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That said, is the worry of sinning (and earthly punishment) the only thing that prevents you from killing to your benefit?
You know, I'm not sure, really. I can say for certainty that there are lesser sins that I've not committed only because of my faith. Like you, I have a strong adversity to killing. Even killing bugs makes me uncomfortable.

I think, though, that if I had no faith and were faced with such a situation, not committing the murder would be an irrational act, even if I might not do it on the basis of instinct. At that point I'd have to evaluate why I adhere to my instincts so greatly without a rational reason to do so. Without faith, the only rational acts are those that make my life better and bring me happiness. Acts that put others ahead of myself are not rational- while they might bring greater happiness into the world, what is my motivation for doing that except for the instinctive rewards that make me feel good when I make others happy?

I think that were I not a person of faith then I would likely start with some of my smaller instincts that don't directly benefit me and try to overcome them. If you assume that evolution is responsible for a lot of our instincts (rather than being put there by God), then it makes little personal sense to adhere to them and put the greater good ahead of yourself.

And before you write this off as crazy, I think a lot of people do exactly what I’m suggesting. They won’t jump right to murder, but they’ll start eroding their instincts (God or evolution given) to the point they don’t feel badly anymore even when they act badly. Given enough time it seems we are capable of just about anything. For me, faith is what keeps me from even trying to overcome even the smallest instinctive moral reactions. I pray and work very hard at being the person God created me to be, because it is right and good and I want to be that person.
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-Jeff
Rome did not create a great empire by having meetings; they did it by killing all those who opposed them.