Thursday, January 22, 2009

# 269: Morals

The New Testament (NT) is a book which dictates the distinction between right and wrong, and between good and bad conduct. Humans have created codes of ethics that are mainly for the welfare of the general population. But since humans are flawed, many times, those moral codes are also flawed.

Depending on the country where underprivileged people are born, many, especially in third-world countries, the situation is completely unfair that they should live in poverty, pain, hunger, sickness, despair and all kinds of abuse. Children, unfortunately, are often the target of such abuse. I, personally, have an a great empathy for all children who are mistreated. No one deserves that type of treatment. In fact, the pain of that empathy is so strong that at times I can hardly stand it. What type of moral standards do these miserable people live under? I often asked the Holy Spirit, why did a God of love make such a cruel and unfair world? I have not received an answer as of yet; hopefully I will get an answer and relay it on this blog.

When people are born with a gold spoon in their mouths, they expects to be treated with respect. That also is true for those who have climbed to the top of the ladder of success, along with the rest of the wealthy. Then, there are those who are born with a great brain, or excellent memory; they without saying a word, look down on those who are not as fortunate, and silently treat them accordingly.

Then, there are those who live in poverty, possibly through no fault of their own--I was born in that type of situation--and even those who are lazy or those who have made the wrong choices in life. These people are just as human as everyone else, but most often are treated unfairly.

We all know that to many, human birth is an unfair event. One person is born beautiful, another is born ugly; one person is tall in stature, another is very short; one person is born with a healthy body, while another has to live with some form of deformity. This list of the unfair nesses in life is almost endless.

Do the less fortunate deserve to be treated with the same respect as those who have been born with everything going-their-way? The answer is a resounding yes. Nevertheless, there is something about our human nature that doesn’t allow the majority of us to act that way.

The moral standards humans makeup and live by, most often, are not in accordance with the standards that are taught in the NT. One of the most, if not the most, obvious of all moral standards that is contrary to NT teachings is how the general public in America has readily acknowledged, mostly by their silence, sexual immorality as acceptable. For example, young girls become pregnant without being married. In Bible days, they would have been stoned to death. On that same line, now it is normal for school and college-age boys and girls to think it is the ‘in thing’ to have sexual intercourse with as many boys and girls as possible. The thing that bothers me is that not many parents and/or organizations, (and I mean those who have clout) and not many churches are verbally saying or doing nothing to ban and condemn that type of conduct.

According to God’s standards, this type of action signifies that something is dramatically wrong in America. What is it? I am certain there are many factors that bought it on. I would say much of it stems from the proverbial adage ‘We become like those we gaze at’.

Television was introduced in America in the 1940s; that was the first time we could watch and be entertained in the privacy of our homes. That was when we got in the habit of wanting to be entertained just about everyday instead of once a week or so at the movie theater. This constant watching the boob tube started to affect us, without us knowing it, much more than we ever expected.

In those early days, most programming on TV was fairly decent. But in the last 10 or 20 years, it got downright nasty, especially with the onset of the gay rights movement. From thereon in, TV networks gave the viewing public just what they always wanted. If they want trash, that is what they get. TV always was and still is, now even more so, a money making business and not much more. Truth be told: the reason people who desire to watch and engage in obscene trash is because that is what they are morally made up of. That is a harsh but Godly judgment.

Then came the home videos, and finally DVDs. Frankly, much of our present immorality stems from this visual stimulation. And yes, silently and insidiously our new immoral code came into existence. Again, monkey see = monkey do.

Where was the Christian community as all this was happening? Mostly by their silence and their participation they did nothing to stem what was going on. What happened to the Biblical morals that are clearly displayed in the NT for ever Christian to read and adhere to? They were swept under the rug. You see, it is unpopular and difficult for so-called Christians to go against the flow.

What follows is exclusively for everyone who believes they are Christians. Don’t forget this: if anyone doesn’t pass this upcoming Biblical test, and I say this in the name of Jesus Christ, don’t you dare call yourselves Christians. Remember, heathens will be better off on judgment day than hypocrites (superficial Christians) who claim to be genuine Christians. An explanation will be presented in an upcoming section.

Here is the reason why: all who claim Christ as their Lord and Savior and live worldly lives--worldliness is damning in God’s sight--make it difficult if not impossible for others who desire to be real Christians, because the conduct of the hypocrites coincides with how atheists live. Who are they (new comers to Christianity) to emulate? To put it clearly: atheists, etc. are not stopping most from accepting Christ as their Savior. But hypocrites are hindering many would-be Christians from knowing what real Christianity is. Therefore these fakes are doing great harm to the cause of Christ, while atheists do not negatively affect Christ’s work to any great degree.

Here is the answer to an unanswered question: are hypocrites aware that they are hypocrites? I am certain most are not. The truthful answer is that when people calls themselves Christians but knowingly don’t obey what is commanded in the NT, he/she is a hypocrite. Hopefully this post will be a wake-up call.

