What We’ve Lost Along the Way
Exodus 20:13
I don’t spend much of my time longing for the good ol’ days
-particularly because I’m realistic enough to understand the good ol’
days may have been good, but they likely weren’t as good as you
and I tend to remember them
--still, I shudder when I think about words and phrases I never
heard as a child—I’m not saying these things never happened
40 years ago...rather these words and phrases today are so
commonplace we hardly even give them second thought
---school shooting, mall shooting, drive-by shooting, church
shooting, workplace shooting...and now, city hall shooting
How many times have you heard a news report and those phrases
are described by the word “another”?
-for example: Another
school shooting today, this time in
--and so we’ve expanded our vocabulary to include: ethnic
cleansing, suicide bombing, murder-suicide, genocide,
democide, and familicide
We should all sit up and pay attention...but the fact that we usually
don’t is only further evidence that we’ve grown so accustomed to
this new reality that nothing really shocks us anymore
-like last weekend
when a teenager in an affluent
killed his parents and two younger brothers...the confessed
murderer was on his high school lacrosse and golf teams, almost
an Eagle Scout, and active in his church...and yesterday in a jail
cell he observed his 16th birthday
The cause?
-news media—lead story is almost always the latest violent crime
-violent movies, violent video games desensitizing us
-easy accessibility to guns
--sociologists and psychologists and criminologists try to pin the
blame on something tangible, something that can be studied
and legislated and banned
---but the reality of the matter is far more basic and more
complex than keeping Halo III out of the hands of children
...or guns out of the hands of everyday citizens
Again, I’m certainly not suggesting that in some long ago golden age
murder didn’t exist
-in fact, murder was the second recorded sin in the Bible
--a mere 8 verses after God drove Eve & Adam from the Garden,
we read that their firstborn son committed first degree murder
of his brother...all because of jealousy and anger
-and throughout Scripture things don’t get any better
Still, I want to suggest to you that the problem and the solution are
essentially identical
-somewhere along the way—where, exactly, is probably irrelevant
—we have lost the concept of the intrinsic value of human life
--and until we regain that understanding in the very fabric of our
being and our society, we should not be surprised to see the
continuation of random, senseless mass killing...not to
mention a litany of other crimes against women, children, the
poor, and the powerless
It might be too simplistic to pinpoint a single cause
-some argue for WWI, with its death toll in the millions
-some say it was the ability of men like Stalin, Hitler, and Mao to
orchestrate the killing of multiple millions of their own people...and
the rest of the world’s inability or indifference to stop it
-others name the
dropping of the bombs on
-many would cite the infamous Roe verses Wade decision that
legalized most forms of abortion in the
-personally, I’d
likely go back to 1859, when On the
Origin of
Species was first published...although the concept of evolution
did not originate
with
believe in a Creator...nonetheless, the seismic shift had begun...
and the eventual, almost “necessary” conclusion was that you and
I are mere animals—perhaps more evolved and more complex,
but containing no more inherent value than the pallid sturgeon,
Curtis pearlymussell, or the Ozark big-eared bat
Whatever you want to hang the blame on, the result is the same
-we have managed to de-value human life to the point where we
may never be able to return to a true, biblical worldview
Read Exodus 20:13
That’s certainly a clear command—no ambiguity with that one
-in fact, the Hebrew
is even simpler—just 2 words: no murder
--and, let me clarify, murder is a more accurate translation than kill
-the problem with this command is that most of us read it and
quickly dismiss it because, after all, we’ve never murdered anyone
so this one doesn’t apply to us
--but when we do that we miss God’s word of grace to us
-this command, no doubt, is a strong prohibition of murder...but it
communicates much, much more...to grasp its full intent we need
to rephrase it in the positive
**if you were going to re-write the 6th commandment, what would
it sound like?
Value life! Treasure life! Honor life!
Human life is valuable because we are created in God’s image
-you were created intentionally...you are not the result of a chance
combination of atoms and cells
Read Genesis 1:27-30
Being created in God’s image means you are unique
-you are set aside from the rest of creation
--you are above the animals...not just in dominion and power, but
in worth...in God’s economy, you are far more valuable than a
blue whale, an African elephant, or a giant panda
-Read Matthew 10:29-30
--God does care about animals, but they are nothing in His eyes
compared to you
-
and when he tried he couldn’t help but to burst forth in praise
Read Psalm 8
Being created in God’s image means you belong to Him
-Read Mark 12:13-17
--normally, this passage is used to teach the importance of being
good citizens, paying taxes, being men and women of integrity,
and even tithing...that’s all well and good
--but there’s something else going on here...something significant
Jesus takes this Roman coin and the literal translation of His question
in v. 16 is à Whose image (ei-kóne) is this?
-Jesus affirms the Pharisees and Herodians answer of “Caesar’s”
and then
concludes in v. 17 à Because
Caesar’s image is on it,
it must belong to him. Give it to him.
