Will you turn with me in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 5, and we're going to read from verse number 1. I'm going to read then down to verse number 26. This is the Sermon on the Mount that Lord Jesus Christ is preaching. We read there in verse one, and he, seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain. And when he was set, his disciples came unto him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. Ye are the salt of the earth, but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? It is henceforth good for nothing but to be cast out and to be trodden under foot of men. Ye are the light of the world, a city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick, and it give light unto all that are in the house. let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets. I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. But whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say unto you that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill, and whosoever shall kill shall be in the danger of the judgment. 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 Arachah 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, leave there thy gift before the altar and go thy way. First be reconciled to thy brother, and come and offer thy gift. Agree with thine adversary quickly, whilst thou art in the way with him lest, at any time, the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison. Verily I say unto thee, thou shalt by no means come out thence till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing. And then just turn over to Exodus chapter 20 and to verse number 13. This is the sixth commandment. Thou shalt not kill. Now, as we look at the commandments and as we have gone through some of the commandments already, it can be easy to fall into the trap of seeing them as like a tick box exercise. There's a command, do I fulfill it? If so, there we have a tick in the box. Well, it can be a very superficial way that we approach the commands of God. And we may go through them, and we may be very proudly asserting that we've not broken them, or we may somehow downplay the seriousness of these commands and the offenses. So we may start with command number one, and we see there, we're not to worship other gods. and we give ourselves a big pat on the back and say well we're not polytheistic, that one's sorted. We then move on to commandment number two and it tells us there about not making an idol, not bowing down. Okay and that's good news, we've never done anything like that and we can even have our houses checked to find whether there's any trinkets in the corner of the room. We may then get to commandment number three and think well I may have taken the Lord's name in vain but I don't do it very often and it's so infrequent and really it's a bit of an irrelevance. We then come to commandment number four about keeping the Sabbath day holy, remembering the Sabbath day and we quite like the idea that some Christians have put forward that there is now no duty laid upon the believer, no duty remaining because of the coming of Christ for the Sabbath, therefore that doesn't apply to us anymore, and so then we confidently move over to commandment number five. We get to that one and we're pretty sure overall we've kept this one, we've honoured our mother and our father, and then we come to commandment number six, And we are very confident about this. In fact, we're so confident, we know for certain that we have never killed anyone. And then we come to the others, adultery, stealing, lies and coveting, and we think, well, they're all part of human behaviour, but in comparison to other people, we are doing better than most. And so we can have a very superficial attachment and attitude to the commands. But when we come to commandment number six, and confident that we've never broken that command, we see in the authorized version, it says there in verse 13, thou shalt not kill. If, however, you look at pretty much every other translation that has been written, whether that's the NIV, the New King James, the English Standard Version, the Legacy Standard Bible, the NASB, or any of them that you could think about, they almost universally translate it, you shall not murder. And the question comes, which is correct? And then the second part to that question, does it matter? And both ways that this Hebrew word is translated could easily be misunderstood. Let's take the authorized version to start with. It says there, thou shalt not kill. And that could be interpreted and understood that all taking of life is forbidden. that there is no reason why anybody's life should be taken and it's forbidden by God. And yet when we apply and we test scriptures against scriptures, that cannot be the case. Because, for example, after the flood, God gives to Noah this direction. So this is after the judgment of the waters. And God says to Noah in this new earth, as it were, whoso shedeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed, for in the image of God made he man. From that verse, it would suggest that God supports capital punishment, that there are certain things that require the death of an individual. Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed. You can look in the Old Testament and you will see that there are capital punishments required by God for those who transgress the law. We mentioned last week about those that do not honor their father and their mother. The father was to bring his son to the elders to tell them that their son was a drunkard and a sluggard, he was disobedient, dishonoring, and then the community would have had him executed by stoning. Capital punishment was also required for Sabbath breaking and also for adultery. Well what about the New Testament, is there any instructions there? Well Romans 13 verses 1 to 4 tells us this in relation to civil authorities, let every soul be subject unto the higher powers for there's no power but of God, the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God, and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? Do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same. For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid, for he beareth not the sword in vain, for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil. Paul is saying there that part of the civil authority, the civil duty, is to uphold law and order. And if evil is being done, that must be dealt with, it must be avenged, and we read there about the sword not being born in vain. So the way the authorised version says, thou shalt not kill, it can't mean, therefore, that there is a prohibition on capital punishment. And so not all killing can be included. The same goes with somebody killing an individual unawares. And in Israel, you may know, they had a number of cities of refuge designed to protect somebody if they killed somebody unintentionally. It was an accident. There was no malice, there was no negligence on their part, there was no predetermining of the act, but an accident happened, an individual died, and so there