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Friday, October 27, 2017

10/26/17, Eph 6:2-3: The Ten Commandments, Pt 20, The 6th Commandments, Pt 3 
Lesson #17-115
Pastor/Teacher, Jim Rickard
Grace Fellowship Church

Before we begin, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, (If You have - Trusted in Him for Eternal Life), it is important to prepare yourself to: Take-in God’s Word and/or Participate in a Communion Service, so take a moment to name, cite, or acknowledge your sins privately, directly to God the Father. This will assure that you are in fellowship with God the Father & the Holy Spirit’s convicting ministry will then be able to teach you as the Holy Spirit is the real teacher.

1 John 1:9 says— “If we confess [simply name, cite, or acknowledge to God the Father] our sins [known sins], He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins [known sins] and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness [all unknown & forgotten sins].”

For those of you who have not yet accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord & Savior, please see: The Salvation Message @ the end of this document.

2 Pet 3:9, “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.
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The Doctrine of the Ten Commandments Related to the Church Age, Part XX.

The 6th Commandment:
Ex 20:13; Deut 5:17, “You shall not murder.”

Murder means, “Putting someone to death improperly, for selfish reasons rather than with authorization.” There is a vast difference between killing and murder. Murder is prohibited, but killing is allowed in defense of self, military and police action, capital punishment and of animals, etc.

The rise of crime and violence in a society or nation indicates national degeneration and the approach of historical catastrophe in the form of the Fifth Cycle of Discipline, Jer 4:31. This pattern of degeneration is developed into the destruction of the client nation. Hosea 4:1-6.

Hosea 4:1-2, “Listen to the word of the LORD, O sons of Israel, for the LORD has a case against the inhabitants of the land, Because there is no faithfulness or kindness or knowledge of God in the land. 2There is swearing, deception, murder, stealing and adultery. They employ violence, so that bloodshed follows bloodshed.”

Hosea 4:6, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge, (Bible Doctrine in the soul). Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest, (nation). Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.”

New Testament Usage:

We have already noted several scriptures that prohibit murder during the Church Age. In addition, this commandment is used in Mat 5:21f, (in the Sermon on the Mount, which we will note below); Mat 19:18; Mark 10:19; Luke 18:20, (speaking to the rich young man, which we noted under the 5th Commandment); Rom 13:9; James 2:11; 4:2, etc. Therefore, this commandment is a universal law for all Ages / Dispensations.

In Mat 23:35; Luke 11:51; 1 John 3:12-15; Jude 11, the NT applications of this commandment looks back to Gen 4:5-8, which gives us the historical account of the first murder in human history as an object lesson. The first act of murder in human history is that of Cain murdering his brother Abel.

Rebuking the Pharisees, Jesus said in Luke 11:51, “From the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the house of God; yes, I tell you, it shall be charged against this generation.” Cf. Mat 23:35.

Rebuking unbelievers and teachers of false doctrines, Jude said in Jude 1:11, “Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.” Cf. vs. 16.

In Gen 4:8, we see the first act of murder, where Cain killed his brother Abel out of jealousy regarding their offerings to the Lord. There, HARAQ is used in the Qal stem for “murder,” as it is elsewhere, cf. Ex 21:12, 14. Cain’s problem was that he did not see Abel as his brother. Instead, he saw him as a rival and wanted to get him out of the way so that he could have all of God’s favor. As you know, Cain was operating under human good works inside of Satan’s cosmic system, versus Divine good production. He wanted to have his human works to be accepted by God, (i.e., offering to the Lord the vegetables he grew).

Yet, the only thing that is acceptable to God is Divine good, cf. Gal 5:22-23; Eph 5:9, (i.e., what He supplies to us, the Lamb). The lamb is what Abel offered, and God accepted it. Therefore, Cain’s sin was arrogance and he needed to remove his rival, so he murdered Abel.

Jesus, in His teaching on the Law, Mat 5:21-26, pointed to the wider sphere of this commandment, including the mental attitude which potentially leads to the act of murder. Jesus deepens it by saying that anger was like murder and can easily lead to murder, Mat 5:22, just as the liar was a murderer in John 8:44.

