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The Love Principle - Study 10: Your Neighbour and Murder

  • Mar 15
  • 14 min read

Exodus 20:13 NIVUK 

[13] You shall not murder. 

One of my favourite movies is the Tom Cruise classic ‘Minority Report’, where Cruise’s character belongs to a branch of the police force that prevents murder by catching people before they do it. 


This movie is a far-fetched, though very entertaining, science fiction.  


However, later on in the New Testament, we see teaching from Jesus that helps us prevent murder, thus helping us stay on the right side of this command. 


Now, very few of us will ever commit murder. Fewer than 0.1% of people are thought to have done this.  


However, when we look at Jesus’ teaching, pretty much a hundred percent of human beings have crossed the line that could have potentially lead to murder. 


At first glance, this study on a clear command might not seem all that relevant. But when we look at Jesus’ teaching, it cuts alarmingly close to the bone in ways that perhaps we did not anticipate. 


So let’s start, then, by looking at The Crime. 

 

The Crime 

Matthew 5:21-26 NIVUK 

[21]  ‘You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, “You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.” [22] But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, “Raca,” is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, “You fool!” will be in danger of the fire of hell. [23]  ‘Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there 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 to them; then come and offer your gift. [25]  ‘Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. [26] Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny. 

Before we get into this in any detail, we must understand what both the law of the land and the Bible define as murder. Murder is unlawful killing. It is killing that has not been sanctioned or permitted by the state.  


In the Bible, the word for ‘murder’ that is used in this law is not used in two contexts: war and capital punishment. The reason is simple – both of these are state sanctioned. 


It is used in cases of negligence or accidental death – cases that, certainly under both Scottish and British law would be classified as manslaughter (Deuteronomy 19:1-14).


However, in the same passage that spells out specific exceptions for such cases, the word is also used in the context of premeditated, deliberate killing. 


This leads to a definition that for some may be both troublesome and emotive. However, as we look at modern day examples, we must remember that there are different types of killing, and just because someone is not guilty of murder does not mean they are not guilty of another crime. 


For example, vegan protestors are known for yelling ‘Meat is murder’. It isn’t. If the state permits the destruction and consumption of animals for food, then meat very much is not murder. 


The death penalty, where it is permitted and executed by the state, is not murder. However, if a vigilante decided to kill someone to avenge a death, that would be murder as it would not be state sanctioned or permitted. 


Abortion is not murder. Not when it is within the parameters permitted by the state anyway. If it is outside those parameters, then it is murder. 


That’s not to say that I agree with it. I very firmly do not. However, it is an undeniable fact that if state law permits it, it’s not murder. 


Extrajudicial killings by anyone for any reason are always murder. They are outside the law. They are not state sanctioned. Those who commission or assist with them are accessories to murder. 


Assisted death is murder in states where it is not permitted, and is not murder in states where it is. Again, that’s not to say that I agree with it. This is simply the legal definition. 


We might be thoroughly uncomfortable with these legal realities, but it doesn’t stop them from being real. 


Now, what is being talked about in this law, and in Jesus’ teaching, is ostensibly the same thing: premeditated killing or crimes of passion. In other words, something prompted these killings. Something happened to trigger them. 


The question we have to ask ourselves is ‘How far is too far? Where is the line?’ We need to know which behaviours make us guilty so that we can stay on the right side of this law – which is something we all want. 


From a legal point of view, in most cases, that is relatively simple: don’t do anything that would cause the death of another. Don’t strike them hard enough to kill them. Don’t use a deadly weapon. Don’t take their lives outside of the definition of legally permitted killing. 


However, Jesus Christ, the One we claim is our Lord, takes a different view: 


Matthew 5:21-22 NIVUK 

[21]  ‘You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, “You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.” [22] But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, “Raca,” is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, “You fool!” will be in danger of the fire of hell. 

The Greek word here indicates that the angry person has been provoked to anger – that something triggered it and made him angry. That anger may be ‘justified’ because the other person has actually done something wrong, or it could be just a fit of pique because they did something that the angry person didn’t like. 


Or, as it often is, the anger could be a shield to deflect attention from our own weaknesses or failings, or a means of control or coercion. 


No matter. Just cause or not, Jesus said that if we are just angry with a brother or sister – not just a relative or a fellow Christian, but anyone – then we put ourselves in the position where we are subject to judgement. 


That is a stunning thing to say. 


But why did Jesus say it? 


We need to go back again to the command that every Christian should seek to obey, because it is the sum total of all obedience: love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and your neighbour as yourself. Note this from the definition of love in 1 Corinthians 13: 


1 Corinthians 13:4-5 NIVUK 

[4] Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. [5] It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  

We saw in our earlier study how love doesn’t just have a long fuse, it has no fuse at all. No-one is ever afraid of love exploding in fury. Love is never provoked. 


Now contrast that with Jesus’ teaching. 


Someone who is angry with another person has momentarily stopped loving them, crossed the love line and now despises them. They are prepared to cause harm to them to get their way. 


That is wrong for two reasons. Firstly, it is a blatant disobedience of the command to love.


Secondly, it opens the gateway to that harm escalating and becoming murder.  


