God & Capital Punishment: A Scriptural Perspective of Capital Punishment

By Billy Neal Moore

Billy "Neal Moore was on Georgia's death-row for sixteen 1⁄2 years; He gave his life to the Lord Jesus Christ on September 6th, 1974, in the county Jail. God spared his life as he came within 7 hours of execution, for the crimes of murder and armed robbery of which he pleads guilty. The Lord Jesus said, you shall not die, but li

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trilogy Christian Publishing
• Release date: Jun 3, 2022
• ISBN: 9781685562793

Billy Neal Moore

Billy met and married Donna Jacks-Moore in 1993; she was the pastor of Christ Assemble Evangelistic Church, in Saginaw Michigan. We raised three daughters, three granddaughters and two grandson and two great grandsons, one great granddaughters. Now they live in Rome, Georgia, where they started Christ Assemble Evangelistic Ministries, Inc. Billy is the author of the book, "I Shall Not Die, But Live "detailing the gripping account of coming within 7 hours of execution. God has taken Billy from death row to speaking to various groups: Harvard law, Yale Law, the 700 club, Saint Mary's in Rome Italy, Cambridge in England, University Spain and many others.

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GOD AND CAPITAL PUNISHMENT

A CHRISTIAN’S PERSPECTIVE OF

CAPITAL PUNISHMENT

BY WILLIAM MOORE

God and Capital Punishment

Trilogy Christian Publishers A Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Trinity Broadcasting Network

2442 Michelle Drive Tustin, CA 92780

Copyright © 2022 by William Moore

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible. Public domain.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without written permission from the author. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA.

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Cover design by: Natalee Dunning

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Trilogy Disclaimer: The views and content expressed in this book are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect the views and doctrine of Trilogy Christian Publishing or the Trinity Broadcasting Network.

Manufactured in the United States of America

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.

ISBN: 978-1-68556-278-6

E-ISBN: 978-1-68556-279-3

Section One: Grace

Chapter One: Grace Before the Law

The Time:

The Dispensation of Innocence

Please allow me to introduce myself, and give you some background information, then you will understand why I am compelled to write on this subject. I am Billy Neal Moore, a former death-row inmate who accepted the Lord Jesus Christ into my life on Saturday, September 6, 1974, seven days before my first execution date of Friday the 13, 1974.

God stopped the death machine from killing me with only seven hours left before the time of electrocution on May 24, 1984.

I was on death row for sixteen and a half years for the crimes of murder and armed robbery, of which I committed and pleaded guilty to, but by the grace of God and my Savior Jesus Christ, I am alive today and appeal to Christians everywhere, in every domination, by the love of God and the compassion of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, please be not deceived by the wiles of the devil, nor by the pressures of our society and falling headlong into the evil deeds of states and federal government into committing murder. Claiming that this is the will of God for America and the human race today; believing that we are executing murderers in the authority and name of God according to His will.

I believe that executing human beings is a very important issue in the Bible, and I would say that it is of paramount importance that we, as Christians, understand just how God in the Bible has dealt with the human race concerning capital punishment. So let us start where it all began, with Adam and Eve.

At the beginning of humanity, as we know it until this very day, we shall see what God had done in the past and what He is doing right now! There are natural periods in the Bible where we can see the simple changes and understand how God allowed humans to govern themselves. Understanding these periods in history will grant us the ability to see how God has manifested His grace and mercy throughout each period. Understanding biblical history is our key that will be aiding us in unlocking the truth in the Scriptures as God’s grace and mercy flow to enlighten us and bring us into the will of God for the human race today, and how our position today should be in line with His revealed will in Bible.

Following the natural flow of the Bible, we shall see how these periods fall into sections throughout history. Before we begin this walk through the Scriptures, our first stop should be to look at who God was talking to in the Old Testament and why.

Moses called all Israel, and said unto them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your ears this day, that ye may learn them, and keep, and do them. The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. The Lord made not this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, who are all of us here alive this day.

Deuteronomy 5:1–3

Looking at the scripture above, we must acknowledge that the Law in the Old Testament really does not apply to America or any other country or race of people. We were not at Horeb, nor are we a part of the nation of Israel. Therefore, the issue of Old Testament laws should not be used as a cover for our killing and saying this is what God told us to do. However, for the sake of those who say that we are spiritual Israel, being grafted into the oneness of Israel by God through Jesus Christ. We must understand that God has said that there is only one Law given by Him. God has clearly said that His Law is not to be added to or any part to be taken away! It is like a chain that is linked together (all of the commandments are the links in God’s chain), and each link makes the chain complete and whole. The Law of God is one Law, period. If we break even the smallest link in the chain by taking the part of the Law that we want or like and forgetting the other commandments in the chain, then the chain, which is God’s Word revealed to the Israelites, is broken.

Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you (Deuteronomy 4:2).

What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it (Deuteronomy 12:32).

The Bible naturally divides history into seven periods; it is in these periods we will see just how God has and is presently dealing with humanity. In order to understand the mercy and grace of God, that unmerited favor, we shall see it being manifested consistently throughout history and in each period. How grace and mercy flowed before there was a Law; how it flows during the Law; and how it has become the complete manifestation of God in the person, Jesus Christ. The number seven is complete in God’s history, and it is only fitting that God has seven periods of time in which He is dealing with humans.

1) The dispensation period of innocence.

2) The dispensation period of conscience.

3) The dispensation period of human government.

