THE LIFE-STYLE OF A
BELIEVER
A Prolegomenon on Christian Ethics
[Part One]
This is an advanced teaching on another very important
subject. Again, I will not take credit
for most of this teaching and you will recognize the different styles of writing
– the author’s and mine. You should know
by now that men of God wrote the Word as they were inspired by the Holy Ghost
using their own personality. The gospels
were written using the personality and writing styles of Matthew, Mark, Luke,
and John. The man of God who initially
wrote this teaching could be very simple and very intellectual. This teaching was written for strong standing
believers and leaders, however can be understood by most Christians. I found it to be a fascinating work. I will edit, revise and add or complete
certain Scriptures and sections to make it easier for you to understand. This great author and man of God would not
want me to reinvent the wheel, so the teaching will be somewhat revised so that
you, the Christian believer, will have access to and a greater understanding of
this teaching.
What is written in this teaching is the truth from God’s Word
and not from man’s opinions or ideas or misinterpretations or erroneous
interpolations. You are going to learn
an extremely great amount of the rightly divided Word pertaining to ethnics and
morals, and in many cases, it will surprise and enlighten you concerning areas
of your life that you may not think of very often. Overall, the teaching is most positive and so
very important. You will finally be able
to understand and renew your mind to the truth of God’s Word regarding this
subject. Let’s begin.
____________________
Right and proper conduct is for a person to live according to the
principles of God's rightly divided Word.
These principles set forth in God's Word are the basis of Christian
ethics, or if you prefer, the believer's life-style.
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole
matter: Fear God, and keep his
commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work
into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be
evil. – Ecclesiastes 12: 13, 14
We were
meant to be living by God’s Word. It is
God’s design.
All Christian ethics are found in the Word of God, specifically in those
Church Epistles addressed to the born-again body of believers, as well as the
scriptural records of the person of Jesus Christ and of other men and women in
the Word whose lives manifested these principles.
This teaching is intended to be a prolegomenon, a basic and critical
introduction, on the topic of ethics for believers. If the principle of our position is accepted
that the Word of God is the Will of God and is the ultimate authority in the
field of ethics, then the logical deductions will be even more firmly
established than the facts of any science because they are based on unchanging
truth. Facts can be changed and
argued. The truth of God’s Word is the
same yesterday, today, and forever.
Therefore, it can only be witnessed to.
Different premises cause different systems of ethics. Therefore, recognition of our stated premise
is essential to understanding and accepting the system of ethics based upon
it. Technically, ethics is the
science of conduct, producing a defined result. The word "ethics" also means the
science of morals. "Ethics" is
from the Greek ethika, which is
derived from ethos, meaning custom or
habit. The word "morals" comes
from Latin, moralis. The goal of a code of ethics is to help
people live virtuously, morally, uprightly - in order to manifest the more than
abundant life. So to be spiritually
minded is life and peace, but to be carnally minded (5 senses only) is death.
For to be carnally minded is death;
but to spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is
enmity [in conflict] against
God: for it is not subject to the law of
God, neither indeed can be. –
Romans 8: 6, 7
I believe it is possible, if we accept the premise that the Bible is our
ultimate authority, that we can collect a body of specific truths of universal
application. From this single premise we
have produced a coherent system of general Biblical principles applicable to
all believers who want to follow the accuracy of the Word. The study of this system of principles is the
"science of ethics." Living
the principles in God’s Word is the "art of ethics."
Ethics is an applied and directive science, teaching man how he ought to
behave. It is not a natural or
descriptive science. In all other
sciences except ethics, values are arbitrarily imposed by man's desire and
vantage point. Therefore, scientists
start from different premises with different understanding, due to rearing,
habit, personal taste, and exposure. Premises are seldom settled upon by
logic. People simply choose a particular
premise. In our case, we choose the
premise that the Bible is the only and ultimate authority. What is "right" is what God's Word
says is right. What is "wrong"
is what God's Word says is wrong.
Likewise with "good" and "evil." The definition of terms dealing with ethics
must be in agreement with God's Word. We
must always define our terms, think clearly and logically, and use plain,
simple language.
The more searching and our analysis of the Word and the more accurate
our understanding of the Word, the more insights we will gain into the true
nature of man. Therefore, the more we
know of the Word, the more complete, satisfactory, and detailed our science of
ethical behavior will be. This is
referred to as the ‘renewed mind’ and is our key to power.
