What Is Right & Wrong?

Not long ago, cable TV mogul Ted Turner declared the Ten Commandments obsolete:

"We're living with outmoded rules. The rules we're living under are the Ten Commandments, and I bet nobody here even pays much attention to 'em, because they are too old. When Moses went up on the mountain, there were no nuclear weapons, there was no poverty. Today, the Ten Commandments wouldn't go over. Nobody around likes to be commanded. Commandments are out."

Of course, Turner is dead wrong in calling the Ten Commandments "outmoded rules" (as we will see in the upcoming messages). The commandments are as relevant as ever. On the other hand, he is somewhat right in saying, "nobody likes to be commanded." In fact, contemporary culture actually celebrates sin and mocks virtue. We are living in a time where wrong seems right, and right seems wrong.

The words of the prophet Isaiah are just as appropriate to our generation as they were to his: "Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter" (Issiah 5:20).

A Case of Relative Absolutes

We as a society have strayed from absolutes. Moral relativism is the rule of the day. We have all heard one or more of the following statements:

Many people today believe that you and I can believe in whatever truth we want, so long as you respect my truth and I respect yours. It grows out of the conviction that there are no universal standards of good or bad, right or wrong, normal or abnormal. All truth is relative.

A recent poll revealed that 67% of Americans believe that there is no such thing as absolute truth (Watkkins, Williams, The New Absolutes, Bethany House publishers, 1996). A Barna report showed that the generation leading the way toward relativism is the "Baby Busters" (those born between 1965 and 1983). This generation rejected absolute truth by a staggering 78%!

Worse still, 62% of the 33 of the respondents who claimed to have made a personal commitment to Jesus Christ, also sided with the national majority in believing that there is no such thing as absolute truth. In addition, seven out of ten adults surveyed agreed with the statement, "There are no absolute standards for morals and ethics." (Watkins, The New Absolutes)

The very foundations of our society are crumbling beneath our feet because we are no longer built on a solid foundation that distinguishes right from wrong. The moral foundation established by our country's forefathers was based upon a solid faith in God and an understanding of His Word. Consider the words of James Madison, fourth president of the United States: "We stake the future of this country on our ability to govern ourselves under the principles of the Ten Commandments."

We all must have a set of absolutes that we live by. Otherwise, why is your definition of right or wrong any better than mine?

A Grid to Live by

Exodus 20:1-17 clearly and simply lists the absolutes God has given us to live by. They are straightforward, concise, and to the point.

Commandment #1: "You shall have no other gods before Me"(v. 3).

Commandment #2: "You shall not make for yourself a carved image . . . you shall not bow down to them nor serve them" (v. 4).

Commandment #3: "You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain" (v. 7).

Commandment#4: "Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy" (v. 8).

Commandment #5: "Honor your father and your mother (v. 12).

Commandment #6: "You shall not murder" (v. 13).

Commandment #7: "You shall not commit adultery" (v. 14).

Commandment #8: "You shall not steal" (v. 15).

Commandment #9: "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor" (v. 16).

Commandment #10: "You shall not covet your neighbor's house, you shall not covet your neighbor's wife . . . nor anything that is your neighbor's" (v. 17).

Through the Ten Commandments, God gives us a grid to live by—a clear set of absolutes whereby we may know right from wrong, good from evil, and true from false.

In the close of the book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon reflects upon his wasted life and makes this final observation: "All has been heard. The end of the matter is, fear God and keep His commandments for this is the whole of man" (Ecclesiastes 12:13 Amplified).

Solomon himself had violated many of these commands, so he knew what he was talking about. He coveted. He committed adultery. And he wants you to know that if you violate these commands, your life will be out of balance.

Some, falsely interpreting the biblical teaching about the law, would say that the Ten Commandments have absolutely no relevance or application to the lives of believers today. Yet, look at the words of Jesus: "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled" (Matthew 5:17, 18). Jesus did not come to abolish or do away with the law; He came to fulfill it. The word "fulfill" literally means, "to carry it out; to make full; to get to the heart of it."

1. Jesus was made under the law. "When the time was right, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law"
(Galatians 4:4).

Throughout Jesus' life on earth, He obeyed God's law explicitly and perfectly—and He was the only One who ever truly did! Why is this significant? The law required a sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins: "And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission" (Hebrews 9:22).

Thus, by being born under the law and obeying it completely, Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament types as laid out in Leviticus and Numbers: Jesus was the perfect, spotless Passover Lamb, the Scapegoat.

The law—as far as the individual is concerned—was never meant to make one righteous. It was given to show us that we could never be righteous in our own ability or works. The law shuts our mouths but opens our eyes.

The law is like a moral mirror, allowing you to see yourself as you really are—a guilty sinner before a righteous God (Romans 3:19). Yet, as you see your true condition, the law will drive you into the open arms of Jesus: "So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith" (Galatians 3:24).

2. When Christ died on the cross, He took the righteous requirements of the law and paid the price we could never pay.

"He has made [you] alive together with Him having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross" (Colossians 2:13b-14). Through Christ's death on the cross, we are no longer under the curse of the Law. Jesus' work on the cross satisfied the righteous requirements of God. We are not forced to obey it out of obligation; we are compelled to obey it because of the depth of His love for us.

3. As we accept Jesus into our lives, He takes that law and writes it in our hearts!

"This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel. . .I will put My law in their minds and write it on their hearts" (Jeremiah 31:33).

In effect, God is saying, "The difference between the old and the new covenant will be this: I will no longer write my law on tablets on stone, but on the fleshly tablets of your hearts."

A scribe came to Jesus and asked, " What is the greatest commandment?" Jesus replied, "You shall love the Lord your God with all of your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There are no other commandments greater than these" (Mark 12:30-31).

With that statement, Jesus really sums up the Ten Commandments. The first four commandments relate to my relationship with God. The second six commandments relate to my relationship with others.

Augustine put this into perspective when he said, "Love God and do as you please." When you really love the Lord with all of your heart, with all your mind, and with all your strength, you naturally want to do the right thing.

If I truly love God... I will not have other gods before Him, make graven images, or take His name in vain.

If I truly love my neighbor as myself, I will not steal from my neighbor, lie to my neighbor, covet what is his or hers, or kill my neighbor.

God gave us the Ten Commandments as a standard to live by. We cannot accomplish this through our own strength, but we can "do all things through Christ" (Philippians 4:13). He wants to give us new desires and to eliminate old ones. He wants us to obey God's law not because we have to, but because we want to.

Once that happens, we will no longer see God's commands as restrictions, but as barriers designed to guard and guide out lives.

Part II