You shall have no other gods before me.
You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.
The next 4 commandments are what our culture knows as the Ten Commandments, and it is here where the body of Christ has utterly failed the United States over the past 40-50 years. You see, ladies and gentlemen, you cannot get to the 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th commandments until you have obeyed the first 5. If you cannot, or will not, obey the Lord in the matter of refusing to worship another in your heart, then you certainly will not obey the Lord in any other matter--and if you claim the name of Christ, yet have no honor or love for Christ in your heart, then you will certainly not exhibit any of His attributes, either in this world or the next.
The 6th commandment is very simple, and I will present it to you in the King James version of the Bible so that you can understand exactly what the Lord means here:
Thou shalt not kill.
The King James version of the Bible was constructed largely through the work of William Tyndale, a 16th century English priest who was so consumed with the desire to set the souls of his countrymen free that he vowed to translate the Bible into a language that even the English plowman (who was generally illiterate) could understand. Tyndale was fluent in Greek and Hebrew, and he translated all of the books of the Torah into English, as well as 90% of the New Testament and most of the Hebrew Bible's chronicles and histories. Biographers of Tyndale have remarked that the simplicity of his translation, the ease with which it could be understood and received by even the lowest members of 16th century English society, has contributed more than anything else to the fact that the King James version of the Bible outranks Shakespeare in terms of shaping the development of our language.
Ladies and gentlemen, if a simple English plowman of 500 years ago could understand, in the words of this verse, the terrible gravity the Lord attaches to the taking of a human life, then we who have seen three world wars over the last hundred years must certainly do likewise. It is not acceptable for us, or anyone who takes the name of Christ, to invent exceptions to this commandment--it is absolute, and for the people called and chosen by God, for ancient Israel and for the body of Christ, it is a standing order. There are no allowances, no excuses, and the one who violates this commandment without appropriate fear and trembling--and who encourages others to do the same--may well find him- or herself burning in the fires of Hell.
Christ Jesus said as much:
Ye have 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 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.
Matthew 5:21-22
It is a dangerous thing, ladies and gentlemen, to invoke the name of Christ when you are supporting war, assassination, domestic abuse, or abortion, and yet we have seen Christ's name attached to all of these things in the past 50 or 60 years. Indeed, it is our nation's oldest sin, dating back to the destruction of America's original inhabitants and the institution of chattel slavery, and as war follows war, and murder follows murder, and hatred follows hatred, the lesson of this sin is lost, over and over again, to the hearts of a people who have shown themselves to be interested more in material gain than in true spirituality.
Even as Americans lecture other nations about nuclear proliferation, we ourselves are the ones who first unleashed the terrible prospect of global annihilation on the human race. Weapons of mass destruction, home invasion, serial killing--the list of violent acts we have invented outstrips anything that other nations of the world have done, with the possible exception of ancient Rome (a people who invented the crucifix and the coliseum). Yet we continue to see open support in our nation's churches for military enterprises, for the death penalty, and for violence as a means of self-defense.
Ladies and gentlemen, it is time for us to wake up.
To be Christlike is to exhibit Christ's attributes. Do you see the Christ of the Gospels slaying His enemies, asserting political or military power, or even defending Himself? Is this what you believe that Christianity--that adopting the Christ who said "turn the other cheek" as your Lord--represents?
We hear so much in the news today about militant Islam and about the threat that it poses to the civility of the 21st century world, but the fact is that Christianity has been no less destructive. During the past thousand years, when Christians have not been killing or enslaving foreigners (including the very descendants of the people who wrote the Old Testament), they have turned their attention to killing and enslaving each other. The reality of 10,000 denominations within the realm of Christendom gives mute but forceful testimony to the sad results of our factionalism, and yet, as more and more Christians are confronted with the darker side of Christianity's past, the church seems incapable of answering the blood of its victims with humility.
Ladies and gentlemen, it is time for us to be what the apostles were, what the ancient believers were, and what Christ was--and to begin to love our neighbors (be they friends or enemies) as ourselves. To take up a weapon in anger, or to encourage those who do so, is to mock--openly--Christ's sacrifice for each and every one of us on the Cross 2000 years ago. I understand that some of you believe nations and governments have a right to pursue order by any means necessary, including the sword, but it is the body of Christ I am concerned about here, not the actions of pagan or atheistic governments.
For the first 300 years of their history, Christians understood that to be part of the body of Christ was to exhibit the same attributes that Christ exhibited. Under the threat of summary execution, torture, and the lethal games of the Coliseum, Christians submitted, by the thousands, to the vicious whims of generals and kings. They sang, they prayed for their family members (many of whom turned them in to the authorities), and they entreated their judges and rulers to surrender themselves to the Lord, but they did not resist.