I Beseech you therefore,
brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living
sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which
is your reasonable [logical]
service. And be not conformed to this
world: but be ye transformed by the
renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is
that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. -- Romans
12: 1, 2
Moral or ethical progress generally fails to keep pace with material and
intellectual progress. Thus, man is
usually not morally or ethically good enough for the task to which he is called
because of his lack of true knowledge of the Word of God, or lack of desire to
believe God's Word. A major difference
between the precepts of ethics and of all other sciences lies in the
hypothetical precepts of the form: if
you desire such and such a result, you follow such and such a method. In contrast, however, the precepts of
Christian ethics are categorical or absolute precepts or imperative in the
essence of "thou shalt" or "thou shalt not."
According to jurisprudence, a law is a command to do or refrain from
doing something issuing from a competent authority. Our competent and sole authority is the
Bible, the Word of God, rightly divided.
Thus, in Christian ethics the commands, laws, and rules are categorical,
such as found in Isaiah 30: 21: "... This is the way, walk ye in it. ... "
And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye
turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left. – Isaiah 30: 21
Notice
what happens in the next verse when we turn to the right or to the left….. Ye shall defile………….
Never
look to the left or to the right when you are walking with God. This is nothing but a distraction from the
god of this world. It takes mental
discipline and the more Word you know, the stronger you will be in your mind
and your actions.
The conduct or behavior of an animal is prescribed by its physical
constitution, its animal nature.
Biologically, man, Homo sapiens, is an animal. However, when a person is a Christian, he or
she is more than a physical and mental being; he or she has a spiritual side,
which no other animal - human or beast has.
Instinct, is for man and animals, an innate psychological,
psychophysical, mental disposition which leads to action in a certain way. The will, emotions, and reason, while all
single entities, are unified in one person who is body, soul, and spirit. A man's intellect is the whole person
thinking; his will is the whole person choosing; his emotions are the whole
person liking or disliking. A man's
belief and conduct are indissolubly bound together as roots, trunk, limbs,
branches, twigs, and fruit are organically connected to one tree. His thinking is done in the light of his own
interests.
Conscience is a moral awareness established within us by the habit
patterns we have formed due to previous teaching. A person may be honest and sincere yet narrow
and prejudiced. A man may know a
statement to be true, yet deliberately desire to disagree, or, being weak in
desire, settle for less than the truth.
This is referred to in the Bible as a spirit of slumber.
(According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit
of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear;) unto this day.
–
Romans 11: 8
Have
you ever met anyone like this? Take
notice of the last part of verse 7 .. “and the rest were
blinded”. Now look at the beginning
and near the end of verse 8. It is in a
parenthesis which is a Figure of Speech illustrating an explanation. God is explaining the end of verse 7. Precision.
A man cannot be argued into agreement on the Word of God, ethics, or
anything else. He has free will. One person may appeal to and even convince
another by logical argumentation and reasoning so that the one feels obligated
to admit that the other is right, according to a specific definition, yet he does
not will to do what is right. On the
other hand, he may desire to do what is right, but being weak of will or of
renewed mind, he may fail to bring his good desires into concretion. In other words, men cannot be argued or
forced into agreeing on opinion or virtue.
No one wins an argument. A man
convinced against his will is of the same opinion still. Dale Carnegie made millions of dollars by
writing a book on how to function socially using biblical principles.
There is no sphere of human activity where ethics is not involved. Whenever men continue to choose evil when
they know good, that choice will always be spirit
influenced. Ethics determines what is
best. However, there are circumstances
where what is best or right is not always possible. Each situation must be judged on its own
merit and, above all, the motive must be considered.
There are three basic propositions for man in this life:
1.
Man is born to live for the glory of God.
2.
Man is to be born again and comes to a knowledge of God's Word so as to
effectively witness to the glory of God.
3.
Every man is an individual in himself and is never a means to another
man's end.
There are five categories of duty for a Christian believer:
1.
The believer's duty to God.
2.
The believer's duty to himself.
3.
The believer's duty to the household.
4.
The believer's duty to the family.
5.
The believer's duty to society (unbelievers).
The presence of God is man's "natural environment," man as he
ought to be.
