So how do you determine what is right and what is wrong? How have you gone about
establishing your morality?
And what would be your ethics when confronted with one of these scenarios:
Your daughter comes home from her first semester of college and says – mom and dad
I am gay.
Your boss in preparing a report for corporate asks you to fudge on some data – just this
once.
A bunch of your friends are headed down to the strip club – are you going with them?
When you see a bag lady shuffling down the sidewalk toward you do you think get a job
you freak or do you smile at her with compassion?
You’re off to buy a new vehicle – so what will it be…the Big SUV or the hybrid electric?
Or does it matter to you in the least?
In the middle of a small group meeting a new couple to your group throws out an
invitation…hey we’re going down to the circle to protest the war…want to join us?
These are testy issues and they are important ones to work through.
What you believe about your ethics, the set of moral principles or values that govern
your conduct are so crucial as to be matters of life and death.
And in this day we are facing some of the biggest ethical hurdles and conundrums in
human history.
5 Contemporary Challenges on our ethical landscape:
1. Widespread ethical failure
2. An array of technological options
- Bio-engineering, etc.
3. An increasing demand for moral toleration
4. An expanding new worldview
- postmodernity / relativity / pluralism / skepticism
5. A Moral civil war
- red state blue state politics
So, in the midst of these challenges how do we hear God’s heart? The ethics of
the Kingdom?
That is our task this summer: to look carefully at a set of real moral mysteries to see if
we can isolate God’s perspective on them and establish a process for ethical decision
making….especially those that are complicated and confusing.
It is not just about getting the answers but understanding the ground rules for
determining our ethics.
That is where we begin with the ground rules…
IL – remembering playing baseball in Bruce’s back yard and establishing the ground
rules – important when a situation was confusing or a dispute arose.
So, ground rules… First a definition ethics = the set of moral principles or values that govern your conduct
Kingdom Ethics = God’s moral principles and values that should govern our conduct.
Three ground rules :
Ground Rule # 1 – As we determine our ethics we must assume the right posture.
The right posture is a balance of meekness and resolve
Meekness - (strength under control) allows us to be graceful with others who disagree
with us and careful when dealing with disputable matters of scripture.
§ palms up
§ tolerance
§ suspension of know-it-all ness
§ patience
§ not mean spirited or shrill
Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds
done in the humility that comes from wisdom. James 3:13
Refuse to get involved in inane discussions; they always end up in fights. God's servant
must not be argumentative, but a gentle listener and a teacher who keeps cool, working
firmly but patiently with those who refuse to obey. You never know how or when God
might sober them up with a change of heart and a turning to the truth, 2 Tim. 2:23-25
Resolve- is the courage to stand firm on any deeply held beliefs that we determine are
from the heart of God and with love, speak the truth.
Here is the balance to meekness but beware resolve is looked at skeptically these days.
“It’s trendy to be suspicious of people with ‘deeply held views’. And it is wrong.” Charles
Krauthammer, Time Magazine
Let me ask you do you have deeply held views on ethics that you believe are from the
heart of God? What do you do with that resolve?
Stew on it or act on it?
Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves
fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
1 Cor. 15:58
I believe Jesus expects his people to be resolute on the ethics of his kingdom engaged, effective, vibrant, and verbal…but keep in mind also meek.
That is the right posture – ground rule # 1
Ground Rule # 2 – As we determine our ethics we must be motivated by the right
purpose.
This is very, very important and often overlooked.
When I hear in the media anyone representing the church or Christianity or Jesus I
often get the sense their purpose is to defend and be “right”. It feels so often like we are
circling the wagons to protect our innocent women and children from the evil barbarians
out there.
We have a long history of acting this way, it began back around the turn of the
20th century.
· Battles over evolution and the authority of the Bible itself.
One look at some of the architecture of the day says a thousand words. What does this
look like? It articulates part of the purpose of the school – to defend the truth.
Blanchard Hall – Wheaton
(Aside – Wheaton represents a good posture these days)
When Jesus established the ethics of the kingdom it wasn’t for defensive
reasons…and it wasn’t to eventually be right or triumphant…it was for his
kingdom people…to be salt and light.
Another way to say it is…
The right purpose is not to be defensive or “right” but to be a blessing.
