Expert: Pastor Don Carpenter - 4/23/2005

Question
Dear Pastor Carpenter,
I am writing to you out of a long sense of confusion, i am and have been a Baptist, I was raised with strong beliefs in my bible and our God, and i have come to many areas where i am not able to distinguish what I have been told to believe and what i have come to believe in my own studies. The first of these being the Death Penalty, this has been weighing heavily on my mind as i recently had interaction with someone on Death Row, Until that time, i believed as most Christians i meet seem to that the death penalty is approved by God, I never looked further, just followed what everyone seemed to believe. And then i started to research more.. and though recently a conservative christian told me that God does Condone the Death Penalty i can not stomach that answer.. as i believe Murder is Murder, thou shalt not kill, means just that, And that my loving God, would did not plan for someone to know the exact hour and  minute of their death, in fact sit and wait for it for months.. so i came up with the following verses.. could you PLEASE give me some advice on if my new believes are correct, and if you do not feel they are, why? thank you SOO much
Okay, so i am not put in the position of someone saying, well you are complaining about people backing their thoughts up, i am going to include what i feel back up my thoughts that as a Christian, the death penalty is wrong.
starting with the old convenants that indeed do support the death penalty.. to the new convenants.
It says in Genesis 9:6, 6Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed:  And it goes on to say in Exodus 21:23-24, 23And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life, 24Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

And it goes on further to say in Deuteronomy 19:21, 21And thine eye shall not pity; but life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Matthew 26:56, 56But all this was done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.  Let's go to Acts 3:18, 18But those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled.  It was all fulfilled.  So when Jesus said in Matthew 5:38-39, 38Ye have heard that it hath been said, AN EYE FOR AN EYE, AND A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH:  39But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

So Jesus was not about revenge which is what the old covenant was about.
Let's go to Jeremiah and see what he has to say about the new covenant.  Jeremiah 31:31-34, 31Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:  32Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord:  33But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.  34And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, for the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord:  for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

Now Paul goes on to repeat all of Jeremiah said in Hebrews 8:8-12 but Paul goes on further to say in Hebrews 8:13, 13In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old.  Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.

Paul writes in Hebrews 7:22, 22By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament.


Ephesians 4:31-32 reads, 31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:  32And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

And Jesus said in John 15:12, 12This is my commandment, That ye love one another as I have loved you.

If we read Mark 12:30-31 30AND THOU SHALT LOVE THE LORD THY GOD WITH ALL THY HEART, AND WITH ALL THY SOUL, AND WITH ALL THY MIND, AND WITH ALL THY STRENGTH:  this is the first commandment.  31And the second is like, namely this, THOU SHALT LOVE THY NEIGHBOR AS THYSELF.  There is none other commandment greater than these.
Jesus was about Love, Kindness, Forgiveness, and Compassion.  He was not hateful or revengeful for they have no existence in Christianity whatsoever.  And the definition of revenge is a desire to take vengeance.  And the definition of vengeance is with great force or fury.  And the definition of fury is violent anger and wild rage.  What do these have in common with Christ?

And these are what the death penalty are all about Revenge, Vengeance and Fury.  So a true follower of Christ cannot support the death penalty – no how, no way.  And like I said before and demonstrated in these scriptures, Christianity is about Love, Kindness and Forgiveness.
If someone feels my viewpoints are wrong, again i would love a debate on this, obviously it is something i have spent a long long time researching, as i do all my ideas, thoughts and beliefs.


Answer
Hi Lin,

Thanks for this question... or at least I think that it is a question :)   I can see that you have done a lot of study...  at the end of your question it seems as though you have already reached a conclusion, but at the beginning, you seem to be confused. So I will, if you don't mind, give you my view of what I believe the Bible teaches on this subject.

1.  Although the Old Testament and the New Testament have different perspectives, God and his righteous standards do not change.

Malachi 3:6
6 For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.

The King James Version, (Cambridge: Cambridge) 1769.

Hebrews 13:8
8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.
The King James Version, (Cambridge: Cambridge) 1769.

2.  You are confusing personal vengence with governmental justice.

In the last part of Romans 12 the Apostle Paul warns about taking personal vengance for wrongs done against you.

Romans 12:17-21
17 Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. 18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. 19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. 20 Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. 21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.

The King James Version, (Cambridge: Cambridge) 1769.

The term evil here means hurting someone intentionally.  Now let us consider that the very next verses...starting in Romans 13 now outline the Governamnt's role in regulating human behavior.

Romans 13:1-4


Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God:  the powers that be are ordained of God.  2 Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: 4 For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.
The King James Version, (Cambridge: Cambridge) 1769.

God has established the powers that be ( human government) to enforce laws.  God has given government the sword ( verse 4) to execute wrath upon those that break the law.  Now, look where we find that...it is in the New Testament!  God has not changed.  THe same Bible that teaches that God is love teaches that GOd is just and holy.

Jesus teaches in the Gospels that we are not to personally go after those who wrong us...we are to do them good...yet God has set up government to enforce laws...even laws against murder.  

I know that this is different than the conclusion that you seem to have drawn, but I trust that you can benifit from this point of view.  I hope that this helps you.

In Christ,
Pastor Don