Notice the order in the five categories of duty for a Christian
believer. The first is to God:
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. -- Matthew 6: 33
The second is to himself:
And
why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's
eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine
own eye? -- Matthew 7: 3
Get your act together
before you try to help someone else. You
cannot help someone with problems when you have problems of your own.
The third is to the
household:
Now the difference between
the household and the family can confuse some Christians. I am going to rid that confusion for you once
and for all.
There are believers that
are really rooted and grounded in the Word.
Many live together or are in constant touch with one another through
classes and fellowships. I experienced
this type of lifestyle and it was the greatest time of learning and enjoyment
in my life. This is what God refers to
as the household.
As
we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all
× [men is in italics – scratch it], especially unto them who are of the household of faith [God’s
household]. – Galatians 6: 10
The fourth is to the
family:
The family
includes all the Christian believers that are born again but are not dedicated
to a detailed study and application of God’s Word. If you are part of the household and your
neighbor is a Christian, but without dedication, your neighbor is part of the
family of God. Easy enough – you should
be able to understand this.
Now, the fifth duty is to
society and this society of people are unbelievers. That’s right.
We have a duty to them. God loves
them as much as He loves us.
Now, in conclusion of
this section, your first duty is to God, then to yourself, then the household,
then the family, then the unbelievers.
If there are no household members anywhere where you reside, then your
duty shifts to the family.
ETHICS AND
THE INDIVIDUAL
The education and discipline of the mind according to the accuracy of
God's Word is the highest education of all intellectual powers. Man must so educate his will and desires that
he becomes the master in the tabernacle of his own being. He must educate his mind to love good and abhor evil, and educate his intellect so that he
has a coherent system of true beliefs.
There are five basic types of judgments which a man can make: truth judgments, ethical judgments,
expediency judgments, esthetic judgments, and judgments of fact. Unity, certainty, and stability are qualities
of life which every man should desire to attain.
The teaching that "the end justifies the means" is ethically
wrong. Arguments of immediate
expediency, failing to evaluate the total situation in a moral light, are
erroneous. No human being is ever a
means to another's end. Every man counts
for one and no man for more than one.
Greed in a man's life is the desire for exclusive possession. "Enough" for most men is more than
they have. Men's hearts are generally
set on material acquisitions, but in practice happiness depends less on what
they have than on what others have and they have not. A person never feels the lack of material
things of which he or she has no knowledge.
People who are covetous will treat you like an object. Take a look at II Peter.
And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make
merchandise of you: whose judgement of old lingereth not,
and their damnation slumbereth not. – II Peter 2: 3 [The words
that are omitted in the KJV are not in the text.]
Covetous
people will treat you like you are merchandise.
I met a woman in a disco that said to me that no matter how much she
had, she always wanted more. I made a
courteous disappearing act.
Mere possessions give no lasting pleasure. There is a great new freedom once man has, by
his will, released himself from the "wheel of things," "the
Jones syndrome," [keeping up with the Jones’] and shaken himself loose
from the tyranny of possessions. Man's
basic human nature has the desire to possess.
Lust, greed, and rage are all perversions. Sadism is a fruit of lust and unrestrained
greed, and its outcome is hatred and bitterness. God's Word says that no one is at liberty
just to please himself. He must
sublimate his desire for individual possession until it becomes a desire to
serve in love and to develop to the utmost this service for others rather than
himself.
Moral judgments must be passed on motives rather than on actions. Self-discipline with a view to obtaining
self-mastery is a requirement. Man must
become master in the tabernacle of his own being.
And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and
to work with your own hands, as we commanded you; That ye may walk honestly toward them
that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing. – I Thessalonians
4: 11, 12
There is
great freedom in self-discipline.
Seeking to define clearly when the gratification of a bodily desire
becomes sinful is extraordinarily difficult.
To say that excess indulgence alone is sinful, simply shifts the
difficulty from one point to another.
You are left with the question, what constitutes excess? Desire should be simple. The zest of living is increased by
simplicity, even in the food that we eat.
In many of the richest, fullest, deepest, and most vital lives passion
plays a great part; but passion must be curbed, restrained, and
controlled. Passion must be a servant,
not a master of a man’s life.
Duty is what one ought to do.
Duty is the law applied to individuals.
