Worldview Finder: Morality
February 7, 2024 at 3:49 pm | Posted in good and bad, Worldview Finder | 2 CommentsTags: 1 Kings 3, 1 Timothy 4, 2 Corinthians 5, Isaiah 5, Leviticus 27, Mark 10, Proverbs 17, Psalm 143, Psalm 73, Romans 7
After understanding that objective truth exists, and that some truth can truly be known, the next step in identifying or clarifying your worldview is to determine whether you believe that there are objective categories for good and evil, righteousness and unrighteousness, justice and injustice.
We are not talking here about mere personal preferences, although we do call some things “good” or “bad” based on tastes or preferences. Some things may be thought of as “amoral.” They don’t have any objective “worth” or “value” or “merit” other than what we subjectively assign to them, but the question we are asking here seeks to know whether you view some things or some acts or some ideas or some beings as INTRINSICALLY good or evil.
The Bible resolves this question. We like to say that God is “good.” A popular slogan among Christians is: “God is good all the time, and all the time God is good.”
Truly God is good to Israel, even to such as are of a clean heart.
Psalm 73:1
But what does it mean in this context to say that “God is good?” Psalm 73:1 is talking about His beneficence or benevolence: His attribute of being kind and gracious and even loving toward others. This kind of “good” means doing good TO someone in the sense that they perceive what He is doing to them to be a help or a benefit.
For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving:
I Timothy 4:4
If “every creature” of God is “good,” does this mean that Hitler and Osama Bin Laden were good? Or that Satan is good? Or that you and I, apart from God’s grace, are inherently morally good? No it doesn’t. In fact, we not only need to be forgiven for our SINS – we need to be forgiven for being SINNERS. Good, in the context of I Timothy 4:4, means that food – even if it might not be the healthiest or the cleanest – and even if was condemned as religiously or ceremonially unclean under the Old Covenant – and even if it might have been used in some pagan ritual before being sold in the market – is made “good to eat” (sanctified, made clean) by the Word of God and prayer.
So, we see that God – and some things – can be said to be subjectively “good” in their benefits or their actions. God is good, though, in another sense. He is INTRINSICALLY good, as an immutable attribute, in His nature.
Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness.
Psalm 143:10
This is the goodness that goes beyond mere kindness and benevolence. It is goodness in the sense of righteousness and holiness and perfection of moral character.
And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God.
Mark 10:18
This is part of Jesus’s discussion with the so-called rich young ruler, and the topic is not who does charity and who is nice to his neighbors. It is who or what is moral goodness. Keeping the commandments of God (if anyone could do it) would demonstrate someone was “good,” because they are God’s commandments, and they come from the essence of God Himself, so this question is not talking about “good” in the way we talk about “good”-tasting food. It is talking about “goodness” in the moral sense.
A popular holiday song says, “You’d better be good for ‘goodness’s sake,’” but there’s no being called “Goodness,” so you can’t do anything for its sake. Jesus was good for God the Father’s sake and for His own sake.
Now, if we believe that God is good – truly good in and of Himself – it stands to reason that, yes, we do believe there is at least SOMETHING in the universe that is good and therefore is not evil, but let’s determine if the Bible describes this belief in terms of a worldview.
Consider Solomon’s prayer for wisdom – the wisdom to rule people in a way that would be pleasing to God:
Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?
I Kings 3:9
Solomon, taking on the responsibility of an earthly judge, knew he needed the wisdom of the Heavenly Judge, and judges are supposed to do justice: reward or vindicate righteousness and punish evil. They are supposed to look at actions and make moral evaluations based on a true standard of what’s good and what’s bad. Even the Old Testament ceremonial laws made distinctions based on a standard:
And the priest shall value it, whether it be good or bad: as thou valuest it, who art the priest, so shall it be.
Leviticus 27:12
The standard was: according to God’s Word.
So, the Bible clearly takes the worldview-position that God is inherently good AND that He sets the standard for determining what is good and bad.
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
II Corinthians 5:10
While things may be morally neutral, actions are not – according to God’s standard (which goes beyond the action itself to the thoughts behind it, the attitude of the heart about it, and motivation for it). Ever since the appearance of the serpent in the Garden of Eden this aspect of a Biblical worldview – objective right and wrong/good and evil – has been opposed by an alternate worldview: Nihilism.
