Another version states, "For there are six things the Lord hates—no, seven: haughtiness, lying, murdering, plotting evil, eagerness to do wrong, a false witness, sowing discord among brothers." (TLB)
Homicide in the United States.
There are 404 'Forensic Files' episodes, 125 'Cold Case Files' episodes, 326 'First 48 Hours' episodes..... and that's just scratching the surface of shows displaying homicides in the world.
As of 2015, there were 15,696 murders that took place in America. There was also an estimated 90,185 rapes. (FBI Latest Crime Statistics)
Hatred, jealousy, and greed are running rampant in our world and it leads other human beings to 'shed innocent blood' or to 'murder.'
I love one of the sayings I read awhile back- 'We have a heart problem, not a weapon problem' and that is the truth in my eyes. One thing I've learned from watching 'Forensic Files' is this... If someone has bitterness in their heart and they want to take the life of another-- they are going to do with their hands, shoe strings, a knife, a rock,. doesn't matter. They will get the job done.
What Does the Bible Say About Murder?
Genesis 9:5-6 states, "More than that, do not spill the blood of any human. If anyone spills your blood, I will hold him responsible. It makes no difference whether it is a man or an animal, both will be accountable to Me! If someone murders a fellow human being, then I will require his life in return." (VOICE)
The Ten Commandments specifically state: Do not commit murder.
- You shall have no other gods before Me.
- You shall not make idols.
- You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.
- Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
- Honor your father and your mother.
- You shall not murder.
- You shall not commit adultery.
- You shall not steal.
- You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
- You shall not covet.
In Jeremiah chapter 7, we find that the temple was in Jerusalem; however, the people of Jerusalem were not following the word of God. God told Jeremiah to go speak these words to the people:
O Judah, listen to this message from God. Listen to it, all of you who worship here. The Lord, the God of Israel says: Even yet, if you quit your evil ways, I will let you stay in your own land. But don’t be fooled by those who lie to you and say that since the Temple of the Lord is here, God will never let Jerusalem be destroyed. You may remain under these conditions only: If you stop your wicked thoughts and deeds and are fair to others; if you stop exploiting orphans, widows, and foreigners, and stop your murdering; if you stop worshiping idols as you do now to your hurt, then, and only then, will I let you stay in this land that I gave to your fathers to keep forever. You think that because the Temple is here, you will never suffer? Don’t fool yourselves! Do you really think that you can steal, murder, commit adultery, lie, and worship Baal and all of those new gods of yours, and then come here and stand before me in my Temple and chant, “We are saved!”—only to go right back to all these evil things again? Is my Temple but a den of robbers in your eyes? For I see all the evil going on in there.
God saw the evil taking place... and He was going to destroy the temple because of it.
He saw how they were praying in the temple and then they turned around and lied, committed adultery, and murdered.
Murder is evil in the eyes of God.
Galatians 5:19-21- "Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God." (KJV)
In Galatians chapter 5, we read about the 'works of the flesh' or 'acts of the flesh.' These are called this because they are all driven by the needs/wants/emotions of the flesh.
Adultery- voluntary sexual intercourse between a spouse and someone who is not their spouse- is fueled by lust.
Fornication- voluntary sexual intercourse between two people not married to each other- is fueled by lust.
Uncleanness- being morally wrong- is fueled by the wants of our flesh.
Lasciviousness- lust- this is fueled by the wants of our flesh.
Idolatry- religious worship of idol/excessive adoration or devotion- this is fueled by our flesh searching for something greater
Witchcraft- the art or practice of magic and sorcery- this is fueled by our flesh seeking something.
Hatred- the feeling of hatred, intense dislike, or extreme aversion is fueled by our emotions.
Variance- causing disagreements and quarrels- this is fueled by our own wants/our own desires
Emulations- jealous rivalry-- this is fueled by our desire to want what other people have.
Wrath- vengeance or punishment as the result of anger- this is fueled by our emotions and self-righteousness
Strife- vigorous or bitter conflict- this is fueled by our emotions and our lack of self-control.
Seditions- any action or speech promoting rebellion- this is fueled by our desire to have what we want, when we want it.
