Murder: a Sin of the Heart

“Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.” (I John 3:15)

What is murder? Jesus said in the sermon on the mount, “Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, 'Thou shalt not kill;' and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment…” (Matthew 5:21-22) It is a sin of the heart according to Jesus in Matthew 15:19

Our text is not saying a murderer cannot be forgiven of the sin of murder. Jesus said, “All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit shall not be forgiven unto men.” (Matthew 12:31) The only one sin that cannot be forgiven is speaking a word against the Holy Spirit. Murder is a terrible sin but it is not the unpardonable sin.

It is possible for a man on death row in prison for murder to be forgiven if he will come before the Lord in repentance and faith in Jesus Christ to forgive. That does not contradict the fact that when someone commits murder he does not have eternal life abiding in him, nor will he have eternal life until or unless he comes before God with a broken and contrite heart, just like any other sinner with any other sin.

If someone is on death row for murder and gets saved in prison he still has a debt to pay to society that must be paid. Salvation is not a free pass out of jail.