Nihilism is the idea that “right” and “wrong” are amorphous or relative or subjective, which really means that they are non-existent. It is a worldview which denies the existence of morality, and says that nothing really matters. Because sinful human beings are so prone to adopt it and espouse it – and to try to (disastrously) live as though it were true – the Bible frequently addresses it. It is impossible to consistently believe that no actions have more or less moral value than others.
Whoso rewardeth evil for good, evil shall not depart from his house.
Proverbs 17:13
He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abomination to the Lord.
Proverbs 17:15
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Isaiah 5:20
I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.
Romans 7:21
Examining Our Motivations
September 1, 2021 at 12:03 pm | Posted in II Corinthians | 3 CommentsTags: 2 Corinthians 5, Bema Seat, Biblical labor, commentary on 2 Corinthians, fear of the Lord, hard work, motivated by fear, Sunday School lessons on 2 Corinthians
For we walk by faith. (For we walk by faith, not by sight:) We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.
II Corinthians 5:7-8
Once our focus changes from the earthly and the temporal to the Heavenly and eternal, we are not only aware of what will happen to us after death, but it becomes something we might even volunteer for in the cause of Christ.
Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him.
II Corinthians 5:9
Paul didn’t work just to stay busy, and he didn’t work to earn his salvation, and he didn’t work to impress other people. He wanted the approval of his Master. He acknowledged that it was labor. Even a labor of love is still labor, but labor – set free from the noetic effects of the Fall – is a great way, whether absent from or present in an earthly body, to please our God.
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
II Corinthians 5:10
This is the so-called Bema seat of Christ, a place for believers only, a place for rewards and loss of rewards.
Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your consciences.
II Corinthians 5:11
We can try to be overly pious and deny the motivation of serving out of a desire to receive gifts from God, but Paul and the Apostles were motivated by a fear – a terror – of displeasing God.
Complementary Communication in Marriage
June 22, 2021 at 4:17 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | 4 CommentsTags: 1 Corinthians 11, 2 Corinthians 5, Biblical marriage, Colossians 4, communication in marriage, Ephesians 4, Genesis 2, Hebrews 10, Hebrews 3, Hebrews 4, John 8, Proverbs 12, Titus 2
As a general rule, we don’t like it when people think they see something about us that we don’t see about ourselves. However, our spouses are very likely to do just that. When we observe our spouses’ faults, or when they let us know that they have observed ours, we must balance our observations, and our reactions to these observations, with humility. It is easy to fall into the trap of observing our spouses’ faults while maintiaining an unaware (or selective) blindness to our own faults.
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Hebrews 4:12
The Bible will discern your thoughts and intentions better than you can.
The differences in how men and women in general communicate in vastly different ways have been well documented. The challenge in marriage is to communicate wisely, and in a way that strengthens and helps the relationship.
There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health.
Proverbs 12:18
God designed men and women (and specifically husbands and wives) to complement each other.
And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
Genesis 2:18
Men and women are fundamentally different, but in marriage they are perfectly suited to each other, apart from sin and its influence in a fallen world. Of course, Gospel marriage is redeemed marriage, so the influence of sin can be overcome with God’s help. Ideally, husbands and wives are designed to complement (not “compliment,” although compliments are wonderful ways to communicate) each other.
Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man. For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angels. Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord. For as the woman is of the man, even so is the man also by the woman; but all things of God.
I Corinthians 11:9-12
Things that complement each other are not identical. In fact, they are often nearly, if not exactly, opposite. Perhaps nowhere is this contrast between men and women more glaring than in the area of communication. In order to complement each other and to glorify God in our marital communication, it is important that we remember to:
1. Make time for communication.
But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.
Hebrews 3:13
And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
Hebrews 10:24
2. Set aside pride.
Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.
Ephesians 4:29
3. Put in effort.
For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;
Titus 2:11-12
4. Crucify selfishness.
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
II Corinthians 5:17
Above all, our communication in marriage must be gracious and honest.
Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.
Colossians 4:6
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
John 8:32
Three Questions and Three Answers
April 12, 2019 at 1:31 pm | Posted in II Corinthians, Uncategorized | 2 CommentsTags: 2 Corinthians 5, Acts 9, Biblical reconciliation, Jesus Christ, Paul's conversion, Paul's salvation experience, reconciliation, road to Damascus, the Apostle Paul
The Apostle Paul’s salvation testimony is recorded at least three times in Scripture (Acts 9, 22:1-16, 26:1-23), but it is possible that Paul had the dialogue that occurred between Jesus and him on the road to Damascus in mind when the Holy Spirit inspired him to write II Corinthians 5:19-20. There are three answers there to three questions asked in Acts 9:4-6.