Mat 5:22, “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You good-for-nothing,' shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, 'You fool,' shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.”

James also pointed out that mental attitude sins lead to overt sins such as murder, James 4:1-2.

James 4:1-2, “What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members? 2You lust and do not have; so you commit murder. You are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask.”

Peter warns the church not to enter into these types of sins in 1 Peter 4:15, “Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler.”

As the first three vertical Commandments refer primarily to deeds; the subsequent commandments advance to the prohibition of desire, which is proof that the deed is not to be separated from the disposition, and that the fulfilment of God’s mandates is only complete when the heart itself is sanctified.

Murder, violence, and terror always occur when man becomes involved in sin and Satan’s cosmic system. And, murder is always preceded by the mental attitude sin of arrogance.

Rom 1:29, “Being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips…”

Then, in 1 John 3:4-12, John tell us what the antidote is regarding the temptation to murder, or any other sin for that fact. The antidote is love. If we have come into a relationship with God in which we have committed all of our needs to His loving care, others are no longer rivals preventing us from having what we need, and we no longer have to “get others out of the way,” so that we can have what we want, desire, lust for, or even need. Instead, we can see them as brothers and sisters, and delight in the ways in which God supplies our needs, as well as rejoicing in His supply of their needs, even as He sometimes does through us.

James also reiterates this and points to having love for God as the antidote to sin, James 4:5-8.

James 4:5-8, “Or do you think that the Scripture speaks to no purpose: "He jealously desires the Spirit which He has made to dwell in us"? 6But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, "GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE." 7Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

Moses in Deut 6:4f, and Paul in Rom 13:9-10, also taught that the path toward obedience and fulfillment of these mandates is characterized as a path of love towards God and towards your fellow man.

Rom 13:10, “Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.”

James also reminds us that love should prevail in all situations, so that we do not have partiality or favoritism of one over another, because AGAPE love is the “royal law,” for us all to fulfill.

James 2:8-13, “If, however, you are fulfilling the royal law according to the Scripture, "YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF," you are doing well. 9But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. 10For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all. 11For He who said, "DO NOT COMMIT ADULTERY," also said, "DO NOT COMMIT MURDER." Now if you do not commit adultery, but do commit murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. 12So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. 13For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.”

In conclusion, we should not murder because God alone gives life, Deut 32:39 and people are made in His image.

Deut 32:39, “See now that I, I am He, and there is no god besides Me; It is I who put to death and give life. I have wounded and it is I who heal, and there is no one who can deliver from My hand.”


In the Church Age, the state takes the roles of administration of justice and declaration of war; the Church cannot do such things, Rom 13:1-5.

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A PERSONAL NOTE FOR YOU

John 6:47 says: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me [Jesus Christ] has everlasting life.”

Notice again what John 6:47 says, “he who believes in Me [Jesus Christ] has everlasting life.” It doesn’t say, “will have;” it says, “has.” Therefore, the very moment you believe Jesus Christ’s promise of everlasting life, you have it, and it can never be lost or taken away from you [John 10:28-29]. Furthermore, the gift of everlasting life [also called eternal life in Scripture] is available to every human being; there are absolutely no exceptions.

John 3:14-18 says: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”

Eph 2:8-9, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”

If you have never accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, I am here to tell you that Jesus loves you. He loves you so much that He gave His life for you. God the Father also loves you. He loves you so much that He gave His only Son for you by sending Him to the Cross. At the Cross Jesus died in your place. Taking upon Himself all of your sins and all of my sins. He was judged for our sins and paid the price for our sins. Therefore, our sins will never be held against us.

Right where you are, you now have the opportunity to make the greatest decision in your life. To accept the free gift of salvation and eternal life by truly believing that Jesus Christ died for your sins and was raised on the third day as the proof of the promise of eternal life. So right now, you can pause and reflect on what Christ has done for you and say to the Father:

"Yes Father, I believe that Your Son, Jesus Christ, 
died on the cross for the forgiveness of my sins."


If you have done that, I Welcome You to the Eternal Family of God !!!

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Grace Fellowship Church
Pastor/Teacher: James H. Rickard
23 Messenger Street, Unit 3
Plainville, MA 02762


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