In light of the recent murder of Kasandra M. Perkins and subsequent suicide of Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher, its important to learn from this tragedy. If our culture continues to make the same mishaps without gathering information from history, we won’t survive. Thus, it is vital to begin to grasp what causes someone who appears normal to pull the trigger.
To uncover this mystery, we must go back 8,000 years to study the first murder ever recorded. Cain was a farmer, like his father Adam, a difficult occupation due to the curse placed on the ground by God in Genesis 3:17-19. Taking this into account, Abel, Cain’s younger brother, decides he doesn’t want to stay in the family business, opting to pursue a career as a shepherd. Not dependent on the soil, Abel thrives, moving his sheep from field to field once the are grasslands depleted. This success leads Abel to easily give his first fruits back to God while older brother Cain struggles to make ends meat. These events create a spirit of jealousy within Cain’s heart, frustrated by blessings Abel receives, Genesis 4:4-7.
Now that we have a motive for murder, one must delve into the words of Jesus, investigating the Sermon on the Mount to probe for more clues why someone might pull the trigger. In Matthew 5, Jesus is trying to put Old Testament laws, mainly the 10 Commandments into modern terms. Jesus isn’t attempting to change these commands. Rather, He is putting them into laymen terms so that everyone in attendance understands.
According to Matthew 5:21-22, Jesus equates hatred with murder. A normal person is not going to pull the trigger, killing someone. However, when a person allows hatred to enter their heart and dwell there, murder is conceived. Like the conservation with Cain in Genesis 4:6-7, God was trying to talk him out of acting upon his hatred of Abel. The expression “sin is crouching at your door” is a Babylonian term used to refer to an evil demon trying to enter a building, threatening to harm those inside. In other words, the second stage to pulling the triggers involves demonic influences which sows seeds of murder within someone’s mind.
Yet, Jesus does not stop here; there is one more step which pushes people over the cliff of normalcy to insanity. Although the context of Matthew 5:27-30 is adultery, Jesus is addressing the Old Testament practice of purging. If an alcoholic wants to quit drinking, but lives next door to a liquor store, he must move to purge his desire to drink. Likewise, if someone embraces unwholesome lusts, you have to take drastic steps to regain control of your body, Matthew 5:29-30. People who commit suicide and or murder are enslaved by these desires, crossing the point of no return like Cain, James 1:13-15.
I don’t claim to be an expert on murder or suicide, but I do believe all the answers to life can be found in the Bible. You may not have all your questions answered in this life, yet you can make reservations for the next life, John 3:16-17. In fact, John, the one whom Jesus loved, who knew Jesus better than anyone else on earth, leaves everyone an amazing promise in 1 John 5:13. Make a date with God today, Romans 10:9-10, before its too late to act!
by Jay Mankus
A Study of the Word
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