Having considered the topic of abortion in the last issue, we shall now consider a number of additional topics related to the sixth commandment, "Thou shalt not kill."
Capital Punishment
It is clearly stated in the Old Testament, in a number of verses (Exod. 21:12,14; Lev. 24:17,21; Num. 35:30,31), that the crime of murder is punishable by death. This is most clearly stated in God’s words to Noah after the flood:"Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God made He man" (Gen. 9:6). In this verse we find the reason for capital punishment for murder. It is not given simply as a matter of vengeance or retaliation, nor is it authorized as a deterrent (although it may have that effect to some extent); rather it is meant to show forth the value God places on human life. Man has been made in God’s image; woe be to the person who despises this wonderful truth by purposefully snuffing out the life of another human being.
It is argued by some that the Lord Jesus Himself annulled capital punishment when He taught, "Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth; but I say unto you that ye resist not evil; but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also" (Matt. 5:38,39). However, if we read this passage carefully in its context we see that Jesus is addressing his disciples as to how they (and we) ought to respond to those who may cause us, personally, to suffer in any way, and not how the civil authorities should deal with those who break the laws of the land. If the Lord’s words in Matt. 5:38-44 were to be taken to apply to civil authorities, the entire criminal justice system would have to be abolished and all prisons emptied and shut down. Romans 13:1-4 shows that even in the Christian era, the higher powers are "ordained of God" and "ministers of God… to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil" (see also 1 Pet. 2:14).
The truths of Matthew 5 and Romans 13 can be reconciled using the following illustration. Suppose a man murders a loved one of mine, and he is caught, tried, convicted, and sentenced to death for his crime. The civil authorities have carried out their responsibility before God in sentencing this man to death. On the other hand, I, as a follower of Christ, can carry out the Lord’s injunctions in Matthew 5 by writing or visiting the condemned man on death row and seeking to share God’s love and gospel of salvation with him. Further, I can follow the Lord by doing what I can to help the condemned man’s family through this financial, emotional, and spiritual crisis in their lives.
Service in the Armed Forces
The question of whether Christians ought to serve in their nation’s armed forces has long been argued. In the Old Testament, the Israelites were enjoined by God to go to war against, and "utterly destroy," the Canaanite nations. However, we have nothing like this in the New Testament, but rather instruction such as, "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you" (Matt. 5:44). As Christians, we are to walk even as Christ walked (1 John 2:6), so let us consider His attitude concerning taking up arms against one’s enemies:"And behold, one of them which were with Jesus stretched out his hand, and drew his sword, and struck a servant of the high priest’s, and smote off his ear. Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place:for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword" (Matt. 26:51,52). Following this, Jesus turned to the servant, "and He touched his ear, and healed him" (Luke 22:51). The disciples fought, but Christ healed. This vignette suggests that the path for the believer is one of non-violence and non-resistance.
A lot of discussion related to the Christian’s serving in the armed forces has to do with whether it is a "just war. Some who refused to serve in the Vietnam conflict because they felt it to be an unjust war, might very well have fought in World War II had they been of age. But this does not seem to fit with the Lord Jesus’ instruction and example. What could be a more just and righteous cause then to help the Messiah gain His earthly kingdom? This seems to be what Peter was trying to do with his sword. But we see that the Lord does not want His people to fight for Him unless He Himself is leading the army, just as He led the armies of Israel of old.
Thus, I believe that we as Christians are taught by the Scriptures not to bear arms to fight for our country. This still leaves open the question of whether the believer is permitted by Scripture to serve in the armed forces in a non-combatant role or if he should be a total conscientious objector (C.O.). On the side of being a total C.O. is the argument that there is little difference between shooting people oneself and, say, nursing wounded soldiers back to health so that they can go out and shoot more of the enemy. On the other side, it might be argued that Christians are instructed by Scripture to "render … to all their dues" (Rom. 13:6,7; Matt. 22:21). This would include taxes which may be used by the government to support a war effort, and might also include a period of service to one’s country as required by law. This writer leans toward the thought that it is in accord with the New Testament Scriptures for one who is drafted to serve in the armed forces as a non-combatant.
