The King James Bible famously says, "Thou shalt not kill" (Exo 20:13). It causes some ripples. What about ... capital punishment? That's biblically ordered (Gen 9:6). God commanded His people at times to go kill people (like the Saul and the Amalekites (1 Sam 15:1-3)). Isn't this a contradiction? And ... "kill" ... that's vague. What about killing animals? Of course, this is simply a misunderstanding, not a contradiction. The word in the Hebrew isn't a general "kill" as in "anything at all." All modern translations make it clear it's not "kill" in a general sense, but "murder." In English, "homicide" refers to the killing of a human. But we have "justifiable homicide" because we understand that not all homicides are created equal, so to speak. The difference is intent and legality. Murder includes malice and the violation of law. Not all killing does.
There is one form of killing that is commanded in Scripture. We are commanded to "put off your old self" (Eph 4:22; Col 3:9), which sounds relatively peaceful (but, I'm sure, if you think about it, cannot be peaceful). Romans says that "our old self was crucified with Him" (Rom 6:6). We are commanded to "Put to death what is earthly in you" (Col 3:5). "Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires" (Gal 5:24). "You must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom 6:11). Jesus said, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it" (Luk 9:23-24). None of this is "peaceful." It is an execution ... a killing of the old self.
We often take this too lightly. We're commanded to "put on the new self" (Eph 4:24; Col 3:10), but how can we do that with the old self hanging around? We're commanded to walk entirely different than the world, but how can we do that when we cling so tightly to the world? The Christian life doesn't "play well" with the ways of the world (1 John 2:15-17). The new self is radically different than the old. And this commanded killing of the old self isn't a "one and done" thing. Putting on the new self isn't a singular accomplishment. Both are commanded. Both take time. Both are ultimately accomplished by the Spirit working in us. Let's be diligent to kill ... the old self.
2 comments:
We are commanded to "put off your old self" (Eph 4:22; Col 3:9)…. I noticed that in both those verses, “lay aside” is used. That sure does imply a relatively peaceful endeavor, as you say, and even an easy one, but of course it is not. That old self just feels so familiar and comfortable, like an old friend--hardly deserving of execution; but it’s at war with the new self, which must take dominance if I am to enjoy eternal life, so it’s gotta go.
We're commanded to "put on the new self" (Eph 4:24; Col 3:10)…. Likewise, I noticed that both verses refer to taking on the likeness of the Lord, with the promise of righteousness, holiness, truth, and knowledge. That sounds like a very good exchange to me!
Both [putting off the old self and putting on the new self] are ultimately accomplished by the Spirit working in us. This is an encouraging and reassuring hope, because even though this swap seems to me impossibly difficult to carry out [how can I fight nature?], all things are possible with God (Mat. 19:26). And this transformation at my core leads to those good works Paul spoke of earlier in Eph. 2:1-10, so good things are on the horizon.
"both verses refer to taking on the likeness of the Lord" This is critical. The bulk of the book of Ephesians emphasizes everything in terms of "for His glory" and ... "in Him." Paul maade it clear that the way all things work together for good is in the fact that we're being conformed to the image of His Son. He is what we need to become ... to imitate. Anything else is inferior and, ultimately, idolatry.
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