4) The dispensation period of promise.

5) The dispensation period of Law.

6) The dispensation period of church.

7) The dispensation period of kingdom.

We shall cover each of these dispensational periods in this presentation of God’s view concerning capital punishment. Beginning with the period of innocence, Adam and Eve were created by God, without sin in their lives, and placed into the Garden of Eden. This period of innocence was to allow them to exercise their free will and choose from the trees in the Garden of Eden. If they would obey God and choose the tree of life and live forever in the presence of God, or be disobedient and take from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; thus, causing the downfall of the human race. They live in the most favorable and perfect conditions humanly possible. Nevertheless, they disobeyed God and sinned against His commandment of not eating from the tree of good and evil.

Adam and Eve

As we began our search in the Scripture for God’s words that express His views concerning capital punishment. It all started here, and why? Because it is necessary for us to lay the foundation of sin. Sin always brings forth death, and it is the root cause of every murder. In the second chapter of Genesis, God warned Adam of the consequences of his disobedience if he ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil:

And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Genesis 2:16–17

The character of God’s word is truth; therefore, we know it is impossible for Him to lie. Thus, we see the death of Adam and Eve. It was the spiritual death of Adam and Eve; the spiritual relationship that they had with God—to walk together in the garden and talk face to face with God—was destroyed the instant they disobeyed. Had God not shown them His mercy and grace, they could have also instantly suffered physical death. Nevertheless, God’s desire in creating and showing the human family, which was made in His image and likeness, and one with whom He could have total fellowship, free from sin, and mankind would have reached a true oneness with God in all things. Satan would have achieved his goal of corrupting humanity forever if he could have gotten Adam to eat from the tree of life after he had sin; humans would have been in the eternal image of Satan and after his likeness, which was a fallen creature and full of rebellion against God. However, God’s grace in His plan of salvation for the entire world was now revealed to Adam and Eve, and Satan’s downfall and destruction were foretold.

And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel (Genesis 3:15).

God’s grace was so strong that even in the face of Adam and Eve’s sin of disobedience; God would not allow them to eat from the tree of life and live forever in a spiritually dead condition and being separated from Him eternally; instead, they were driven out of the garden, and away from the tree of life; but with the promise of redemption.

We realize, of course, that Adam and Eve made the wrong choice in taking from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. For humanity to know the knowledge of good and evil apart from God revealing to us what is evil and good. This was the wrong choice from the very start. What we do not realize here is the choice itself was wrong, and anything that proceeds from that choice is wrong and can only produce negative results. If God does not guide us, lead and teach us how to live, then our own way inevitably stems from the wrong choice; the wrong tree and the wrong source. God will not accept our choice of what we perceive as being good; because good is one of the fruits from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Therefore, any good that comes from the tree of knowledge of good and evil must be rejected, and although it has the appearance of being good, it is evil; the choice itself was wrong and can never be right and pleasing to God.

The period of innocence lasted only during the time when Adam and Eve were placed in the Garden of Eden and before their disobedience to God’s commandment. Their disobedience produced in them a sinful nature and sinful conscience, and they were forced out of the Garden of Eden and away from the tree of life.

No more were they in the image of God, being sinless and holy; now they became responsible for every choice that they made. Adam willingly chose Eve over being obedient to God; the Bible said that Adam was not deceived like Eve was by Satan, but that he willingly disobeyed. Adam saw the spiritual death of Eve immediately; she was naked before his eyes, and he chose the only other person in the world that was made just for him and in his likeness and image: bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh. Change in front of his eyes. The glory of God had left her, and she was spiritually dead and naked. Adam chose his wife, Eve, rather than choosing to obey God. This was the result of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Good in that Adam chose to give his own life to be with his wife Eve. Just as Jesus Christ willingly gave His life for us, to identify with us in death; evil in that this was a sin against God by Adam’s willful rejection and disobedience toward God’s direct command to him, not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Moreover, their physical bodies were uncovered and exposed because of sin, and then, they realized their shame because of their nakedness; the Holy Spirit of God’s covering now separated because of sin. Spiritual fellowship died as well as the period of innocence ended because of sin.

The period of conscience granted moral responsibility to the fallen race. God would now prove to humanity and let them see that they could not obey their own conscience about the choice between good and evil. There were not any written laws at that time; only either within the conscience of man, there was a God conscience voice, convicting or excusing them of the choices made by humans, which should have led them in the right moral direction.

Since humanity now understood good and evil in its conscience, this conscience was to guide them in choosing the right and refusing wrong. God used this method to show fallen humanity that only by obedience to Him and His will could we be restored to our original dominion and rid ourselves of the curse of sin.

God wanted humanity to see for itself that, in our fallen state, we could not choose well because we are powerless to cope with the spiritual forces of the fallen angels and demons with whom we have entered a voluntary union through sin.

God wanted us to recognize our helplessness, in our own power, so that we would turn to Him for help, against Satan, sin, and sickness in our struggles to overcome the curse and to understand that God is our only faithful friend and helper through whom alone there is a way out of sin.

Cain

Cain was a murderer. He was jealous and resentful of his brother because God had accepted Abel’s sacrifice and rejected his own sacrificial offering. Abel offered a blood sacrifice from his flock; the blood being a cover for sin (when Adam and Eve sinned and became naked, God Himself killed an animal, and the lifeblood of that animal was their covering for sin, and the skin of the animal covered their naked shameful bodies, and from that time, the only way that humans could approach God,