Sermon for September 10th, 2023

Matthew 22:34-40

34 When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, 35 and one of them, an expert in the law, asked him a question to test him. 36 “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” 37 He said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the greatest and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

Deuteronomy 5:15-21

15 Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm; therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day. 16 Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God commanded you, so that your days may be long and that it may go well with you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. 17 You shall not murder. 18 Neither shall you commit adultery. 19 Neither shall you steal. 20 Neither shall you bear false witness against your neighbor. 21 Neither shall you covet your neighbor’s wife.

Ten Laws, One Love: Life-Taking, Life-Giving

A Sunday School teacher was discussing the Ten Commandments with her five and six year old students. After explaining the commandment to "honor your Father and your Mother," she asked, "Is there a commandment that teaches us how we should treat our brothers and sisters?" Without missing a beat, one little child piped up and said, "You shall not kill them."

You shall not kill. I was driving my daughter, Abigail, to school this past week and she asked which commandment I'd be preaching about today. When I told her, she thought that this one was actually pretty simple and straightforward. She said, "You should just stand up at the beginning of your sermon and say: 'Don't kill anyone,' and then sit back down."

As great as that idea sounds, and as much as I'm sure some of you would really appreciate a three-word-long sermon today, I don't think it's quite that simple. I knew that when I stood up in front of you today, I'd be looking out at a congregation member who was recently called to serve on a jury which (after much difficult deliberation) handed down the death penalty in response to a pretty heinous crime. I knew that I'd be looking out at military service members and law enforcement officers who are trained to use deadly force in order to save lives and protect our freedoms. I knew I'd be looking out at veterans of past wars who may still be haunted by the shadow of lives they were ordered to take, justifiably or otherwise.

This is why most modern translations of the Bible render this commandment as "You shall not murder" instead of "You shall not kill" which is found in the King James and other older translations. Murder, in English, is a more focused word, which usually refers to unlawful killing, or killing that is outside the bounds of what a society has deemed justifiable. And while there are some people (as well as some streams of Christianity) who believe that any kind of killing is unjustifiable, the laws of just about every country throughout history, including those in Biblical times, have made exceptions for things like self-defense, law-enforcement, and warfare. We also distinguish between killing that is pre-meditated, crimes of passion, and accidental killing--all still illegal, but the punishment for the last two is less severe. This was also true in the laws of the Old Testament, given to Moses and the people of Israel by God in the books of Deuteronomy, Exodus, and Numbers. There are clearly types of killing that God condones, and sometimes even requires.

But with all that being said, just in case you're feeling pretty good about yourself right now, just in case you're patting yourself on the back and saying, "Hey, I've never murdered anyone in cold blood. I'm doing great at keeping the sixth commandment!" Well, not so fast. I'm going to come back to that in a minute. But first, I want us to understand WHY God asks us, in the ten commandments, not to take the life of another person.

Do you remember several weeks ago that I said that when compared with other ancient documents, the Ten Commandments resembled less a law-code and more a treaty, a covenant between a King and his people? In an ancient middle-Eastern Kingdom, the power to grant life and death belonged solely to the King, and his word was the final appeal in any life or death case. But even an earthly king would never have had the ability to truly "grant" life...only mercy or an extension of life to someone who was already alive. God on the other hand, the King of Kings, breathed life into every living thing, and is the only one with the power to do so.

Taken in this light, the sixth commandment is really an extension of, and a parallel to... the first commandment, "I am the Lord your God, you shall have no other gods before me." To take another person's life is to put one's self in the place of God, taking away what you cannot give. Life--all life--belongs to God and God alone. Not only is taking life idolatry, but since we are created in the image of God, to kill someone is to kill God's image, a direct attack on God.

So why the exceptions, then, for law enforcement, capital punishment, and warfare? When God called the descendants of Abraham out of the wilderness and formed them into a nation, giving them laws and civil structures, he was (like a King) placing into the hands of his representatives some of his authority to take life for a limited set of justifiable reasons. When those representatives wielded God's power judiciously, everyone prospered. When they abused it, God sent them prophets to remind them, and if they still didn't listen, he sent to their borders a bigger, badder, neighboring army with very little respect for the sixth commandment.

Fast forward a few centuries to the New Testament, and Jesus weighs in on the subject of the sixth commandment. In Matthew 5:21-24, he says:

21 ‘You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, “You shall not kill”; and “whoever kills shall be liable to judgement.” 22But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgement; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, “You fool”, you will be liable to the hell of fire. 23So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift."

Jesus knew that our actions (like killing someone) are actually just the final step in a long process that begins with what's inside our hearts and minds. You may not have ever murdered someone in cold blood. But if you've ever been angry with a brother or sister, if you've ever insulted someone or called someone a fool...then you've already started down that path, and the only thing that distinguishes you from the cold-blooded killer is how far you kept going before you stopped, turned around, and went back to make peace with the person who made you angry.

I have said that the ten commandments are a treaty, but I've also said they're a gift; a representation of who God is among us, to help us discover who we are, and who we can become. In other words, God is our example in all things. While we cannot breathe life into another person (only God can do that) there is something related, something life-giving that we can offer to God and to each other: Love. Jesus summarized the commandments (including the sixth commandment) when he told us to love God with all our heart, and to love our neighbor as ourselves.

So if we truly want to understand and honor the sixth commandment, then it's not enough to simply refrain from taking life. We have to make it a daily practice to do life-giving, life-affirming things: Small acts of love, care, and kindness throughout each day. Use your words. Use your smile. Use your talents and your gifts. Use your time. Mother Teresa once said "We cannot all do great things. But we can do small things with great love." And when you do small things for others with great love, you are aligning yourself with God, the giver and sustainer of all life.

So right now, in this moment, I want you to think of just one, small thing you can do for someone today (maybe someone you know, maybe a random stranger, extra bonus points if it's someone who has made you angry!). Think of just one small thing, deserved or undeserved, and then I want you to go out there and do it. And then tomorrow, do it again. You get the idea.