Good evening.  Tonight we are going to begin a new series.  For the next few weeks, we are going to be looking at some controversial issues, hot topics if you will.  And tonight, we are going to begin with our first issue.  As we begin, allow me to read for you a verse from Ezekiel 13:19, and see if you can tell me what our topic will be this evening.  Ezekiel 13:19 says, “You have profaned me among my people for a few handfuls of barley and scraps of bread.  By lying to my people, who listen to lies, you have killed those who should not have died, and have spared those who should not live.”

So, any idea where we are headed this evening?

Okay, as we address the issue of capital punishment, what is your opinion on this issue?

What crimes, if any, should be punishable by the death penalty?

Well, before we move on and take a look at this issue tonight, allow me to begin with a word of prayer.  Let’s Pray!

This evening, I am going to be sharing, and I may not ask a lot of questions.  However, if you have anything that you would like to add at any point, I want you to stop me and say whatever it is that you are feeling or thinking and need to say.

Well, once again, in a way God is saying, “Will you profane Me among My people, killing people who should not die, and keeping people alive who should not live?”

Former New York Mayor Ed Kock once said, “It can be easily demonstrated that the death penalty strengthens the value of human life.  If the penalty for rape were lowered, clearly it would signal a lessened regard for the victims’ suffering.  When we lower the penalty for murder, it signals a lessened regard for the value of the victim’s life.”

How do you feel about what the New York Mayor had to say?

Capital punishment has always been, understandably, a very controversial subject.  God is the giver of life, and whether done by gun, gas, chair, or needle, the taking of a human life must be approached very carefully.

And so, in tonight’s discussion we will draw a to the point, yet thorough overview of capital punishment throughout both the Old and the New Testaments, showing that ever since sin entered the world, God has ordained, and has never retracted the death penalty as a means to protect the innocent by eliminating violent criminals from our society.

In the Book of Genesis, we see that God created human beings in His own image.  Because of this, He sees murder as a terrible crime.  He sees human life as being so sacred that anyone who takes a person’s life must consequentially give up their own.

The first civil law that God ever ordained, long before He gave the Law of Moses, was in Genesis 9:6 when He said, “Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed.”

So, back to the time before God gave the Ten Commandments, He established the importance of capital punishment.

We then go on to God’s establishment of the Law of Moses, which is summarized in the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20:1-17.  In verse 13, we see the Sixth Commandment, “Thou Shall Not Kill.”  A better translation of this verse is, “Thou Shall Not Murder.”  Now a lot of people use this command as a way to go against capital punishment, saying that the kill someone for killing someone is not right.  They say that 2 wrongs don’t make a right.

However, if you look at the word murder as meaning to willfully take the life of an Innocent person.  This could not have been a ban of the death penalty, since in the very next chapter God specifically commands the death penalty for a number of different offenses.  In fact, Numbers 35:33 says, “Do not pollute the land where you are.  Bloodshed pollutes the land, and atonement cannot be made for the land on which blood has been shed, except by the blood of the one who shed it.”

In other words, God is telling us that when governments fail to punish murderers, by death, God judges that nation guilty.  So, there are some Old Testament passages that condone the use of death as a punishment for severe crimes.

Now, does the New Testament share the same thought as the Old does?

Okay, moving on to the New Testament, we will begin by looking at an all important question.  It has been asked, “Would Jesus throw the switch?”  My answer may surprise some, but yes, I believe He would.  In Luke 19:12-27, Jesus shares the Parable of the Unjust Servant.  Here we see an interesting, yet often overlooked element of Jesus’ teaching.  In this parable, Jesus portrays Himself as a nobleman who goes on a journey, entrusting his goods to 3 stewards.  When He returns, 2 of the stewards have made profits of the money entrusted to them, and He rewards them accordingly.  The third one, however, hid his portion of the treasure, and gained nothing.  The Nobleman’s somewhat shocking response is to take away the small amount of money from the unjust servant, give it to the servant with the most money, and to order the unjust servant to be slain before him.  This is a stark contrast to the weak, pacifist image of Jesus often presented to us.

We see further New Testament support for the death penalty in both the life and the writings of the Apostle Paul.  In Acts 25:11, as he is standing trial before the Roman Governor Festus, Paul makes this interesting statement.

He says in Acts 25:11, “If, however, I am guilty of doing anything deserving death, I do not refuse to die.  But if the charges brought against me by these Jews are not true, no one has the right to hand me over to them.”  In other words, Paul recognized that, as a government official, Governor Festus had a God given right to take his life if he had done anything to warrant it, and he was willing to submit to execution if necessary.

