It should be noted that a heterosexual marriage does not guarantee a relationship that transcends the physical and brings the couple closer to the divine. Jewish thought makes it clear, however, that any other type of sexual relationship must by necessity lack the ability to approach godliness.
The second Noahide Law is the most obvious -- it prohibits murder. The source of this law is founded in Genesis 9:6: "Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed." Not only does this verse ban murder, it clearly gives mankind the responsibility of punishing murder. The death penalty is the prescribed method of punishment. The Noahide Law against murder carries over to the unborn. Unless the mother's life is in danger, it is considered murder to abort the baby. Euthanasia is also banned; man is given the opportunity to communicate with God from an earthly level for only a short period of time, and this period must never be shortened. This law classifies suicide as murder for similar reasons.
Property ownership is the subject of the third law, which prohibits stealing. The source for this restriction is God's command to Adam and Eve: " ... of the tree of knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die"(Genesis 2:17). When Adam and Eve eat from the tree of knowledge, they consume property that is not theirs. This is the essence of theft.
The laws prohibit stealing in every sense. Cheating in business falls under this prohibition, as does kidnapping. Rape, too, falls under this prohibition -- no theft could be more serious than the theft of a woman's intimacy.
These are the first three Noahide Laws: no sexual immorality, no murder and no stealing. In next week's column, the final four Noahide Laws will be explained. Even after studying the first three, however, it is clear that American Christianity brings non-Jews closer to their godly mission.