were these places of refuge set up where that individual that has done this can go and escape. and then have a fair trial in front of the judge. So somebody that kills somebody unawares should be treated differently to somebody like Cain, who in cold blood murdered his brother. In Exodus 22 verses 1 to 3, it talks there about self-defense, and the picture that's given, the illustration that's given, if somebody breaks into your home at night and blood is shed, then the person who has defended his house and his family and his possessions shall not be guilty of it. But then if it's daylight, then these things don't apply. Exodus 22 verse one, if a man shall steal an ox or a sheep and kill it or sell it, he shall restore five oxen for an ox and four sheep for a sheep. If a thief be found breaking up and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him. If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him, for he should make full restitution. If you have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. We could also think about times of war. God called specifically upon Israel to go up and possess the Promised Land. They were to go and fight as God commanded. And in many places, they were told to kill and destroy every living thing. They weren't then held responsible for breaking this sixth command. So the idea of killing doesn't cover all deaths. And yet, Commandment 6 has often been used to justify the pacifist movement, and also those that are proponents of abolishing the death penalty, and has even been used by some to try and outlaw animal testing. But what about the other translations? Are they more accurate? Are they more helpful? Well, they all translate that word that we have in the AV, kill, to murder. And that might seem to be a good word. And that has the idea behind it of deliberate and unjustly taking another's life. Now, even in our own legal system, I'm sure Martin will be able to correct me if I've got this wrong, but murder is more than just pulling the trigger if somebody was shot. If there are two parties that are involved in this and they're equally party to it, they can equally be counted as culpable of murder, even if only one party actually does the deed. And so this command covers more than just the actual taking of the life. we can think about David with Uriah. He knew what he was doing when he gave the order for Uriah to be placed in the hottest part of the battle. He wanted him dead, he wanted this problem solved and done away with, and he achieved that although he was many, many miles away. Another example we could think about is to do with negligence, Deuteronomy 22 verse 8. When thou buildest a new house, then thou shalt make a battlement for thy roof, or a fencing, in other words, that thou bring not blood upon thine house if any man fall from thence. We have the principle there of not being negligent that then results or contributes to a person's death. We might apply this to our own circumstance. You know that you have a problem with your brakes, you get in your car, you drive, your brakes fail, somebody is killed. Well, you may not have gone out willfully to kill that individual, but your negligence played a part, and so that commandment here would have a place. Another aspect is found in Exodus 21, verse 28 and 29. So when you have your ox at home, if it's known to have gored somebody and they die, then that ox is going to be stoned and the flesh not eaten and the owner is acquitted. But if that ox was known to have pushed with his horns in times past, and the owner knows about it, and he's not kept him in, he's not protected others from that, then he that, he have killed a man or woman, then that ox will be stoned, and also the owner will be put to death. So the owner is held accountable and responsible for what happens. And so they fall under the requirements of this command. So it would seem that if we compared these two words that are translated in the AV and also in the other versions, that killing would seem to be a little bit too broad, but murder would seem to be a little bit too narrow. So not all killing breaks this command, and neither is just murder a violation of it. We live in quite a bizarre society and the United States is no different in that people will picket and protest, not in this country of course, because we don't have the death sentence, but certainly in America, how they will picket and protest an execution of a child rapist murderer. and yet support the death of an infant in the womb through abortion, or promote the free choice of the elderly, the sick, the infirm, to hasten their deaths in the name of that choice. It's quite a bizarre situation that we've got, like we were thinking on Sunday about the apostles being accused of turning the world upside down. When we look at what God has determined, what God has orientated this world to be, this seems, the world in which we live, to be upside down and in defiance of what God has said. And although people would naturally say that this command is, we can't violate it, sanctity of life is important, yet it's being violated all the time. The latest data on abortion since, from 2021. For that year alone, the highest year on record, there were 214,256 abortions that took place in England and Wales alone. Not including Scotland, not including Northern Ireland. And if you look at the graph, that is a steady increased year on year. Even today, in our Parliament, MPs are debating the subject of assisted suicide. And the idea being that it is the humane thing to do. It is the kind thing to do. It's the loving thing to do, to allow somebody to hasten their death. There's a news report in the last week or two about a woman in the Netherlands. She's physically healthy and she's 26 years old. She has a suicide planned and it's all been agreed because she believes that the depression that she has is incurable. And that's despite reports telling us that she has a job, She has a partner that she's living with and happy with, and even a cat. And yet she's planning to kill herself with the aid of the state. So why is breaking this sixth command so wrong? Well, I would suggest to you that it has something to do with the unique creation of man. All other aspects of creation were brought about by the Word of God. God spoke, and then something happened. God spoke and said, let there be light, and the result was there was light. When God called the sun, the moon, and the stars into being, that's what happened. The same with the animals. They were brought forth in that regard. But with man, it was different. Because we read in the opening chapters of Genesis how God, from the dust of the earth, moulds him, makes him, and then he does something significant. He breathes into him and he became a living soul. Acts chapter 17, the Apostle Paul at the Areopagus. He is telling the people there, the Greeks, the mighty philosophers of the day, how that it's because of God that we live and move and have our being. Mankind is also the only part of God's creation which is said to be made in his image. So the killing of