Murder

     My previous post was maybe a bit morose- that's probably because I have been feeling confused and discouraged by the world, despite trying to avoid focusing too much on the world. Yet, I live here and so do lots of people that I really care about. I have no desire to be miserable. I much prefer joy- but that doesn't mean using sarcasm or vulgarity to evoke laughter. I realize we can't enjoy the belly-laughs a baby has over silly things forever. On the other hand, I don't want to be so somber that anyone near me feels depressed. So, how to capture a feeling of "joy" while living amid all the negative things in this world? How to recognize the negative things of this world without seeming to unfairly judge or hate this world? I have decided to try examining more about how to be like the Savior. Using His words as recorded in the scriptures, I plan to take one or two things at a time that He has told us to do/be or not to do/be. If we search diligently, we can find the bounds that have been set for our benefit.
     I decided to start with one of the "don'ts" and it's seemingly obvious, but I want to go beyond the first glance. In the ten commandments we are admonished not to murder. It's fairly obvious that taking a life is preventing another being from experiencing mortality. God prefers that we each have the chance to continue our mortal probation with the opportunity to learn from trial and error. But what about self-defense or war? In the interest of space, I will not give every single scriptural reference but just the information given there. In several places mentioning killing or shedding blood, the phrase "shedding innocent blood" is inserted. In 1 Nephi is the famous story of slaying Laban where Nephi is instructed by an angel that it is better to slay a man than have a whole nation dwindle in unbelief. That would be a similar circumstance to the wiping out of idol-worshippers as the ancient Israelites were commanded to do. So, sometimes God will directly command to kill. His primary interest is in the spiritual progression of ALL of His children, or as many as possible. Also, in the Book of Mormon, in Alma, there is a man named Moroni who is a great military leader, akin to Joshua in the Old Testament. He is thus described, "a man who was firm in the faith of Christ, and he had sworn with an oath to defend his people, his rights, and his country, and his religion, even to the loss of his blood. Now the Nephites were taught to defend themselves against their enemies, even to the shedding of blood if it were necessary; yea, and they were also taught never to give an offense, yea, and never to raise the sword except it were against an enemy, except it were to preserve their lives." So, defense against an attacker, whether a criminal or in a battle, is appropriate. Most of us will never face having to kill someone else, so what else can we learn about what to do and not do?
     Jesus said, "That whosever is angry with his brother shall be in danger of the judgment....... whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire." He also said, "Agree with thine adversary quickly", the Greek original meaning to have kind thoughts toward. He also talked about turning the other cheek if smote upon and to forgive 70 times 7 and that vengeance is God's, not ours. Matthew 5 has quite a bit on this subject mentioning giving a cloak if sued for your coat and going the extra mile when compelled to go one or not turning away a borrower. Jesus also said, "Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?" In other scripture, we are admonished to avoid evil speaking, backbiting, holding grudges, reviling, and mocking. All of those are things that most of us do every single day, either in talking with friends or family, or posting on Facebook. Those kinds of words cause discomfort, anger, and cast away peace and loving feelings.
     One step deeper than merely ending a mortal life or even making someone feel bad is what Alma described in the Book of Mormon. He said he had gone about seeking to destroy the church of God. (His father was a church leader but he was cynical and used his influence to lead people away from faith then later repented, thanks to the intervention of an angel's visit.) His words, "Yea, I did remember all my sins and iniquities, for which I was tormented with the pains of hell; yea, I saw that I had rebelled against my God, and that I had not kept his holy commandments. Yea, and I had murdered many of his children, or rather led them away unto destruction" which means he had led them away from accepting the atonement of Jesus Christ and seeking to obey God's commandments. So we can go beyond the bounds the Lord has set by being a hindrance to someone finding faith and learning God's eternal truths. It's bad enough if we don't share our testimony to strengthen others or "light their path", but if we actually mislead them, that's even worse. Alma felt he had "murdered" those who were led away by his influence although he had never ended a mortal life.
     This is probably enough for one post. I thought this was the commandment (Thou shalt not commit murder) most people think of first when they think of what God expects of his children. The bounds limit much more than simply taking the life of another human being. If we are to say we believe in God and want to obey Him and take upon us the name of Christ to follow Him, we need to really understand what that means. Studying God's instructions are the way. I think I'll research prayer next............