Hang around people long enough, and you soon realize they hate it when their foundational beliefs are challenged. And yet Jesus does just that. “You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell.” (Matthew 5:21–22, NLT) The bedrock for Jesus’ audience that day was the Ten Commandments; the sixth commandment given by God to Moses is “You must not murder.” (Exodus 20:13, NLT)
Murder is the second recorded sin in the history of mankind. In short, Adam and Eve’s sons, Cain and Abel, brought offerings to the Lord. Abel’s offering was accepted, but Cain’s was not. Cain got angry, blamed his brother, and stewed on that a bit before he picked up a rock and killed Abel. (Genesis 4).
The command “you must not murder” focuses on the result. Jesus steps back to include where the seed of murder is planted; that first moment of anger. We see the progression of anger to murder in Cain’s story. God even tried to intervene with Cain. “Why are you so angry?” the Lord asked Cain. “Why do you look so dejected? You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.” (Genesis 4:6–7, NLT) You see, Cain had opportunities to turn from the path he began – he didn’t, and it ended in Abel’s murder.
The folks that day when Jesus presented His sermon were challenged to go beyond the Law of Moses. Beyond the 6th commandment. Was Jesus presenting a new law, or was He putting the existing law into a proper perspective? I’ll let the theologians and rabbis argue over that. Either way, Jesus expanded our view and God’s expectations for us. We may not have physically murdered someone, but how often have we let anger, empty words, and curses flood into our relationships with others?
The problem is that we feel justified in our anger. We feel smarter after calling someone an empty-headed fool – as evidenced every second of the day on Social Media. We take control by leveling curses and hoping that harm comes to someone – they are, after all, only getting what we feel they deserve! But that is not the Jesus Way.
In part two, Jesus provides his listeners with some “do’s” to complement and extend today’s “don’t.” For this article, however, we must examine ourselves. Whom do we call the fool? Whom have we cursed? For whom do we have a death or harm wish? This doesn’t mean that we are blind to the foolishness or sin of others, but that we respond to that foolishness and sin in a way that seeks life for them and not death. Having identified those instances, we run to God with confession and repentance. “But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.” (1 John 1:9, NLT) That is the Jesus Way.
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