As a final thought on this topic, let us all be diligent to pray regularly for our leaders of government, "that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life" (1 Tim. 2:1,2). If wars can be prevented by means of the persistent, united prayers of God’s children, then obviously the questions about service in the armed forces will become purely academic.
Protection against Attackers
What would you do if you were to encounter a burglar in your house, or if someone were to attack you or one of your loved ones with a lethal weapon? Would you try to kill the attacker if you could? or would you try any of a number of maneuvers to protect yourself and your loved ones from death or serious injury? or would you do nothing except pray and plead with the attacker? These are vexing questions. We probably do not really know how we would behave in the excitement of the moment. The Scriptures do not seem to have much to say in this area, but let us see what guidelines the Scriptures do offer us.
"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" (Exod. 22:2,3). There is allowance here for the possibility of the homeowner slaying a thief who has broken into the house at night without the homeowner being subject to punishment for the manslaughter. However, one who surprised a thief in a burglary during the daytime was liable to punishment as a murderer if he killed the thief. While the reasons for this distinction in treatment of daytime and nighttime thieves are not totally clear, the rationale may be that the daytime thief, if not apprehended on the spot, will be seen and likely identified and caught later on, and thus will be brought to trial for his crime. Thus, in this case the property owner is not to take the law into his own hands. This fits with Rom. 12:17-20, "Avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath; for it is written, Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, saith the Lord."
"If a man lie not in wait, but God deliver him into his hand, then I will appoint thee a place whither he shall flee" (Exod. 21:13). While this verse and the related passage in Numbers 35:9-34 concerning the cities of refuge clearly apply to cases of manslaughter or accidental killing, it appears that they also cover the situation where one may strike a blow in self-defense (or the defense of a loved one). The cities of refuge were available "if he thrust him suddenly without enmity, or … cast upon him any thing without laying in wait" (Num. 35:22).
If we find ourselves in a dangerous situation but have a way of escape, we have the examples of the Lord Jesus and the apostle Paul to follow. When those in the synagogue of Nazareth led Jesus to the top of the hill "that they might cast him down headlong … He passing through the midst of them went His way" (Luke 4:30). When the people took up stones to throw at Jesus, He "hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them" (John 8:59). Later, "they sought again to take Him; but He escaped out of their hand" (John 10:39). When the Jews watched the gates of Damascus day and night in hopes of catching and killing the apostle Paul, "the disciples took him by night, and let him down by the wall in a basket" (Acts 9:23-25).
The best preparation for a dangerous situation is to be always in an attitude of prayer and communion with the Lord. We do well to commit ourselves and our loved ones to the Lord’s care for protection, and ask the Lord for wisdom to respond in the right way if suddenly attacked or confronted with danger. Peter failed in this. He slept when he should have been watching and praying with the Lord in the garden (Matt. 26:37-45); then when confronted with the multitude that had come to take Jesus, he responded in the wrong way by flailing about with a sword (26:51,52).
We may fantasize about being a hero or responding in a "macho" kind of manner in such situations. But would it not be better to visualize ourselves praying for help, falling to our knees and pleading for mercy, or finding a way to escape when confronted with such danger? The following first-hand account illustrates somewhat what we are discussing:"One afternoon last spring, my sister and I went to Woodlake Nature Center to jog. Just as we approached the main path, I saw a man walking toward us. Everyone at Woodlake is friendly so we always say ‘Hi’ to whomever we happen to see. As he neared us I said, ‘Hi’ to him. He just looked at us and walked past us… or so I thought. But suddenly, he turned around and grabbed me. I thought it was just some kind of a joke, until he said, ‘Don’t either of you scream or run for help. I’m going to kill you or the other one’ (referring to my sister).
"My sister saw that the man couldn’t stop her, so she took off running to go get help. I glanced down and I saw that he held a knife by my throat. A feeling of helplessness came over me, but was quickly put out of my mind when I remembered something that I had heard a Christian man say. So I said to my attacker, ‘The Lord is protecting me.’ He said, ‘What?’ Then I said, ‘Jesus loves you.’