Murder comes from anger. It comes from fury. If we close the door to anger and do not allow ourselves to be provoked, then we close the door definitively on murder. 


But that is not always easy. 


What should we do, then, when people disappoint and dismay and provoke and frustrate us? 


Paul has the answer: 


Ephesians 4:25-27 NIVUK 

[25] Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbour, for we are all members of one body. [26] ‘In your anger do not sin’: do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, [27] and do not give the devil a foothold.  

 

He quoted from Psalm 4: 


Psalms 4:4 NIVUK 

[4] Tremble and do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent. 

(Read the full passage at: https://bible.com/bible/113/psa.4.4.NIVUK)


(The Latin translation of the Old Testament has ‘In your anger’ in place of ‘tremble’.) 


The implication of this verse is that if you are angry, then you are responsible for that anger, you are responsible for managing that anger, you should deal with that anger by bringing it to God and you should deal with it before nightfall to prevent the poison from spreading. 


When oil is spilled at sea, the first task before cleaning it is to contain it. We have to recognise the danger anger causes, to ourselves and others, and to contain it as much as possible, before dissipating it in prayer.  


As Christians, we do not have the dubious luxury of bearing grudges (Leviticus 19:18). Part of loving God, our neighbours and ourselves is getting rid of the anger bubbling up inside of us before it overspills. 


So we have seen, then, that murder is unlawful killing. For Jesus, it is not enough that we don’t raise a deadly weapon towards another human being. For Him, we need to cut off this sin at the root, which is anger towards another human being. That is when we cross the love line and make a more serious sin more likely. 


Murder is serious. The Punishment for it is also very serious. 

 

The Punishment 

Leviticus 24:17 NIVUK 

[17] ‘ “Anyone who takes the life of a human being is to be put to death.  

Another film I saw that became one of my favourites, but for very different reasons, is ‘Dead Man Walking’. Based on the factual book of the same name by Catholic nun Sister Helen Prejean, it talks of her experiences dealing with men who had committed serious crimes and had been sentenced to death in Louisiana, USA. It’s a very powerful film. 


Here we see the ancient Jewish punishment for those who broke the simple, straightforward ‘No murder’ prohibition.  


That punishment was death. 


This is where a significant challenge comes in. Under ancient Jewish law, yes, the death penalty existed and was enacted. There can be little doubt about that. 


It also clearly existed as deterrent to put people off from breaking this clear-as-day prohibition. I don’t doubt that for a second. 


However, I am against the death penalty. My reason is simple: recent injustices in my own nation, among many others, have shown me that human judgement is not perfect enough to be given the decision over whether someone lives or dies. 


Put simply, we are not God and should not seek to be God. 


However, what we can say about this punishment is that, at the time, provided guilt was clearly established, it was fair and just. As Moses explained: 


Leviticus 24:18-22 NIVUK 

[18] Anyone who takes the life of someone’s animal must make restitution – life for life. [19] Anyone who injures their neighbour is to be injured in the same manner: [20] fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. The one who has inflicted the injury must suffer the same injury. [21] Whoever kills an animal must make restitution, but whoever kills a human being is to be put to death. [22] You are to have the same law for the foreigner and the native-born. I am the Lord your God.” ’ 

There was a sense of reciprocity, of fairness, of balance. The damage you had committed would be meted out to you. So if you had any sense at all, you would not seek to do the damage in the first place. 


While this is clear, and states across the world have gradually abandoned both corporal punishment and the death penalty, there is another aspect of this that should be explored -  another aspect of being involved in this heinous crime that appears even if you are not sentenced to death, and we see it in the punishment meted out to the first murderer: 


Genesis 4:10-16 NIVUK 

[10] The Lord said, ‘What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground. [11] Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. [12] When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.’ [13] Cain said to the Lord, ‘My punishment is more than I can bear. [14] Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.’ [15] But the Lord said to him, ‘Not so; anyone who kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over.’ Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no-one who found him would kill him. [16] So Cain went out from the Lord’s presence and lived in the land of Nod, east of Eden. 

Cain’s punishment was not physical death, it was a living death. He experienced alienation – driven away from his family. That in itself, in a nomadic culture, was a very serious punishment. 


He also experienced dislocation – he had no home and experienced restlessness so he could never have a home again. 


We also see that he lived his life in futility: he would farm, but nothing would come up for him. His life, in a very real way, would be fruitless and in vain. 


That is much worse than losing your life. Death is the easy way out from that. Death is almost a mercy. 


And that’s just it. I realise this sounds the most obvious, but with every murder, someone dies.


Yes, the victim. But also the perpetrator. Something dies inside. A line that should never be crossed has been crossed. Contempt has been expressed for the life of another human bring. That can never be undone. It’s too late for that. 


All sin leads to death. That much is clear (Romans 6:23). Nowhere is that any clearer than when one human ruthlessly and recklessly decides to take the life of another.  


But murder leads to death in other ways too. Death of care. Death of compassion.  


Death of love. 


That cannot go unpunished. We have to realise that. 


The reason why there is such a high punishment tariff before God when it comes to murder is because murder is serious. Deadly serious. 