Heresies- divisions- this is fueled by our wants and how we want things to work for us alone
Envyings- a feeling of discontent or covetousness of what someone else has- this is driven by our emotions and our wants
Murders- the killing of another human being- this is fueled by our emotions and feelings of anger, jealousy, greed, and more.
Drunkenness- given to intoxication- this is fueled by our own desires- our emotions.
Revellings- wild partying- this is fueled by our own physical wants and desires.
All of these works/acts of the flesh are fueled by our own desires, our own wants, our own emotions. Murder included.
On an episode of Forensic Files, I once heard that must homicides are because of 1 of 3 things: LUST, GREED, OR ANGER.
God, help us to control our emotions, our feelings, our thoughts-- so that our actions can be controlled.
Fornication- voluntary sexual intercourse between two people not married to each other- is fueled by lust.
Uncleanness- being morally wrong- is fueled by the wants of our flesh.
Lasciviousness- lust- this is fueled by the wants of our flesh.
Idolatry- religious worship of idol/excessive adoration or devotion- this is fueled by our flesh searching for something greater
Witchcraft- the art or practice of magic and sorcery- this is fueled by our flesh seeking something.
Hatred- the feeling of hatred, intense dislike, or extreme aversion is fueled by our emotions.
Variance- causing disagreements and quarrels- this is fueled by our own wants/our own desires
Emulations- jealous rivalry-- this is fueled by our desire to want what other people have.
Wrath- vengeance or punishment as the result of anger- this is fueled by our emotions and self-righteousness
Strife- vigorous or bitter conflict- this is fueled by our emotions and our lack of self-control.
Seditions- any action or speech promoting rebellion- this is fueled by our desire to have what we want, when we want it.
Heresies- divisions- this is fueled by our wants and how we want things to work for us alone
Envyings- a feeling of discontent or covetousness of what someone else has- this is driven by our emotions and our wants
Murders- the killing of another human being- this is fueled by our emotions and feelings of anger, jealousy, greed, and more.
Drunkenness- given to intoxication- this is fueled by our own desires- our emotions.
Revellings- wild partying- this is fueled by our own physical wants and desires.
All of these works/acts of the flesh are fueled by our own desires, our own wants, our own emotions. Murder included.
On an episode of Forensic Files, I once heard that must homicides are because of 1 of 3 things: LUST, GREED, OR ANGER.
God, help us to control our emotions, our feelings, our thoughts-- so that our actions can be controlled.
The Heart.
Genesis 49:6 states, "O my soul, stay away from them. May I never be a party to their wicked plans. For in their anger they murdered a man, and maimed oxen just for fun." (TLB)
And in Luke 6:45, Luke writes, "A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of." (NIV)
Whatever is in our hearts WILL come out eventually-- whether it is in our words or our actions. It will proceed. We cannot harbor bitterness and anger in our hearts-- and not deal with it through prayer- and not expect it to surface at some point.
The heart is the issue when it comes to all of the acts of the flesh, especially murder.
It becomes where our wants, our desires, our needs, our emotions-- they become more important the the breath of another person. Anger overtakes common sense. Lust overrides the life God has called us to. Greed turns us in to an evil person.
And we are left to pay the consequences of NOT getting our hearts right with Jesus Christ.
We can only do this through prayer. Through washing our hearts. Through cleansing. Through repentance. Through asking God to get ride of all the nasty things with in us!
Homicides are running rampant-- Almost 16,000 people were taken from our country last year-- all because we have a HEART problem. All because we cannot submit our actions to Jesus Christ. We cannot submit our thoughts to His Word. We cannot see the importance of another human being's life. We cannot value the breath of another human being because we are so blinded by our own wants.
We must submit our wants and needs to Him. Ask Him for help. He will never leave us or forsake us. He promised!
Jesus, help us to get our hearts aligned with Your Word today. We plead the blood over our minds- over our thoughts- over our feelings- over our emotions. We submit it to you, Jesus and we ask for Your help. Help us to realize that You created every person on this earth and You called us to LOVE one another- not hurt one another. We love You lamb of God. Thank You for everything You do for us!
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