--but He
continues with another, abbreviated
conclusion à to
God what is God’s
---Jesus leaves it to us to fill in the blanks of the rationale
He used to arrive at that conclusion
--to be
logically consistent, we must say à Give to God what
is God’s because His
image is on it.
---God gave His image to only one aspect of all creation...
not to cuddly-wuddly koalas, not to purple mountains’
majesty, not to fearsome creatures of the deep
----He gave His image only to you and to me...and the
truth is we belong to Him as His creation and we
belong to Him as believers
-1 Peter 2:9-10 à ...you
are a chosen people, a royal priesthood,
a holy nation, a people belonging to
God, that you may declare
the praises of Him who called you out of
darkness into His
wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are
the people of God...
--and as the people of God, we have tremendous worth...our
lives have value because of Who created us and Who did so
in His image
You need to grasp that truth about yourself—your life has meaning
-it’s true about babies—cute ones, “deformed” ones, unborn ones
-it’s true about the elderly who are forgotten or ignored
-it’s true about all nationalities, skin colors, races, and religions
--it’s true about Senator Hillary Clinton...a white woman
--it’s true about Senator Barak Obama...a black man
--it’s true about Senator John McCain...a wealthy Episcopalian
--it’s true about Gov. Mitt Romney...an even wealthier Mormon
--it’s true about Governor Mike Huckaby...a Southern Baptist
--and it’s just as true about a boatload of
refugees fleeing
and a Sudanese infant born with HIV...and an al Qa’ida terrorist
finalizing his plans to bomb a crowded market in Basrah...a
family of Mexicans crossing the border illegally...a convicted
murderer on
death row in
And that is why murder is such a horrendous affront to God
-murder is undoing of what God has done...violating His image...
destroying His creation...misjudging someone as ‘worthless’ who
God loves and has already declared inherently valuable
--murder is the violent reversal of God’s will
-Timothy Peck, in his book, The Trinitarian Life, writes à An
ambassador is the official representative
of her government; in a
sense she bears the image of her nation. Now imagine that a
foreign government seizes the ambassador
and kills her. That
wouldn't simply be murder of a single
human being; it would also
be an act of war against the government
the ambassador
represents. In a similar way, one person's murdering
another
person is an act of war against God. It is an attempt to murder
God by killing one who bears his image.
It’s why the taking of a single human life is always tragedy
-we are never justified in thinking, “Oh well, she was only a Muslim.”
--John 3:16 à For God
so loved the world that He gave His
one
and only Son, that whoever believes in
Him shall not perish but
have eternal life.
-we are never justified in believing, “Aw, he deserved it...he was just
another gangbanger.”
--Romans 5:8 à But God
demonstrates His own love for us in
this: while we were still sinners Christ died for us.
-we are never justified in saying, “It’s sad, but she was going to be
born with Down’s Syndrome so it’s probably for the best.”
--Jeremiah 1:15 à Before I formed you in the womb I knew you
--Psalm 139:13 à You
created my inmost being; You knit me
together
in my mother’s womb.”
Every life has value in God’s eyes—the beautiful, the poor, the elderly
Every life has unbelievable worth—regardless of what society says
Every life has God-given uniqueness and potential
Every life bears the image of his or her Creator
Every life is the object of God’s grace-full, matchless love
Because we know the Bible teaches those truths...because we know
Jesus modeled those truths...and because we claim to follow Christ
and believe the Bible...we must never take the Sixth Commandment
passively, thinking, “I’m fine as long as I don’t murder anyone.”
We must live so that our attitudes and actions reflect those of Christ
Share the Good News of Jesus with everyone...not just those who
are like us and who would “fit in well” at First Baptist
-Jesus spoke the truth in love to the immoral Samaritan woman
-Jesus touched the “untouchables”
-Jesus went to those who repulsed everyone...demon-possessed
Demonstrate your love for the unborn and their mothers
-support Birthright...many ways you can be involved
-Missouri Baptist Children’s Home
-Show-Me Christian Youth Home being built near Galt
Put feet and hand to your conviction about the worth of the elderly
-get to know your neighbors
-The Baptist Home
-four other nursing
homes just in
Be intentional about caring for those who are at-risk
-contact a school or the YMCA
-discover how you can support the local women’s shelter
-get involved in our children’s ministries here
-be intentional about being The Church Where No One Sits Alone
Let everyone see your belief that everyone is created in God’s image
-give something to eat to those who are hungry
-give something to drink to those who are thirsty
-give care and concern for a stranger
-give clothing to those who need it
-give compassion to those who are sick
-give your friendship and presence to those who are in prison
Sound familiar?
-it should...Jesus
says in Matthew 25:40 à I tell
you the truth,
whatever you did for one of the least of
these brothers of Mine,
you did for me.
And what does that tell us about the image of God in every person...
the hungry, thirsty, alien, poor, sick, and imprisoned...everyone
-and it tells us who we should value, serve, reach, and love