FYI?

Ex.20:¹³ “You must not murder. ¹⁴ “You must not commit adultery.”

Over the next couple of days, we will be looking closely at the two commandments outlined in today’s Scripture reference.

And we will be basing our learning on a story of two friends. Sammy’s best friend was Tommy and with his birthday approaching, Sammy had planned a quiet celebration with his family and his best friend Tommy. The plan was to have dinner with the family and have an evening of adventure [camping, fishing, games] with Tommy.As soon as his parents consented, Sammy was excited to tell Tommy about the plan. Tommy however had another friend called Bill who also had his birthday coming up. Bill also invited Sammy for his party coming up on the same day as Sammy’s. He was going to have the entire teenage social crowd in school present for loads of activities plus camping.

Tommy of course was deeply conflicted. Sammy was his best friend but the girls would be at Bill’s party. So, he came up with the plan to have Sammy move his party forward. Tommy thought, ‘We have been friends forever and I will still go for his party so it should be okay by Sammy. It would be rude to turn Bill’s invitation down and the Sammy I know would not mind shifting his party just a little bit.’ Sammy was really hurt by Tommy’s choice to attend Bill’s party over his own. As if that was not bad enough, he was suggesting his own be moved. Sammy went home angry and crying inconsolably saying, “I hate Tommy and I never want to see him again! I never want to go to that school again.” As legitimate as Sammy’s pain was, at that point, he was at the risk of committing murder – yes murder!

Jesus says in Matt.5: ²¹ “You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ ²² 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” [with emphasis]. Sammy was actually treading a dangerous path even though he was legitimately hurt. Many people think they are in the right to hate a person. No, you are not! God wants us to understand that murder is a spectrum of death that starts with anger.

Prayer: Father, I pray that regardless of the situation I find myself, I will not go against Your commandments or sin against You, in Jesus Name. Amen!