This goes way back to Abraham’s calling…
Genesis 12:1-3
The Lord had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's
household and go to the land I will show you.
"I will make you into a great nation
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
“… and you will be a blessing….all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you”
God speaking to Abraham
The purpose of Kingdom ethics is to change the world for its own good. God’s morality
is in the best interest of everyone…to bless the world.
IL – Remember when you would go to your dad and whine “why do I have to do
that?…he would say Because I said so!
God is not that way…when he makes a moral demand it is for a good reason… there is
a clear method in the perceived madness of God – when he established certain ethics it
was for the greater good of humanity.
Anita Allen reflected on the propose of living ethically What is the purpose of ethics?…“the amelioration (to improve) of want, indignity and
terrifying evil”
Anita Allen, The New Ethics
Whatever ethical position you take a stand on must pass the test of purpose –
It is not good enough to claim…Well, God said it, I believe it, that settles it!
The right purpose behind our ethics is that they will bless others - ultimately it is the
best thing for human beings and God’s creation
Ground Rule # 3 – As we determine our ethics we must follow the right process.
(Scripture will ultimately be our final court of appeal but there are other resources that
can lead us to the heart of God on any matter.)
1. We begin with recognizing our preconceptions and biases
The factors that shape our ethics:
- family
- race
- socioeconomic background
- hometown community
- personality
- passions and loyalties (political)
- perceptions of authority (either a high view that calls for more centralized authority or a
low view that is wary of authoritarianism)
- age/era in which we were born/ crises that shaped us
- spiritual condition
Why think through this…to lessen your grip a bit…make you sensitive to others who
disagree with you, And helps you realize some of those factors might keep you
from discovering God’s heart!
2. We then can consult “general” sources of authority (history, science, etc)
Natural sciences and social sciences contain God’s truth.
History reveals how the people of God have approached ethics.
If you bristle at that consider this…
For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine
nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that
men are without excuse. Romans 1:20
“If God is sovereign and the risen Christ is alive and speaking to his church, then
nature, history, experience and so on – all that occurs on this planet-reveal something
of the divine nature, will and purpose”
IL – me and coffee and what I learned both about the environment and about social
justice (from Fairtrade practices and Shade grown coffees)
“All truth is God’s truth. We can search the created order for clues…in the physical and
social sciences, musicians, philosophers, novelists, other religious traditions, and the
flashes of awareness we gain through personal experience” …as long as Scripture
remains the final court of appeal
Stasson and Gushee – Kingdom Ethics
3. And for the follower of Christ the scriptures are the centerpiece of our Kingdom Ethics
And that is a problem for a lot of people…
IL – Carmel high symposium on ethics (in which we could not arrive at a consensus on
the source of authority in determining ethics)
2 Tim. 3:16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking,
correcting and training in righteousness,
So, where do we go in this very big book?
3 of the best places in scripture to discover God’s will for our ethics…
The Creation Story – whatever happened there God said was good.
The Law – allows us to better understand the heart of God even if the specific
applications no longer apply to us directly
The 10 commandments – the 10,000 foot view
The civil laws – god’s heart for the poor and marginalized and for equity and justice
The ceremonial laws – god’s heart for purity and devotion
The Teachings of Jesus (specifically His Kingdom Ethics)
Where we will spend significant time.
What about Paul? He was an interpreter for the early church of the teachings of Jesus,
the creation story and the law. He followed our process!
Now, as we look into the bible …in some cases the answers we are looking for are
clear, concise and make total sense – 10 commandments for instance…but not every
ethical issue is that easy…some were not even on the radar 3000 years ago.
Here is where we must take great care and make sure about our posture…
Why establishing Biblical ethics isn’t all that easy…
4 levels of ethical dilemmas and scripture:
Some ethical issues are directly addressed in scripture and are clearly wrong.
i.e. Lying, murder, stealing
Some ethical issues are directly addressed in scripture but are disputed in the
interpretation or application.
i.e. homosexuality
Some ethical issues are indirectly addressed in scripture and are disputed in application
i.e. pacifism, abortion
Some ethical issues are not addressed at all in the scriptures
i.e. some issues in biotechnology (genetic engineering or cloning)
My point…take care, do your homework and process well, and take the right posture!
4. Finally, The last step in the process is to discuss and sort all of it out within the
community of believers.
It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us…. Acts 15:28