Successful Ethics

I recently watched a television drama in which a woman became pregnant as a result of rape. She gave birth to a daughter, but kept the truth of her child’s father a secret. Years later, before she died, the woman wrote a letter revealing the name of the father, who was in prison serving a lengthy sentence for multiple crimes.

The girl, now a young adult, discovered she needed a kidney transplant, and her biological father might be a match. Would the hardened convict be tested and perhaps give his kidney so his own flesh and blood (whom he had never seen) could live?

Why would he go through the pain of surgery and recovery for someone he’d never met? What if someday one of his kidneys failed? Wasn’t that the attitude he’d taken in the first place, the philosophy by which he’d lived his life?

Yet he has the opportunity to do something good. Giving of himself wouldn’t erase his mistakes, but the selfishness of the past could be followed by this selfless, heroic act. Would he make the “right” decision this time?

This scenario is rare and unlikely to happen to us. Yet daily we are faced with the choice to “do the right thing.” Have you noticed how easy it is to get away with a little dishonesty now and then?

Telling a “white lie” to escape unnecessary grief or even punishment: “I’m

sorry I’m late for work; there was so much traffic on the freeway today!”

Taking something that isn’t rightfully ours: “It wasn’t my fault the clerk gave me extra change at the store. I’m a loyal customer, and they can afford the loss.”

Yet despite the fact they may never be caught, some strive to practice ethical behavior, regardless of the consequences. Why is that?

One writer observed, “Successful ethics cannot exist independently of faith in the redeemer-God.”*

It goes beyond avoiding a guilty conscience; they believe life is not lived independent of God, who created each human being with a specific purpose in life.

If that is true, then those who are non-believers, atheists and possibly even agnostics, understandably have no moral conviction about them. Why would they do the right thing without first asking, “What’s in it for me?” Is a “good feeling” or positive reinforcement enough to motivate ethical behavior?

Then there are those who wonder, “Who decides what is ‘right’ and what is ‘wrong’?” Maybe what’s right for me isn’t the same as what’s right for you.

Why “do the right thing” when it makes more sense and is beneficial to do the opposite? Does that make it “wrong”?

Followers of Jesus Christ face these questions everyday as they go to jobs and school campuses, places of business and even to some churches. The arguments they hear from co-workers, neighbors, and friends are often, “What is right for you isn’t necessarily what is right for me. You do your thing, and I’ll do mine. Let’s choose to coexist in peace and harmony. It’s all good.”

So what response should they have for someone who wants to live with her boyfriend before marriage?

What’s wrong with getting drunk or even smoking a little pot on the weekends in the privacy of one’s own home?

Why not be involved in a homosexual relationship, as long as both parties are consenting adults?

Why not accept all “religions” and systems of belief, as long as those believers are sincere and their actions hurt no one? Just “live and let live”!

The question of ethics is as old as the Garden of Eden and goes back to the topic of belief and faith. Adam and Eve were given the choice – believe God and obey His commands (the result – to live in paradise) or doubt and disobey (and face the consequences). Their actions would affect mankind for generations to come.

God continued to call people to righteous living – to faith in Him as the Creator of mankind with a purpose for each life. To Abraham He said, “I am God Almighty; walk before Me and be blameless” (Genesis 17:1).

To the Israelites He recalled how He rescued and cared for them, then promised that obedience would be to their benefit: “You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. Now if you obey Me fully and keep My covenant, then out of all nations you will be My treasured possession. Although the whole earth is Mine, you will be for Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exodus 19:4-6).

Similar commands continued throughout the Old Testament:

             “It is the LORD your God you must follow, and Him you must revere.   
             Keep His commands and obey Him; serve Him and hold fast to
             Him” (Deut. 13:4).

             “…what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy
             and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8).

            “Trust in the LORD and do good” (Psalm 37:3).

In the New Testament, a believer’s righteousness was ignited by a heart of gratitude for God’s redeeming him from sin. God’s demands for “moral obedience . . . constituted the more fundamental means for a man’s demonstration of the validity of his faith . . .”++

A man’s faith in God is exemplified by His actions. If there is no belief in God as the great Creator of mankind, no faith in anything but an arbitrary existence for each human being, what reason is there to practice morality? Ethical behavior may not always seem to be the best choice to make.

But for the Christian, forsaking sinful humanity and accepting God’s gift of life is the only way. Following God’s ways demonstrates faith in Him, His plan and purpose, which are far greater than ours. (See Isaiah 55:8-9.)

Good deeds come not from what we will receive in return (warm feelings, positive feedback, temporary relief or even freedom from pain; sometimes punishment and persecution are the result of doing the right thing). It is not the idea that good decisions erase bad choices or the hope that someone will show us kindness in return.

Instead, we live in response to God’s gift of love. We love because He first loved us. And His love was the greatest act of generosity, benevolence, selflessness, compassion, kindness, mercy, and grace. It can never be equaled or replicated. He gave everything, even though He knew some would reject His gift, choosing eternal separation from Him instead of eternal life with Him.

It is said, “Genuine faith cannot long exist independent of ethical commitment.” ≈

Our faith spurs us on to “do the right thing.” And sometimes that may be the strongest witness we have for Christ:

“It is no use walking anywhere to preach unless our walking is our preaching”

(St. Francis of Assisi).

Jesus said, “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16, italics mine).

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*J. Barton Payne, The Theology of the Older Testament 316.

++Ibid. 315.
≈Ibid. 316.