Q. Why are you persecuting Me? (Acts 9:4)
A. Because I am Your unreconciled enemy. (II Corinthians 5:19)
The Lord Jesus asked this question to Paul (still Saul at that time) because Paul was a sworn enemy of Christ and His followers. Although it is unlikely that you were a Jewish bounty hunter of Christians before you met Jesus, the fact is, in our sinful state, we were at enmity with God, and our treasonous trespasses against Him as our unacknowledged King would have been more than sufficient cause for Him to justly destroy us. However, as in the case of Paul, He was merciful. He made a way in Christ Jesus for the enmity to be slain, and for us to be reconciled to Him as we surrendered and received the adoption of sons. Now He has given to us the ministry of reconciliation, so that we might exhort others to cease their persecution of our loving Lord and join His family, too.
Q. Who are You, Lord? (Acts 9:5)
A. I AM the One in Whom dwells God – God manifest in the flesh. (II Corinthians 5:19)
Paul answered Jesus’s question with a question of his own, but, in so doing, accidentally referenced the Lordship of Jesus, the God-man, fully human and fully divine, with not only the willingness, but the ability as well, to grant full pardon, forgiveness, and reconciliation: to make, in an instant, one of His worst enemies into God’s own child.
Q. What do You want me to do? (Acts 9:6)
A. Be My ambassador. (II Corinthians 5:20)
Paul went immediately from complete defiance of Jesus to total submission. Reconciliation between sinful men and the holy God can never be accomplished through our performance of tasks or our attempts at obeying His commands, but it is accomplished by the perfect obedience of the Son of God, His sacrificial death, and the gracious gift of saving faith. Once we have received this gift, we seize upon the privilege to obey Him and the awesome responsibility to represent Him in this world as His appointed ambassadors, preaching the “word of reconciliation.”
How to Explain the Afterlife?
January 21, 2019 at 11:52 am | Posted in Q&A | 3 CommentsTags: 2 Corinthians 5, bodily resurrection, children's ministry, Heaven, Hebrews 9, life after death, Resurrection, the afterlife
Question: What is the best way to explain “the afterlife” to a very confused eight year old boy?
Answer: It depends on what he means by “the afterlife.” If he is talking about what happens when you die, then you can explain to him that those who have trusted in Christ will go to be with the Lord in Heaven (Hebrews 9:27; II Corinthians 5:8). I don’t have a ton of experience with boys, but I know that when I was helping in children’s ministry, they sometimes had trouble grasping the concept of having a soul or a spirit apart from your body. Boys tend to be more “physical” and girls tend to be more about “feelings.” So for the boys, they would think of someone dying and being buried, and they would think that the body was still the person. So, I would try to explain how, when a person dies, the thing that really makes him who he is – his thoughts, his consciousness, his “mind” – leaves the body behind. You can illustrate this by going up to a mannequin in a department store and slapping it in the face: no reaction. That’s how a person’s body will be when he dies. But the part that would have gotten mad or sad or hurt about the slap is now with Jesus, where there is no “mad, sad, or hurt.” Then, after Jesus comes back, the body that we left here on earth will be resurrected and made “super-powerful” (aka “glorified”) and rejoined with our spirit in Heaven.
An Acceptable Performance
November 17, 2017 at 6:05 pm | Posted in II Corinthians, Philippians, Uncategorized | 9 CommentsTags: 2 Corinthians 5, Apostle Paul, approval of Christ, baseball, little league, Little League baseball, Oswald Chambers, Oswald Chambers quotes, Philippians 1
There came a point in the Apostle Paul’s ministry (and, who knows? it may have been there from the time he met Christ and received the forgiveness of sins) when his fear of death was overshadowed – or at least challenged and deeply ameliorated – by his longing to leave this world behind and go to be with his Lord.
For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not. For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:
Philippians 1:22–23
Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: (For we walk by faith, not by sight:) We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him.
II Corinthians 5:6-9
It would not be unreasonable to say that, even as Paul cherished his opportunities to minister in the name of Jesus in this world, his heart was still occupied with Heavenly thoughts more than earthly thoughts. In II Corinthians 5:9 he did not attempt to hide the fact that what he was doing was “labor” – the type of physical work that could be easily observed by other human beings. However, even as he labored before, and among, men, he seemed only to be conscious of the eyes of His Master upon him.