Duty deals with purpose, aim, and reason for conduct. A man's willful decision toward duty
determines his virtue. Virtue is a man's
fixed attitude toward his ideal. There
are circumstances under which clear and plain duties conflict, and we have to
choose at times which duty to perform and which to neglect. It is ethically wrong to worry about things
beyond our control.
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not
your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. – John 14: 27
Ethics claims to determine what is right. It does not profess, however, to show that
under all circumstances what is right or best is always possible. Each case has to be judged on its own merit,
and above all, the motive of the heart must be considered. Before we harshly judge an act, we must judge
the motive. What is the motive is the
important question. A good man is the
one whose heart is set on virtue. A bad
man is the one whose heart is set on just the opposite.
Now the works of the flesh are manifest,
which are these ; Adultery,
fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife,
seditions, heresies, Envyings,
murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have
also told you in time past, that they which do such things
shall not inherit the kingdom of God. -- Galatians 5: 19- 21
The four cardinal virtues of Plato are wisdom, courage or fortitude,
temperance or self-control, and justice.
Aristotle, retaining Plato's four virtues, added six more, namely: liberality, high-mindedness, gentleness,
friendliness, truthfulness, and decorous wit.
The seven deadly sins listed by the Roman Catholic Church are: pride, anger, sloth, sensuality, avarice,
gluttony, and envy.
Virtue as defined by the Word of God can be seen in Isaiah 11: 2,
referring to the coming Messiah, and is described in part by the fruit of the
spirit of Galatians 5.
And the spirit of the Lord shall rest
upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and
might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord; -- Isaiah 11: 2
But the fruit of the spirit [small ‘s’, not referring to God himself ‘S’, but to your
spirit ‘s’] is love, joy, peace, longsuffering,
gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness,
temperance: against such there is no
law. -- Galatians
5: 22 - 23
The ability to arrive at an intelligent decision between alternative
courses of action takes a knowledge of God's Word. Godliness is God-likeness or goodness. "Fear of the Lord" is reverence for
Him.
Virtues of Christ:
Matthew 5: 1-16
Virtues of Paul: Philippians 4: 8; Galatians 5: 22-23;
I Corinthians 13; Colossians 3: 12-15
Virtues of Peter: II Peter 1: 5-8
Works of the flesh: Romans 1:
29-31; Galatians 5: 19-21
When alone, most people do not control what they will or will not think
about. They daydream, "float along," even fantasize. However, there is a duty of disciplined
thinking. The power to determine
what you will think about and what you will not think about is a valuable aid
in resisting temptation. Do not allow
mental, moral, or spiritual deterioration.
Have knowledge of yourself. Know
where you are and redirect yourself to a fuller life.
There is a matter of callous indifference which must also be dealt with
in ethics. The Bible refers to the
person who is callously indifferent as one who has a "conscience seared
with a hot iron" or one who refuses to "abhor that which is
evil." Pleasure is not always
good. For example, when a person has had
his or her mind seared with a hot iron regarding sexual matters, the last
stages of vice have been reached, namely homosexuality. It is the lowest form of sexual vice.
Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared
with a hot iron; – I Timothy 4: 2
Suicide is a violation of the law of individualism. Life is a trust which is given to us to
use. Suicide is an act of
selfishness. It leaves the living to
suffer. Suicide is usually an act of
cowardice. Suicide is presumptuous. Suicide is spirit possession.
The individual has a right to defend himself, just as does the
state. Under no system of ethics is it
held that the duty of any man is to allow himself to be killed rather than to
protect himself. Nor is man to allow
himself to be despoiled of his possessions rather than to resist.
Living in this world, we have to take this world as we find it and
resolutely endeavor to act as virtuously as possible in every situation,
striving always to choose the better of two or more alternatives and to make it
a better world in which to live. Though
we may not be perfect in this world, we must strive to be as perfect as
possible.
Let all things be done decently and in order. – I Corinthians 14: 40
Sketch on the canvas of your mind the sort of man you ought to be, and
in a given time you will become that man.
No man willing to face the truth will deny the positive effects of the
new birth and the renewed mind. The
Christian believer is in a position of self-realization because God places in
the believer's hands the ability to make decisions according to God's
Word. Each man's future is fashioned by
means of his own conscious selection and rejection. This is the very essence of determining what
will become of an individual. It is the
artistic production of one's own life.
[End of Part One]
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