I have mentioned dozens and dozens of times in this blog how everyone can know for certain that they are genuine Christians. I will repeat myself. Even though most orthodox churches claim that they are Bible believing institutions, that is a flat lie. They do preach much of what the New Testament teaches, but there are hundreds of verses/commands they never touch. The reason they are selective as to what they preach is that if they weren’t, their membership would slide to zilch. In this case, the saying is true ‘Half truth is worse than no truth at all.’

They are the commands that are not pleasant to hear or to abide by. Christ did His part by saving us; our part is to continually do good works. Ephesians 2:10. "For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." In other words, we are to obey all of what is taught in the NT. The good works, deeds and fruit--which are one and the same--don’t save us, but are the ONLY solid, divine evidence that we believe in Christ, and love God and our fellow human beings as He requires. That is it.

Here is the truth: when we make Jesus Christ our savior through faith, we also have to accept Him as our Lord (boss/owner) as I mention quite often. What I am saying is that we sign a moral agreement, as it were, on tablets of our hearts, to go by the rules set out that make this religion unique among all other religions. Once that agreement is broken/not adhered to, the complete contract is null and void. That means it is extremely imperative to understand that studying and accepting the eternal agreement that gives life at its best is not an option; it is mandatory. Just a reminder: the NT is the only authority as to what Christianity was meant to be. All else is man’s conniving, feel-good interruption.

Most certainly, if anyone was to honestly realize their error, and repent of their nonconformity to the contract, which is the NT, forgiveness will always be waiting. But at the same time, God knows if someone is sincere about their repentance or if they are just making holy noise. We all know that God through Jesus Christ is merciful, compassionate, etc. to sinners, and that is wonderful. But at the same time He is no fool. God knows what is in everyone’s heart. We may fool ourselves, but we can’t fool God.

This is Godly advice that will put anyone on the straight and narrow and, if they are not there already. Get your Bible (buy a modern translation if you don’t have one), and read or listen to large portions with CDs of the NT every day. Whenever commands, teachings or rules come along, highlight them in a certain color; those you did not know about, make them another color; those that you obeyed, make them still another color; those that seem impossible to adhere to, make a different color and so on. Many will be surprised at how many hundreds of such commands come up that we never heard mentioned from the pulpit, or we never knew existed.

Reading and listening to large portions of the NT every day will make us constantly aware of what is expected of us in order to please God. Along with that, we will be more conscious of Godly matters as we go about our normal daily affairs. Remember, we need all the help we can get with so many ungodly activities going on in the world at the present.

Although some commands may please us and many others seem revolting, when they are all put together as a unit, the result will be a life that is unbeatable by the standards of this world; actually it will be the impetus of Jesus Christ coming back to earth to continue the work He started 2000 years ago through our frail bodies. That is what genuine Christianity is meant to be.

This will not be an easy or pleasant task. Did you know that no where in the NT does it teach that being a disciple of Jesus Christ/Christian would be easy? To the contrary, it is guaranteed that to live as the NT dictated will be the most disciplined and challenging task which requires the changing of one’s life. Change never comes easy. No one wants to hear this kind of talk. They call it negative. That is a lie. It is the truth. The truth may sound negative to those who don’t believe.

Just remember, before anyone decides to be a partaker in Christ’s moral agreement, read that contract, the NT carefully; there’s no fine print; it is all in large print. Whatever you do, don’t believe what anyone says is in there, even if a loved-one or a knowledgeable person like a clergyman/woman is trying to convince you otherwise. They may mean well, but at the same time it could be your doorway to hell.

I don’t believe anyone can give you better advice than what is being given in this post. And if you decide this advice is too demanding or not necessary, for the sake of others, do one thing: don’t call yourself a Christian. You may be better off at the end by being honest with yourself, and thus not having the blood of others on your hands. Luke 12:47-48. "The servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows." This verse seems to indicate that there may be various degrees of eternal punishment. Since hypocrites do more damage for the cause of Christ than anyone else, they may get the most severe punishment.

In ending, Godly morals are the kind that will make all things well. Make certain your morals do not follow what this world teaches. For certain, they will lead many to a very bad place.

Although this post is not difficult to understand, it might be wise to occasionally come back to read it again and again. It is that crucial to everyone’s salvation.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

The one thing you forget though is the point to the entire Bible. The question has always been about Sovereinty. Whose right to rule. When Satan asked, Is it really so God said...(Gen. 3:1-4), He was in effect asking if Jehovah was worthy of their obedience, and loyalty. They chose to rule themselves through disobedience. After that there was only one people who served God acceptably (half the time.) The Isrealites, and they were His chosen ppl as long as they observed his commands (Lev.26:3,4). Likewise today there is a true that observs ALL God's commands, and only one. Like the faithful Isrealites of Old, they keep clean from such pagan celebrations as christmas, holloween, and easter. Holidays that most "christains" condone and participate in. There is only one religion that practices what is commanded in 2Thesolonians 3:6. You are exactly right about salvation not being unconditional just based on what Matt. 7:21-23 says. But True Religion is about Theocracy. God is ruler, and they prove such through their action. Any church that tiths isn't following christs admonition in Matt. 10:7-9. The only group of people who observe ALL commandment is Jehovah's Witnesses. Everything else is a crime against christianity.