other people is wrong because of the way in which we're constituted and the way in which we're created. Another aspect as to what makes this command wrong to break is the unique relationship that we have with God and that he has with us. Adam was given authority and dominion over the world. He was over all the living creatures. In fact, he was given the honour and the duty to name them. But Adam was the only one whom God communed with and had fellowship with. We read about God walking with Adam in the cool of the day. and God communes with his people. God has entered into covenant with mankind, firstly with Adam, then Noah, Abraham, reaffirmed with the other patriarchs, Moses, David. He makes commitments to men, he binds himself to the promises that he has made. So when man is killed deliberately, unjustly, men who have the image of God marks upon them, their blood cries out to heaven. And we read about that in Genesis chapter 4. And so there is something unique about the relationship that God has with man. Another aspect is to do with the unique redemption for man. Adam was given that one command, not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, and he sinned and disobeyed. And yet God promised to him and to his seed and to this world a Savior. And so the eternal Son of God would come in the likeness of men, he would be the Word incarnate, God made flesh, and then Christ would die for mankind, for humanity. He doesn't die for the animal kingdom. He doesn't die for the angels. In fact, the angels, as they look upon the marvel of redemption, they're staggered by it. And so the taking of human life is serious. But what about the Lord Jesus? What does he think about it? Has he fulfilled it? And therefore, we can just do what we like, go around killing people. But when he says he's fulfilled the law, that doesn't mean that he's done away with it. We read in verse 17, think not that I'm come to destroy the law, or the prophets, I'm not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments and shall teach men, so he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. But whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called the great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say unto you, that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. You've heard that it was said of them of old time, thou shalt not kill. And whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment. But I say unto you, that whoso is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. and whosoever shall say to his brother Arachas shall be in danger of the council but whosoever shall say thou fool shall be in danger of hell fire. And then the Lord continues. We have to remember that the Lord Jesus was exposing the hypocrisy of the Pharisees in particular, how they believed that they were the law keepers and they were very confident in their law keeping And the Lord Jesus Christ is making it very clear that it's not merely the action that counts, but the motive and the heart and the mind of it. It's the source. And so whilst they may be very confident that they'd never killed anyone, Jesus is showing to them that the action of murder only originates because of our sinful, wicked hearts. Perhaps it's easier to understand when we look later on at verse 27. You've heard that it was said by them, of all time thou shalt not commit adultery. But I say unto you that whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart. And so the act of adultery doesn't begin in the activity, it begins in the mind and in the heart. And when we think about this murder, this killing, this unlawful taking of another's life, it doesn't begin when the knife is plunged in. It doesn't begin when the bullet hits the chest. For Cain, it doesn't begin when the stone was struck over Abel's head. It begins much earlier in his heart. And when we trace the action of the hands that have killed, you see that it originates with the desires and the condition of a sinful, wicked heart. Cain was angry and jealous and then hated and then killed. He killed him in his heart ever before he died with the rock. When we hate somebody, or we view others with disdain or disgust, then we're violating the sixth command. And so the command is much closer to home, and it incorporates more than just the deeds of killing. The Lord Jesus Christ He came to this world and he has much to say about love and forgiveness and mercy, all the opposites of what we might think and understand hate to be. On one occasion he was asked by his disciples, how often should I forgive my brother if he's offended me? And Jesus says, well, 70 times seven. Does he literally mean it's got to be 490? and you've got to keep a little book to mark off all of the offences and all the forgivenesses. No, what Jesus is saying is that we should continually forgive. Love is the opposite to hate. And if we spent more time loving one another, forgiving one another, these roots of bitterness have much less soil in which to thrive and to spring up. And we have that ultimate example in Jesus. Think about that for a moment. There he is, the Lord of Glory. There he is coming, having created this world and all the people in it. He's taken by these wicked creatures. and he has come to save and to redeem and to give his life and yet they have taken him and he submits to that and he allows them to drive those nails into his hands and feet in order that he might be crucified on that cross. And then he says this about those who are doing this. Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. Of anybody Surely it would be Christ that would have been able to have said, I hate you. I hate what you're doing. He says, Father forgive them. And when we think about our brothers and sisters, so often roots of bitterness can spring up. We have to remember that they have been died for by Christ. They're exactly like us, sinners, that have been saved by grace. And rather than being objects of hate, they should be objects of love and mercy and grace. Listen to what Paul writes. Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, and become a sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal, And though I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I'm nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. Charity sufferth long in his kind. Charity envieth not. Charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil. Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth. Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never faileth, but whether they be prophecies, they shall fail. Whether there be tongues, they shall cease, and whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part, but when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child. But when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see through a glass darkly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then shall I know even as also I am known. Now abideth faith, hope, charity. These three, but the greatest of these is charity. were commanded in that sixth command, thou shalt not kill, you shall not