“Heavenly Father, please stop the gunman in Big Bear. Help the lapd and sheriffs to stop the killing,” came the words from a California elementary student crouched in the fetal position. She was hidden in a closet by her teacher amid school lock-down during the recent shootout between Christopher Dorner and the San Bernardino Country Sheriff’s Department.
The perpetrator had been fired from the lapd and committed multiple slayings in an indiscriminate vendetta. The drama ended in the deaths of Dorner and two officers, and flamed embers spiraling to the sky of the winter resort cabin he had holed up in.
Momentarily gripped by the gaze of exclusive media coverage, the nation seemed temporarily paralyzed as the final chapter unfolded in this grisly affair. All roads were shut down to the Big Bear mountain resort and check points set up. Some 45 miles from the drama, the prayer of this little girl continued, “God–one of your Ten Commandments is thou shalt not kill. Please help men not to kill. Please keep me, my teacher, class and school safe.”
She went onto pray for me, my wife, her little sister and brothers, who were also in lock-down, still with fresh memories of a recent on-campus suicide of a student from the college adjoining their high school.
She prayed for her friends in the Philadelphia Church of God, the members and ministers. And finally, she prayed for the world and for God to stop humans killing humans.
Later that night, I sat on the end of her bed as she recounted the dramatic day of the school lock-down forcing her to be hidden in a closet resulting in her earnest prayer. It was a teachable moment (Deuteronomy 6:6-7).
Beginning, we recalled John 1:1-4 and the happy, harmonious unity of God and the Word. We talked about the author of waste, decay, destruction, violence and murder (Isaiah 14:12-14; Ezekiel 28:13-17). Then we reviewed man’s beginning in the Garden of Eden and Cain’s response to a murderous broadcast into his mind, acted out in slaying his bother Abel (Genesis 4:8). We discussed the development of civilization, and how Christ prophesied humans would be behaving today, six millennia onward from Eden’s garden (2 Timothy 3:1-7).
We then centered in upon the command of God she had referenced in her prayer: Thou shalt not kill (Exodus 20:13).
We recollected the reminder of unofficial ambassador for world peace Herbert W. Armstrong in his book Mystery of the Ages.
“If no one ever had any other god before the true God; if all children were reared to honor, respect and obey their parents, and all parents reared their children in God’s ways; if no one ever allowed the spirit of murder to enter his heart, if there were no wars, no killing of humans by humans; if all marriages were kept happy and there were no transgressions of chastity before or after marriage; if all had so much concern for the good and welfare of others that no one would steal–and we could throw away all locks, keys and safes; if everyone told the truth–everyone’s word were good–everyone were honest; if no one ever coveted what was not rightfully his, but had so much outgoing concern for the welfare of others that he really believed it is more blessed to give than to receive–what a happy world we would have!”
The instruction we covered flowed from the very Word of God and centered on one chapter of a book you sorely need on your bookshelf, PC or tablet with special attention to obey and apply its message: The Ten Commandments.
“But to truly put this commandment into action, we must go beyond simply avoiding hatred or committing violence against any human being,” this booklet says. “Much more is required. On the positive side, we must actively love every human being. This is the hardest part of the Sixth Commandment to implement. It requires a massive change in human thinking.”
Afterward, we knelt down together, with arms around each other, and prayed to the Father in heaven. We thanked Him for His outgoing law of love encapsulated in those 10 immutable commands for the betterment of mankind, and for His promised protection for those who love, live and abide by His law.
We were reminded of His merciful promise of the resurrection for the murderer, his victims and all who have ever lived that they might choose the safe, secure and protected, lawful path and live from the tree of life (Revelation 20:10-13; 22:14).
With more urgency we asked God to speed the prophesied sending of His Son—who was mercilessly murdered to pay the blood sacrifice of mankind’s sins—to put down all resistance, rebellion, hate, malice, violence, murder, to remove its author, and—through the establishment of His lawful government upon all mankind—to usher in His wonderful World Tomorrow (John 3:16; Romans 5:8-9; Revelation 11:15; 21:4).
Take the time if you have not and request our free booklet, The Ten Commandments for greater insight into the loving all powerful law of God. Apply it in your life, and experience the joyful happiness as you declare, “O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day” (Psalm 119:97).