"After this he said to me, ‘Walk forward and don’t turn around.’ He let go of me and I walked back to the main entrance to the building without ever looking back. The police had arrived by this time and I went with them and told them what had happened" (reprinted from Good News for Young and Old, September 13, 1981).
Would it not also be better to pray that the Lord will prevent us from falling into such situations at all? 1 believe we will be better prepared to respond in God’s way and will be more able to count upon His help and deliverance if we prepare our hearts appropriately.
Finally, let me suggest a word of caution to any who may have purchased_or are planning to purchase_a gun as protection against burglars, intruders, and attackers. I do not know what the actual statistics are, but I would not be surprised if it were shown that guns purchased to protect households from intruders have actually killed and injured more family members than intruders. The Lord’s words, "They that take the sword shall perish with the sword" (Matt. 26:52) seem very apt in this connection. Let us take to heart the words of the psalmist:"Some trust in revolvers, and some in shotguns; but we will remember the name of the Lord our God" (Psa. 20:7; 20th century paraphrase).
Suicide
To my knowledge there are four incidents of suicide given in the Scriptures. Judas Iscariot hanged himself out of despair over the heavy weight of his sin of betraying the Lord Jesus (Matt. 27:3-5). Ahithophel, an advisor of Absalom, hanged himself out of discouragement that his counsel was not followed by Absalom (2 Sam. 17:23). King Saul fell upon his sword, after being severely wounded by a Philistine arrow, to prevent the enemy soldiers from finding him and mocking and abusing him during his dying moments. Immediately thereafter, Saul’s armorbearer, seemingly in an act of allegiance to his master, fell on his sword and died with Saul (1 Sam. 31:3-5).
In addition to these four examples of actual suicide, we read of others who expressed the desire for death as a release from their misery. Job cried out, "Oh that I might have my request; and that God would grant me the thing that I long for! Even that it would please God to destroy me; and that He would let loose His hand, and cut me off! (Job 6:8,9). Elijah, in his depression, "requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough now, O Lord, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers" (1 Kings 19:4).
There is no Scripture that says, "Thou shalt not kill thyself." Also, the Roman Catholic teaching that suicide is an unpardonable sin does not have any support in Scripture. However, there is no evidence in Scripture that God in any way condones suicide. A scripture that does seem to be applicable is Rom. 14:7,8:"None of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself. For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord; whether we live therefore or die, we are the Lord’s." Our lives are to be lived for the Lord, doing all things to please Him, serve Him, obey Him, and magnify His name, rather than for our own pleasure and benefit. And it is to be the same with regard to our death. It is not left to us to decide the time and the mode of our death. We would, no doubt, if given the option, choose to die suddenly of a heart attack, with no pain, no lingering illness, no extra expense to the family, before we become old enough for senility to set in, and at a time and place that would not cause our loved ones any inconvenience. But in the perfect wisdom of God, we are not given such an option. "We die unto the Lord," according to His timing, His circumstances, and His will. (Remember, the Lord may come soon and take us to heaven without our even going through death.) We must not interfere with God’s perfect will for our life by taking our own life out of His hands prematurely. We may be severely depressed, we may be experiencing great loneliness and sorrow over the loss of a loved one, we may be enduring excruciating physical pain. But in all these things, we do well to listen to the Lord gently whispering to our souls:"Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matt. 11:28). "Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall sustain thee" (Psa. 55:22). "Casting all your care upon Him, for He careth for you" (1 Pet. 5:7). "God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted [or tried] above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it" (1 Cor. 10:13).
One final thought:Most of us, no doubt, have not the slightest thought of taking our own lives. But let us stop and think about this for a moment. Let us each ask ourselves:"Do I have any habits or behavior that are potentially self-destructive, that may be hastening my own death?" How about smoking, drinking, overeating, cheating on your diet when told that you have diabetes or high cholesterol, not getting enough exercise, exceeding the speed limit, or driving recklessly? "Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price:therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s" (1 Cor. 6:19,20).
FRAGMENT
My times are in Thy hand; Father, I wish them there:
My life, my soul, my all I leave entirely to Thy care.
My times are in Thy hand; why should I doubt or fear?
My Father’s hand will never cause His child a needless tear.