A Good Question

Exodus 20:13; I Samuel 13:13-14

Students ask teachers A LOT of questions. Some questions are intelligent questions... others, not so much. Wednesday, I got asked a really good question. It is a question that many veterans have for personal reasons. It is also a question that many people have due to general curiosity. This question is this, "Can a person that killed someone in war still go to Heaven?" As a teacher, since a student asked the question, I am allowed to answer. We did not take up class time with it. I allowed any student who wished to leave and go to break. Six students gave up their break to hear the answer. I will share the answer I gave and more today. Before we begin though, there are 2 verses we should consider.

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“Thou shalt not kill.“

Exodus 20:13

“And Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the LORD your God, which He commanded you. For now the LORD would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your kingdom shall not continue. The LORD has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the LORD has commanded him to be commander over His people, because you have not kept what the LORD commanded you.”

I Samuel 13:13-14

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Many people, even non-church goers know Exodus 20:13 "Thou shalt not kill". From that single verse, all kinds of false ideas arise. Because I have so much to say, I will avoid chasing those rabbits. The word translated "kill" comes from the Hebrew word "rasah" which sounds like "rot sack". That word means "murder". Some versions of the Bible translate it as such. God said that people should not murder. That being said, Solomon said, "To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven...A time to kill, And a time to heal;” (Ecclesiastes 3:1,3). As a matter of fact, it would not be very long from the time the 10 commandments were written that God would attempt to send the children of Israel into the promised land to claim it by war. They doubted God, which led to them wandering in the wilderness for 40 years.

In the second passage, God speaks through Samuel to tell him that his family's reign over Israel would begin and end with him because of his rebellion. Instead of the family of Saul, God would pick a man "after His own heart". This man would be David, but I want you to think about some of the things that David did.

• David killed Goliath and then, along with the Israelite army, chased after the Philistine army and killed many of them (I Samuel 17).

• David mutilated, and possibly killed, 200 Philistines for the privilege of marrying Saul's daughter (I Samuel 18).

• David killed entire villages while living among the Philistines (I Samuel 27).

• David had the young Amalekite killed after he claimed to have killed King Saul (II Samuel 1).

• David committed adultery with Bathsheba and then had her husband killed in battle (II Samuel 11-12).

There is more that could be said, but I think we get the picture. David was responsible for the deaths of many people, either by his own actions, or by the orders He gave. Due to war, many of these deaths were justified. However, Uriah's was not. So this begs the question, how in the world could David be a man "after God's own heart"?

The answer is really quite simple. David's heart was sensitive to holiness and righteousness. He was still human and committed sins, but when he did (or at least when he was confronted about the sins) he repented and asked God for forgiveness. His relationship with God mattered to him. David wanted to do right. When he failed, he wanted to make it right. He would ask God to cleanse him from his sins (Psalm 32, 51).

For the person who takes a life without it being justified, there is forgiveness. If the person does not know Jesus as their Savior, they need to believe and call upon the name of the Lord (Ephesians 2:8,9; Romans 10:13). Should a Christian take a life and the action is not justified, the sin itself is already forgiven. However, they have violated the holiness and righteousness of God. Their relationship with God suffers. They too need to seek forgiveness, not for salvation, but to restore the relationship that they have strained with God by their sins. God called David a man after His own heart long before any of the events mentioned above took place. God, being omniscient, knew that ALL of this would take place. He also knew the heart that David had, and that he would seek forgiveness for his sins. Our value in God's eyes is not determined by how many (or few) sins we commit, but rather by our willingness to throw ourselves at His feet for forgiveness. Our willingness believes that Jesus paid the price for our sins (John 3:16), and that "He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (I John 1:9).

Jesus said, "Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men" (Matthew 12:31). In other words, if we reject the calling of God's Holy Spirit to forgiveness for our sins, then there is no forgiveness. Since we reject that which is offered, it is not ours. If you offer me a gift, and I refuse it, I do not have the gift. It is really that simple. So, to answer the question, "Can a person that killed someone in war still go to Heaven?" Yes! Absolutely!

If you have further questions, please reach out to me. David is just one example. I could talk to you about Abraham, Peter, Paul, and others. If you have questions about Salvation, do not let fear push you away from asking questions. Again, reach out to me. I would love to have that conversation with you!

Father, You did not create people to kill. Our sin, and our rebellion against you brought that evil upon us. It only took one generation after Adam's choice to sin, before murder entered the earth. It has plagued our societies ever since. Not only do we deal with murder, but wars also. The killing of others in war haunts the minds of so many in our world. I pray that they would seek the peace that can only be found in You.