Isn't this the kind of Christianity that breaks the hearts of nations and kingdoms for the Lord?
I would like to end this post by quoting a passage from the book of Luke. It is one with which some of you may be familiar, but I think it illustrates what I have been saying in this post far better than my own words can:
Then the whole body of them got up and brought Him before Pilate. And they began to accuse Him, saying, "We found this man misleading our nation and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, and saying that He Himself is Christ, a King."
So Pilate asked Him, saying, "Are You the King of the Jews?"
And He answered him and said, "It is as you say."
Then Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowds, "I find no guilt in this man."
But they kept on insisting, saying, "He stirs up the people, teaching all over Judea, starting from Galilee even as far as this place."
When Pilate heard it, he asked whether the man was a Galilean. And when he learned that He belonged to Herod's jurisdiction, he sent Him to Herod, who himself also was in Jerusalem at that time.
Now Herod was very glad when he saw Jesus, for he had wanted to see Him for a long time, because he had been hearing about Him and was hoping to see some sign performed by Him. And he questioned Him at some length, but He answered him nothing. And the chief priests and the scribes were standing there, accusing Him vehemently. And Herod with his soldiers, after treating Him with contempt and mocking Him, dressed Him in a gorgeous robe and sent Him back to Pilate.
Now Herod and Pilate became friends with one another that very day, for before they had been enemies with each other.
Pilate summoned the chief priests and the rulers and the people, and said to them, "You brought this man to me as one who incites the people to rebellion, and behold, having examined Him before you, I have found no guilt in this man regarding the charges which you make against Him. No, nor has Herod, for he sent Him back to us, and behold, nothing deserving death has been done by Him. Therefore I will punish Him and release Him."
Now he was obliged to release to them at the feast one prisoner. But they cried out all together, saying, "Away with this man, and release for us Barabbas!"
(He was one who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection made in the city, and for murder.)
Pilate, wanting to release Jesus, addressed them again, but they kept on calling out, saying, "Crucify, crucify Him!"
And he said to them the third time, "Why, what evil has this man done? I have found in Him no guilt demanding death. Therefore I will punish Him and release Him."
But they were insistent, with loud voices asking that He be crucified. And their voices began to prevail. And Pilate pronounced sentence that their demand be granted. And he released the man they were asking for who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, but he delivered Jesus to their will.
When they led Him away, they seized a man, Simon of Cyrene, coming in from the country, and placed on him the cross to carry behind Jesus. And following Him was a large crowd of the people, and of women who were mourning and lamenting Him.
But Jesus turning to them said, "Daughters of Jerusalem, stop weeping for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children.
For behold, the days are coming when they will say, 'Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bore, and the breasts that never nursed.' Then they will begin TO SAY TO THE MOUNTAINS, 'FALL ON US,' AND TO THE HILLS, 'COVER US.' For if they do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?"
Two others also, who were criminals, were being led away to be put to death with Him.
When they came to the place called The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left. But Jesus was saying, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing " And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves.
And the people stood by, looking on. And even the rulers were sneering at Him, saying, "He saved others! let Him save Himself if this is the Christ of God, His Chosen One."
The soldiers also mocked Him, coming up to Him, offering Him sour wine, and saying, "If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself!"
Now there was also an inscription above Him, "THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS."
One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, "Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!"
But the other answered, and rebuking him said, "Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?
And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong."
And he was saying, "Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!"
And He said to him, "Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise."
It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour, because the sun was obscured, and the veil of the temple was torn in two. And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, "Father, INTO YOUR HANDS I COMMIT MY SPIRIT." Having said this, He breathed His last.
Now when the centurion saw what had happened, he began praising God, saying, "Certainly this man was innocent."
And all the crowds who came together for this spectacle, when they observed what had happened, began to return, beating their breasts. And all His acquaintances and the women who accompanied Him from Galilee were standing at a distance, seeing these things.
Luke 23, New American Standard Bible
Christ said that believers would be persecuted, that the world would hate us for what He has placed inside of us (see John 14-15 and Matthew 24). At best, believers in Christ are tolerated by others--and at worst, as we have seen in Communist and Third World countries over the past 60 years, they are hunted down and killed. We have a hope, however, of a resurrection--the same resurrection that brought Christ out of the tomb 2000 years ago--and that hope is more precious than anything we can experience in this life.
Before I gave my heart to the Lord, I was terribly afraid of death. I knew that one day, as suddenly as my life had begun, it would end, and everything that was me would vanish.
I don't have that fear anymore.
The power of Christ is not the miracles, the exhibitions of divine power that we see in the Gospels and the book fo Acts. It is the simple power of truth undaunted, a holiness that cannot be quenched by threat of fire or sword. It is the power of one who knows that to be crucified is simply to go home . . .
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