CHRISTIAN ETHICS
MATTHEW 6:28–34
But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well
(Matthew 6:33).
Ethics is the study of right and wrong. Not so long ago it was commonplace in Christian circles to teach Christian behavior, or ethics, in isolation. We were taught as children to “be good,” and then we would be “good Christians.” Some things were right and other things wrong because that’s just how things were. But times have changed. After the ’60s revolution all such moralistic standards of right and wrong have been called into question.
Why are some things right and others wrong? The Christian answer is that God says so. He says so because some things conform to His moral character and other things don’t. As far as teaching Christian ethics to ourselves and our children, it is fundamental to understand that the goal of life is to glorify God and enjoy Him. Until we know God and study His Word, then our own existence remains meaningless. But when we see God for who He is, then we see our own value as His beloved creatures. True ethics is the fruit of such knowledge.
Fyodor Dostoyevski, the great Russian Christian novelist of the last century, said, “If there is no God, all things are permissible.” A century before, the German philosopher Immanuel Kant wrote that even though we cannot know anything for certain about God, we must live as if there is a God. Otherwise there can be no standards of morality, and crime will run rampant. Kant’s “pretend morality” has long ago fallen apart, and now Dostoyevski’s prediction has come true.
We sometimes hear that you cannot legislate morality. If all that means is that we cannot force people to be good by passing laws, it is certainly true. But if it means laws cannot be moral, it is nonsense. Every law system is based on some system of morality. This is an inescapable fact. The only question is, Whose morals will underlie the law? Will the law be grounded on God’s ethics and morality, or will it be grounded on the whims of sinful people?
In today’s climate of moral relativism, people believe it is right to follow their own inclinations. As a result, a herd morality prevails. Too often Christians simply follow the secular crowd. What we need is a return to divinely revealed ethics.
CORAM DEO
Matthew 11–13
WEEKEND
Matthew 14–20
A return to biblical ethics means studying the Bible. It means taking seriously all of the Bible. It means meditating seriously on what God commanded ancient Israel to do in the way of civil law, and prayerfully seeking to discover what principles may still apply. Are you committed to such a mind-changing course of study?
For further study: Micah 6:6–8 • Rom. 12:1–8 • Heb. 13:20–21
WEEKEND