I spent my childhood in an environment where baseball was a form of religion. From the earliest levels of little league almost everyone in my home town was cognizant of which kids performed well on the diamond, and which ones didn’t. And, while it seems likely to me all these years later that us boys had an inflated sense of the importance of winning or losing, striking out or getting a base hit, blocking a grounder with our chest (or chin!) or letting it go through our legs, I can also tell you that many a dad was evicted from the park for yelling at, or fighting with, umpires, coaches, and other dads. Plenty of boys who had escaped corporal discipline for bad grades, ditching school, stealing, and vandalizing would find themselves on the business end of a belt or an open-hand whack to the head out behind the concession stand after an 0 for 4 evening or a couple of inexcusable errors. Some of us played the game for fun, and some of us played it for survival.
The result of this kind of pressure to perform is a laser-sharp focus. Despite whatever flaws were instilled into us concerning sportsmanship and fair play, we did learn the sort of concentration that allows you to block out everything else in your surroundings and zero in on the spin of the ball, the tendency of the runner leaning off first as if he might try for second, and where you would throw the ball if it happened to carom off a bat and head in your direction on any given pitch. The roar of the crowd after a good play – or the boos and jeers after an overthrow – became something to tune out and ignore. For several of us, the approval of the crowd did not matter one iota, but the approval of our fathers did. They were who we wanted to please, and there is no doubt we played harder because of our desire for their praise, and because of a fear of their disappointment.
The Apostle Paul did not play baseball, and his Heavenly Father was interested in far greater glories than a small-town sporting event. And, of course, God’s interest in Paul’s performance was not motivated by a petty desire to live vicariously through his exploits. However, Paul wanted very badly for his efforts to be “accepted” by the Lord, and you and I would probably do well to adopt this same motivation today.
Paul is like a musician who does not need the approval of the audience if he can catch the look of approval from his Master.
Oswald Chambers, March 17 devotion on II Corinthians 5:9 from My Utmost for His Highest
Take the Good with the Bad
May 23, 2017 at 1:25 pm | Posted in Common Expressions, good and bad, II Corinthians | 7 CommentsTags: 2 Corinthians 5, Bema Seat, common expressions, common expressions in the Bible, Final Judgment, good news and bad news, Great Assize, Jesus Christ, Judgment Seat of Christ, the Gospel
It is commonly said that we often have to “take the good with the bad,” meaning that some things are so enjoyable, that, while they are not perfect or ideal, they are still worth the trouble that comes with them.
Most people certainly do NOT enjoy being painfully injected with a vaccine, but they are willing to put up with it in exchange for crossing some deadly disease off their list of concerns. I abhor waiting a long time outside a restaurant for a table to become available, but I am willing to endure it if the food is delicious enough when it is finally served to me.
Biblically speaking, we find this principle having various applications, one of which is:
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
II Corinthians 10:5 (emphasis added)
This is what some theologians have called “The Great Assize,” more commonly referred to as “The Final Judgment.” One day (and it could be today!), after Christ has returned to this world to claim His rightful ownership of it, and to assert His absolute authority over it, all the people who have ever lived will stand before Him in some sort of judgment. For Christians, whose sins have been forgiven, the judgment seat of Christ will be a place where our works, words, thoughts, and motives are judged. There will be rewards and there will be loss of rewards. For non-Christians, there will be a Great White Throne Judgment. There, sins WILL be judged. The Book of Life will be opened, and those who have not trusted Christ unto salvation will find that their names are not therein written, and they will be cast into the lake of fire forever.
So, while different judgments will occur for the two most important categories of people – saved vs. lost; born again vs. born once; saints vs. sinners; children of God vs. enemies of God; Christians vs. non-Christians; true believers vs. unbelievers; sheep vs. goats; wheat vs. tares; justified vs. unjustified – it is still true that everyone will be judged in some sense according to the things he or she has done during his or her earthly life.
This should be a powerfully bracing reminder to us that what we do each and every moment of our lives MATTERS. God is watching. He is keeping records. He sees our most secret deeds, hears all our words, and even knows our deepest, darkest, and dearest thoughts. We will truly, one day (much, much sooner than we think), take the good with the bad, and, let’s face it, as good as we think our good might be, our bad would far outweigh it on the scales of God’s perfect divine justice.
This is why it is vitally important to have an “alien” good (meaning a “goodness” or “righteousness” that comes from somewhere outside of ourselves) imputed to our account, and just as vitally important that our “bad” gets fully removed by someone who could pay the price for it in our stead. That’s where our Heavenly Advocate comes in. Only Christ can accomplish both of these gargantuan and eternal tasks for us.