Which is why Jesus told us just simply not to go there. Forget not even wishing someone was dead, Jesus told us that the very act of being angry with them in the first place is wrong.  


Because that crosses the border line from obedience into disobedience, and that’s where the danger lies. 


So we have seen the crime – what Jesus says is wrong about it, and the punishment, which shows us just how seriously He takes it. 


Lastly, we see how to avoid it in the first place – The Way Out. 

 

The Way Out 

Matthew 5:23-26 NIVUK 

[23]  ‘Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there 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 to them; then come and offer your gift. [25]  ‘Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. [26] Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny. 

How to stop a murder? 


Well, how do you stop a war?  


The British Prime Minister Harold MacMillan once commented that ‘Jaw, jaw is better than war, war.’ 


What he meant was that sitting down together and seeking reconciliation was always better than fighting. 


But Jesus got there first. 


And the solution he proposed was way more radical. 


He suggested stepping back from worship to step down from conflict. He suggested de-escalation – seeking peace and reconciliation with someone you had offended.  


Now, that is quite something. It seems that Jesus cares as much about the anger you have caused other people as the anger they have caused you. 


Mark recorded Jesus as saying something similar, but from the opposite point of view: if we bear a grudge against someone, we should settle it before we worship: 


Mark 11:25 NIVUK 

[25] And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.’  

Jesus links the relationships we have with other people with our relationship with God. He said that if we have issues with others, we should fix them before we worship God, not after, or even because of, our worship.  


In my forty-five years as a Christian, to my knowledge I have only ever seen one person take this seriously. I have also never heard it preached on at all except at the Communion service where that person settled their differences with me and sought my forgiveness. 


Jesus’ solution for murder is reconciliation. It’s no wonder, then, that Paul recognised that the Gospel is the message of reconciliation: between God and mankind, absolutely, but also between each other (2 Corinthians 5:16-21). That is why hatred can never be tolerated in the Christian church. It is absolutely one hundred percent against the Gospel and against the ministry of Jesus Christ. 


In fact, it is anti-Christ. 


Murder is a serious crime. The taking of a life is a sombre, serious thing, never to be taken lightly, entered in to rashly or done in fury. Our action movies do us an enormous disservice if they lead us to believe that other lives are cheap and disposable. God does not see things that way. 


Genesis 9:5-6 NIVUK 

[5] And for your lifeblood I will surely demand an accounting. I will demand an accounting from every animal. And from each human being, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of another human being. [6] ‘Whoever sheds human blood, by humans shall their blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made mankind. 

This curse is still active. Murder leads to murder. That is a fact. 


We cannot take this crime lightly. 

 

Conclusion 

Exodus 20:13 NIVUK 

[13] You shall not murder. 

There are some of the Ten Commandments that seem too easy to obey. This one is one of them. The simple command of ‘No murder’ (as it is in the original Hebrew) seems to be a non-issue for the vast majority of us. Even if we've thought about it, or been tempted to do it, or had someone who made us so angry that we might feel like doing it, we would never actually do it, would we? 


So it’s not a problem, right? 


A few miles from my home is the pleasant, leafy, suburban village of Bothwell, known for its rich homes and dilapidated castle, which in the past was fought over by the English and the Scottish armies. It’s a pleasant place. Reassuringly upmarket. 


It’s also Scotland’s firebomb capital. Behind the veneer of wealth and safety, Scottish organised crime gangs have been demanding protection money from local restauranteurs. When that money is not paid, they use petrol bombs to destroy their livelihood. 


The complacency of wealth becomes the draw for crime. 


We might think that we have reasons to be complacent. After all, if you ask someone if they are a sinner, they may well get offended and say ‘Well, I haven’t murdered anyone... so no.’ 


But Jesus’ point is that we cannot afford to be complacent and to act like nothing is wrong.


The reality is that anger and grudges can easily fester into hatred, where we might wish someone were dead. 


From there, it’s a slippery slope to actually doing something to make it happen. 


The Bible has some striking examples of this: Cain and Abel (Genesis 4:1-16), Jacob and Esau (Genesis 27:41), Saul and David (1 Samuel 18:10-11). They exist as a warning, so we can see where bearing grudges could potentially lead. 


Murder is a very serious crime. Its punishment is also rightly serious. Justice must be done.


Murder brings death, and not just to the victim. 


The only way to completely avoid this heinous sin is to take Jesus’ way out, recognise the inherent danger to ourselves and others of bearing grudges and stay as far away from this sin as possible. We do that by seeking to resolve our anger and hurt before God and be reconciled with those who have irked us, or those whom we have irked.


The cost of not doing so is just not worth thinking about. 

 

Prayer 

Lord Jesus, forgive me for taking grudges lightly. I see them now as disobedience to Your command to love my neighbour as myself. I recognise the effect this also has on my relationship with You. I repent of it now. I realise that bearing a grudge is always wrong. Help me to be reconciled with those whom I have hurt or who have hurt me, I pray. Amen. 


Questions for Contemplation 

  • Why is murder so serious? 

  • How does Jesus say we can avoid it? 

  • Do you bear a grudge towards anyone? How will you resolve it? 

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