
- How can we tell when it’s time to “let someone go”?
- CAPITAL PUNISHMENT
- Genesis 9:6 – Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man.
- Why is capital punishment loathed by many?
- How does the enforcement of capital punishment honor God-given life?
- WAR
- War in the Old Testament was not considered by God to be murder.
- Who is actually responsible for legitimate acts of war? Romans 13:1