When we have to cushion the blow of some disturbing information, we sometimes ask the recipient of the information, “I have bad news and I have good news: Which do you want to hear first?” You’ve already heard the bad news: All people come into this world condemned before God Almighty, the Judge of all the earth. Now, please, hear the Good News: Christ will remove your condemnation, pardon your crimes, justify you before the Judge, and give you eternal life, if you will believe, repent, turn to Him in faith, and ask Him to rescue you.
Buried Treasure
August 4, 2016 at 10:34 am | Posted in Biblical treasure, Isaiah, Uncategorized | 4 CommentsTags: 2 Corinthians 5, burial of Christ, esteeming Christ, Isaiah 53, Jesus Christ, satisfaction, the Gospel, the Suffering Servant, treasure
And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
Isaiah 53:9
The prophecy that Christ would be buried with the rich was fulfilled by the actions of Joseph of Arimathaea. Jesus’s death and Resurrection are integral parts of the Gospel, but so is His burial.
Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
Isaiah 53:10
The Lord Jesus bore our sin to the Cross, but it is not the weight of that sin that crushed (“bruised”) Him; it was the weight of God’s wrath. Jesus was childless in the biological sense, and, furthermore, the prophecy describes a dead man “seeing his seed.” How could this be? It was fulfilled in Jesus’s Resurrection and the spiritual children He would regenerate and adopt.
He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
Isaiah 53:11
God the Father was not “satisfied” in the sense of taking delight in Jesus’s suffering, but His righteousness, law, holiness, and justice were satisfied by payment in full for the entire sin debt of His people.
Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
Isaiah 53:12
Jesus on the Cross made intercession for transgressors, and He’s still doing that today.
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
II Corinthians 5:17
Let us esteem Jesus Christ better today than men did when He came to die for us. Let us look at what they esteemed instead of Him, and ask ourselves if we esteem those things more than Him today. He was poor. Do we esteem wealth? He was an outcast among the religious establishment. Do we esteem popularity and acceptance? People lied about Him and said vile things. Do we fight for our good reputation with plans and schemes to get even, and with our own get-back-at-you gossip? Which do we care about more – that we look good to men, or that God looks great to men? He came to serve and to die. Do we dare to try to get ourselves in the position of being served by someone else? He suffered hardship and discomfort and a life of hard work. Will we dare to pamper ourselves?
Jesus is rejected so much today, for so many of the same reasons He was rejected back then – He represents everything that carnal men hate. He is worthy, and that’s an thing easy to sing, but do our activities and attitudes and awe prove that He’s our Treasure?
The Deep End 
Changing Clothes for the Last Time
September 24, 2021 at 3:10 pm | Posted in II Corinthians | 2 CommentsTags: 2 Corinthians 5, assurance of salvation, commentary on 2 Corinthians, death for Christians, ghosts, glorified bodies, purgatory, Sunday School lessons on 2 Corinthians, the Holy Spirit
II Corinthians 5:1
Paul’s focus on the eternal gave him great assurance, and helped him to see everything in the temporal through the lens of the eternal. Just as the Old Testament Tabernacle ministry was not permanent, the tabernacle in which we live our lives is dissolving. Our bodies are breaking down, losing stength, and starting to malfunction. This will discourage us and drive us to fear unless we remember that our earthly bodies will one day be replaced by glorified bodies. Those bodies will be indestuctible and incorruptible.
II Corinthians 5:2
These groans might be audible or they might be inward. They might be groans of suffering or they might be groans of longing. The leaving of our earthly bodies and the leaving of our earthly home is something to look forward to rather than to dread.
II Corinthians 5:3
This seems like an obvious idea. The only way not to be naked is to be clothed, but when a person dies, his earthly “clothing” (his body) is still lying there in the form of a corpse and his soul is no longer present. His soul has not escaped into an ephemeral mystery realm. No, the person’s soul has changed houses and changed “clothes.”
II Corinthians 5:4-5
The Holy Spirit is like a deposit or a down payment on the Christian’s eternal life. He is not meant to reside in this world permanently in its present condition. He reminds us that we belong to another world, another Kingdom, another home.
II Corinthians 5:6
There is no intermediate state for believers: no probationary holding pen; no earth-wandering spirits; no purgatory; no reincarnation, no soul-sleep.