The Ten Commandments: Five

Martin Luther recommended daily meditation on the Ten Commandments, using each Command to Instruct, to provide inspiration for Thanksgiving, to reflect upon in Repentance, and to conclude with Praise to God.

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Fifth Commandment

You shall not murder.  What does this mean?  We should fear and love God so that we do not hurt nor harm our neighbor in his body, but help and support him in every physical need.

You shall not murder.  Exodus 20: 13 and Deuteronomy 5: 17

You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgement.’  But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgement.  Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca’ is answerable to the Sanhedrin.  But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.  Matthew 5: 21 - 22

Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law.  The commandments “Do not commit adultery,” “Do not murder,” “Do not steal,” “Do not covet,” and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule:  “Love your neighbor as yourself.”  Love does no harm to its neighbor.  Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.  Roman 13: 8-10

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.  But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.  If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.  If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler.  However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear the name.  1 Peter 4: 12 – 16

This is the message you heard from the beginning:  We should love one another.  Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother.  And why did he murder him?  Because his own actions were evil and his brother’s were righteous.  Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you.  We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers.  Anyone who does not love remains in death.  Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him.  1 John 3: 11 – 15

We love because he first loved us.  If anyone says, “I love God,” yet hates his brother, he is a liar.  For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.  And he has given us this command:  Whoever loves God must also love his brother.”  1 John 4: 19 – 21

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The command in Exodus and Deuteronomy is simple and clear:  “Do not murder.”   On the face of it, the command is not to kill someone without cause, without due process—the necessity of killing in battle or killing those who have committed a capital offense is made clear throughout the Old Testament books of the law.  The New Testament, starting with the words of Jesus, expands the meaning of this command prohibiting murder.  Jesus tells us that even hatred or calling someone an idiot is the equivalent of murder—the distain, contempt and distaste for another human being is where murder begins.  This should even guide our hearts when we fulfill the civil role of judge, executioner or military member:  there may be a place for us to kill, but we must never hold others in hatred or contempt.  It is those feelings of hatred and contempt where the sin of murder begins.  We are told that love for neighbor is the fulfilment of the law, and that love for other people is essential and foundational for those claiming to love God.  It is not sufficient to simply refrain from murdering others; we are called to actively serve them, to meet their bodily needs and see to it that they are protected from harm.  We are reminded that all people are created in the image of God, and that Christ died for all out of his love for the world—how could we then hold people in contempt, hate them or wish them harm?

Lord God, You formed Adam from the red clay of the earth which You created, and You breathed the Spirit of life into him.  You created us, body and Spirit.  All of humankind bears Your likeness; we bear the fingerprints of Your creative power and are sanctified by Your love, Your desire to bless and save.  You demonstrated Your love for humanity by sending Christ Jesus Your Son to die for the sins of the world, to reconcile humanity to Yourself.  We thank You for Your creation and for Your plan of salvation.  Thank You for showing us what love looks like, and for demonstrating the value of human life through Your creative and Your saving works. 

Father of all, forgive us for our sins.  We do not all murder with our hands, but we all murder in our hearts:  we look at others and feel contempt and hatred so easily.  We angrily call others “fool” and “idiot”; we treat others as worthless, as useless and disgusting.  What You have called “good”, we call “stupid”; those whom You have died to save, we spit upon and abuse.  We view others only as means to an end; we value our own health, safety and comfort above the lives of others.  We know that this contempt is the beginning of murder but we harbor these thoughts anyway.  We fantasize about the deaths of those inconvenient to us; we may never act, but we wish and this wishing erodes respect and is a barrier to love and compassion.   We daily neglect the needs of our neighbors out of selfishness and contempt.  We do good only when good can be expected in return; we ignore those truly in need of our kindness and service.  

You know the darkness of our hearts:  it may only be the threat of discovery and punishment which prevents us from killing the innocent who obstruct our selfish goals.  You know the darkness of our hearts:  we have killed in thought and word, and the deed of murder is a seed planted by hatred, waiting to grow and produce fruit in the soil of anger and self-centeredness.  You know the darkness of our heart:  we are full of hatred, and You have called hatred murder. 

For Jesus’ sake, forgive us our sins.  Forgive us our hatred, our selfishness and our contempt.  Forgive the thoughts of murder in our hearts and the acts of murder we may have done with our hands.  You have said that if we confess our sins, You are faithful and just and You will forgive our sins and cleanse us from our unrighteousness (1 John 1: 9).  In Christ our Great High Priest, we have One who always lives to intercede for us; He is able to save us completely, by the sacrifice of His blood which covers the sins of all (Hebrews 7:25).  In Christ You showed that Your power extends over all things, even over death itself.  In Christ, You showed the extent of Your love as He endured death to bring life to those who believe.  Even the hatred and the murder which we commit, those sins which feel so permanent and powerful to us—You have power to forgive, and You have power over death.  On our own, we stand in ugliness and hatred and death; we plead with You for mercy and grace and forgiveness because of the sacrifice of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Keep us always repentant and humble, preserve us from the sin of murder and keep us in the love of Christ.

Triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, You do not let any sin separate us from You.  You have promised to forgive all the sin of those who come to You with a repentant hearts.  You have power over sin, over death and over the power of the devil.  We praise You for Your power, for Your love, for Your saving work and for the power of sanctification which renews our hearts daily in Your image.  We praise You that in eternity, all sin will be done away with and the power of death will no longer reign; we look forward with anxious hearts to the eternity in heaven You have promised, where there will be no more tears and no more sorrow.  We praise You that You are able to comfort and sustain us in this life. We rest in the comfort of Your forgiveness; we see the renewing of relationships and the repairing of broken bonds; we experience Your Spirit which inspires compassion, respect and love for others; we praise You that You can overcome hatred and instead bring love, fellowship and compassion.  Lord God, You are worthy of praise; take the praise we offer and make it acceptable in Your sight, through the blood of Jesus Christ Your Son, in Whose Name we pray.  AMEN.