Thou Shalt Not Kill! Huh??

Fellow Servant-Warriors (aka officers, military, sheepdogs, and others of that ilk) and Supporters:

We had outstanding attendance both at last Thursday’s “cop church” Centurion Ministry/FCPO chapter meeting AND at our First Annual Fall Potluck on Saturday. Interestingly, the presence of an excess of great food seems to be key to a big turnout…hmm. Seriously, a great time was had by all and we were blessed to have so many of our “locals” in our home.

We’re meeting as usual this week where we’ll take a fresh look at the oft-misunderstood 6th Commandment – “Thou shalt not kill” (KJV) – particularly as it relates to those of us serving in the armed services (military, law enforcement, etc.). What is the correct translation and understanding of the Hebrew word "kill" as used in this context and how does it relate to our calls as peace officers? Does it even apply to lawful deadly force scenarios? Join us this Thursday, October 28th, and I’ll provide God’s answers…some may very well be surprised. I’ll again provide an in-depth recap in next week’s newsletter and on our website for all those who can’t attend and/or are outside the Denver Metro area – stay tuned!


* MESSAGE RECAP of last week’s profession-relevant Bible study:

Speaking of RECAPs, last week’s study on “A Cop’s Pride” was one that hit home for a great many of us -- myself included. My message could have just been easily entitled “Pride vs. Humility” or most certainly “Pride and Leadership,” and closes this series (part 3) on the subject. Those of you who have been keeping up will remember parts 1 and 2 as recapped in my September 1st and 7th newsletters/posts (click on http://www.thecenturionlawenforcementministry.org/2010/09/samson-cops-story.html and http://www.thecenturionlawenforcementministry.org/2010/09/lets-roll-christian-cops-september-11th.html).

To review, the Book of Proverbs has much to say on the subject of the negative kind of PRIDE. In particular, read Proverbs 6:17; 8:13; 11:2; 13:10; and 16:18. Other significant passages include but are by no means limited to Daniel 4:30-34 and the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector as revealed by our Lord in Luke 18:9-14 --
To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else (as cops are sometimes accused of doing, for example), Jesus told this parable: "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about[a] himself: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.' "But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.' 1"I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

We also see that pride was Lucifer’s (Satan) downfall as detailed in Isaiah 14:12-14. By contrast, we have the issue of HUMILITY as detailed in 1 Kings 8:58; Psalm 25; Luke 22:27; Col. 1:18; Phil. 2:8; James 4:6; 1 Peter 5:2-5 and elsewhere. Clearly, being humble before the Lord minimizes arrogance and keeps a leash on pride.

Moreover, matters of pride and humility are most definitely LEADERSHIP issues (especially in our profession) – see (again) 1 Peter 5:2-5 and Philippians 2:5-11. Jesus said in Luke 12:48, To whom much is given, from him much will be required. In fact, the consequences for those of us in leadership (ALL LEOs) who fail in this regard are often much harsher because of our God-given call, authority and influence. A very powerful and famous pagan king, after learning this important lesson himself, said, Now, I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble. Daniel 4:37

Make no mistake – the negative kind of pride is SIN! Why? As with Samson, Saul and many others, pride exalts self rather than giving credit to God for the accomplishments and victories He manifests in our lives. Pride is taking the glory that belongs to God alone and keeping it for ourselves -- essentially a form of self-worship. Does that not describe a great many of us serving in law enforcement – including (or perhaps especially) those with given positions of supervisory leadership?

Jesus himself provides the ultimate example of true humility and true servant-leadership when he “took a towel” and washed his disciples’ feet as detailed in John 13:5-17. This is certainly to be central to our call as LEOs and as Christians in general.

The Book of Jeremiah (9:23-24) provides a fitting conclusion to this study: This is what the LORD says: 'Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight.

* More on SAMSON:
As previously announced, I am strongly encouraging our locals and visitors to check out the Tuesday night service (“Tuesday Night Dialogue”) at Calvary South Denver where Pastor Sam Park is teaching an in-depth study on Samson that will resonate strongly with LEOs. In fact, the title of this Tuesday’s (10/26) message is, “Sabotaging God’s Call on Your Life.” Diana and I are serving with Sam most every Tuesday – please join us (quite a few of our “regulars” already attend – even those with a different home church). Those outside of our area can listen to Sam’s recorded (MP3) messages by going to http://www.calvarycsd.org/bible-studies/, click on “Tuesday Night Dialogue,” then scroll down to Download TND Messages Here. Click on “TND Messages” and then select “Judges.” A list of messages will come up – the Samson studies begin with #’s 27 and 28 (and so on) at the bottom.


* More on LEADERSHIP:

Please take a moment to peruse the following secular albeit profound article and – if you dare – pass it on to your colleagues and supervisors (you can always post it on a bulletin board). This should be REQUIRED reading for every law enforcement supervisor and chief: http://www.policeone.com/chiefs-sheriffs/articles/2832337-Want-to-be-a-Leader-Do-a-gut-check-first/.


* TRAINING Articles (short reads but good stuff):

(1) http://www.policeone.com/investigations/articles/2799817-5-myths-about-patrol-officers-and-detectives/.

(2) http://www.policeone.com/chiefs-sheriffs/articles/2800611-7-habits-of-unsuccessful-departments (another “required reading” article).


* The updated PRAYER REQUESTS and our local MEETING SCHEDULE have been posted in the following post here on the website – check ‘em out (pray) – and check back frequently.


* VOTE!!!

Just a friendly yet urgent reminder about the upcoming election. Christians of course need to be voting via a solidly biblical worldview whenever possible. Please take the time to understand the issues and the character of those seeking office – and then vote (while you are still able to).


Finally, this week’s study recap begs me to encourage everyone to learn a powerful lesson from another outstanding servant-leader – Lt. Col. Dave Grossman. In his book On Combat, Dave writes, “Understand that there is nothing morally superior about being a sheepdog; it is just what you choose to be.” (I would assert, “...CALLED by God to be.”)…After the attacks on September 11, 2001, most of the sheep, that is, most citizens in America said, “Thank God I wasn’t on one of those planes.” The sheepdogs, the warriors, said, “Dear God, I wish I could have been on one of those planes. Maybe I could have made a difference.” When you are truly transformed into a warrior and have truly invested yourself into warriorhood, you want to be there. You want to be able to make a difference...”

Click on http://www.killology.com/sheep_dog.htm to read “the rest of the story” or better yet, order the book from Dave’s website and/or purchase books from Dave directly by attending one of his training seminars – the website includes his teaching schedule.

Stay the course and finish strong as we answer God’s call on our lives to lead (serve) and protect.