At this time, go ahead and turn with me to Romans 13:1-4.  Paul further expands this principle in this passage.  Here in Romans 13:1-4 it says, “1”

In these verses, Paul tells us that civil government is ordained of God, and that one of its duties is to bear the sword and execute wrath against those who do evil.  These are strong words indeed.  Since the only use of a sword is to kill, this verse is a clear reference to God’s endorsement of capital punishment when necessary.

In the debate over capital punishment, we have now seen that both the Old and the New Testament seem to condone the use of death as a way of punishing those severe crimes that are committed.  But how do we know when to use the death penalty?

What guidelines do you think we should use when considering the death penalty?

Well, thankfully, the Bible addresses these concerns as well.  It gives us strict guidelines in order to be sure that the sentence is carried out properly.  These guidelines include:

1. Proportionality – In Exodus 21:23-25 it says, “2”

What does that passage suggest about the death penalty?

Well, I think that when we consider capital punishment, we need to make sure that we are giving people a punishment that is in proportion to what they do.  A person who runs a red light, does not deserve the death penalty.

2. Intent – In Numbers 35:22-24 it says, “3”

What do you think this passage suggests about capital punishment?

Well, I think that in this passage, we learn that the death penalty is not a punishment that should be used for crimes that are unintentional.  In other words, if someone accidentally takes the life of another human being, they should not be punished with the death penalty.  This happens in some cases when a person is involved in a car accident.  They did not intend on killing someone, it was just part of the accident.  That person may be punished in some way, but probably should not receive the death penalty.

3. Due Process – In Deuteronomy 17:8-9 it says, “4”

I think that in any situation that a crime occurs, there needs to be a proper order of events.  Especially when talking about the death penalty, one cannot jump right into it and kill someone right away.

There has to be time to prove things, and there is a process that must take place.  When you get some time, read through Number chapter 35 as well.

4. Individual Responsibility – In Deuteronomy 24:16 it says, “Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their fathers; each is to die for his own sin.”

What does this passage say about how capital punishment should be handled?

Well, as we read passages like this, I think it is clear that each person is responsible for their own sins.  And when it comes to crime, each person should be punished for his or her own crimes.  Each person is responsible for what the do.  If I kill someone, Nellie should not be punished for my crime unless she played a role in it.  So, we must hold each person responsible for their own actions, or lack of actions in some cases.

5. Fairness – In Numbers 35:29-31 it says, “3”

And then in Exodus 23:6-7 it says, “5”

I think that regardless of the wealth or class of the accused, God has called us to be fair in every situation.  We are not to take bribes to set someone free, nor are we to put someone to death that is innocent.

6. Certainty Of Guilt – In Deuteronomy 17:6 it says, “On the testimony of two or three witnesses a man shall be put to death, but no one shall be put to death on the testimony of only one witness.”  And then in Numbers 35:30 it says, “Anyone who kills a person is to be put to death as a murderer only on the testimony of witnesses.  But no one is to be put to death on the testimony of only one witness.”

What does this passage have to say about the death penalty?

Well, when it comes to capital punishment, there should be no shadow of a doubt that the person accused is guilty.  There needs to be several people with the same story, to testify against the accused.  You never want to kill someone in this way, unless you are sure that they are guilty.

Now, when these 6 guidelines are properly carried out, the swift execution of violent criminals is one of the best and most responsible things that a just government can do.  It permanently removes the offender from society, never to harm another person.  It also sends a powerful message to would be criminals.  Ecclesiastes 8:11 gives us wise counsel when it says, “When the sentence for a crime is not quickly carried out, the hearts of the people are filled with schemes to do wrong.”

It is a horrible thing to have to take a human life.  In fact, in Ezekiel 33:11 it says, “Say to them, “As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live.  Turn!  Turn from your evil ways!”

You see, God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked.  He would rather see them turn from their ways, repent, and live a godly life.  In a perfect world, capital punishment would not be necessary.  It is an unfortunate fact of life that, as long as sin, rebellion, and violence exist on this planet, there will be a need for a properly exercised death penalty to punish the guilty and protect the innocent.

Now, before we close this evening, does anyone have anything that they would like to add?

Well, if there is nothing else, in closing, I will again quote from Mayor Koch when he said, “The death of anyone, even a convicted killer, diminishes us all.  But we are diminished even more by a justice system that fails to function.  It is an illusion to let ourselves believe that doing away with capital punishment removes the murderer’s deed from our conscience.  When we protect guilty lives, we give up innocent lives in exchange.”

Let’s Pray!