What Does the Bible Say About Morality #3?

In this episode, we follow up on our last episode where we concluded with the fact that God is the Author and Determiner of morality. Arnie and Fred begin by noting that moral character is unique to mankind. We discuss the human spirit which was created by God when He created mankind in His image. We look at several passages in Genesis which tell us this. Jesus notes that God is a Spirit which identifies us as spiritual beings as Moses said, made in His image. Both Paul and Peter discuss our conscience which functions as our moral compass if we listen to it properly. We look at what Paul says about the possibility of searing our conscience to the point it is desensitized and doesn't work as God intended. We note that morality is universally applicable. God is no respecter of persons. His moral requirements apply to all countries and people who live in them. We close out this episode by noting that immorality is the same as sin. We will begin our next episode by a fuller discussion of this fact. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our discussion. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript of this Buzzsprout episode provided for your convenience. 

Transcript

Fred Gosnell: 0:00

This is a presentation of the Woodland church of Christ, meeting at 3370 Broad Street in Sumter, South Carolina. We meet for worship on Sunday at ten thirty am and five thirty pm. We meet for bible study at neine thirty am on Sunday and seven pm on Wednesday. If you have questions or comments on this lesson, you may email them to Fred Gosnell at fgosnell@ftc-i.net or to Arnie Granke at agranke440718@twc.com.

Arnie: 0:31

Good afternoon. This is Arne Granke and Fred Gosnell. We're with the church of Christ at Woodland in Sumter, South Carolina. And this is, what does the Bible say? The church there is the host of of this program. Fred and I are both members of of that congregation. We certainly hope, if you happen to be in the Sumter, South Carolina area, either as a tourist or on a military assignment, we hope that you'll drop in at Woodland on Wednesday evenings or Sunday in the morning and the evening and worship with us and study the Bible with us. Fred and I have been talking about the subject of morality. And two points that we that we established so far is that that certainly morality is not of human origin. Men don't just make up what they think is is okay as far as morality is concerned, because people that are that are drinkers think that it's okay to drink and and people that are swearers, are people that think it's okay to swear, but you can't drink. And people that are fornicators think that it's okay to fornicate, but you shouldn't drink and swear, you know. And and so men, mankind tends to make up the wrong rules, not very close to what God has has had to say. God, in fact, is the author and determiner of of what is moral and what is not. And he has stated that for us in in the Bible, the Word of God. So Fred, while we're thinking about the Bible being the source of that information, I think you've got a couple of passages of scripture there that you wanted to talk about.

Fred Gosnell: 2:38

Yes. Let's, let's start in Genesis chapter one. That's a good place to start in the beginning. And of course, the point is that moral character is is unique to mankind. The human spirit is created in in God's image. We're created in his spiritual image as are spiritual beings. Genesis 1, 27, says, So God created man in His own image. In the image of God, created He him, male and female created he them. So the image is not the physical image of God. God doesn't look like man from a physical standpoint. And notice he says that male and female created he them. So so the image that they were created in, male and female were created in the same image of God. So it's talking about the fact that we're spiritual beings, and our our we are made in God's image. So, so then in Genesis five, one and two, there Moses writes, he says, This is the book of the generations of Adam in the day that God created man in the likeness of God made he him male and female, created he them and blessed them and called their name Adam in the day when they were created. And of course, from a physical standpoint, man was created male and female, but from a spiritual standpoint, they were created in the likeness, or the in the image of God. So, so then our moral character, then is going to come from our Creator, and he's the one, as you stated in the beginning, that God's the author and the determiner of morality. And I think last last week, you read Exodus 20 you, you read all of the 10 Commandments that God specified as being the the first written moral guide from God. So moral character, again, is unique to mankind.

Arnie: 4:36

And and that's a good point too, because when we're thinking in terms of of the other inhabitants of the earth, besides human beings, none of them have the spirit and none of none of them even have the the code that God has given us in His word and the, has, has, has emphasized the fact that he has some rules and expectations of of mankind. Of course, one thing we haven't said about that is that that Adam and Eve, of course, broke those rules and and especially the rule that had to do with with eating of the fruit of of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. And so as a result of that, there were some penalties. And that's why we're not in the in the garden of of Eden any anymore, and that's why we're subject to death, because they became subject to death when they disobeyed God. The passages that you read Fred, Genesis, one and then also from chapter five, are pretty much substantiated by a couple of other places as well. Noah, of course, we recognize him as being the the the one that that was the Ark builder at the time that God had decided to to flood the flood the whole earth. And in giving instructions to to Noah and and telling him some of the things that that were essential for him to understand in the role that he was going to play, in Genesis, chapter nine and verse six, God said, Whoso shedeth man's blood by his by Man shall his blood be shed, for in the image of God made he mankind. And and again, image of God is, we're talking about God as a spirit, and they worship him must worship Him in spirit and and in truth, and, and so that's the image. You're exactly right in saying God doesn't look like Fred Gosnell thankfully, or Arnie Granke thankfully as well. God is Spirit, and we all are made in God's image as spiritual beings. Jesus also spoke about this, and John records Jesus in John chapter four and verse 24 when Jesus said, God is a Spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth. And and that's a reference to the fact that God has has made the rules, and we are obligated to either abide by by his word or they're going to be some unhappy consequences if we don't.

Fred Gosnell: 7:57

Yes, and of course, our moral character is, it's an intrinsic function of of our conscience. And of course, when God created us as a free moral agency, he gave us a conscience, something that, when it's properly educated, works to give us an idea of what's right and what's wrong. And Paul, Paul in Acts 24 verse 16, he was, he was before the Sanhedrin here, I believe. And he told them, he says, And herein do I exercise myself to have always a conscience void of offense toward God and toward men. So, so we have a innate given to us by God a conscience that that tells us whether or not something we're doing is right or wrong, you know. And Paul says, I always exercise myself to have my conscience void of offense, both toward God and toward man. And then in Romans, chapter nine and verse one, again, Paul says, I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit. So so again, people have the have a conscience, and whether they admit it or not, they are, when that conscience is operating correctly, then it will warn them of the things that they're doing, give them an idea that, well, maybe I shouldn't, shouldn't do this. Of course, there are other problems there. Sometimes Peter tells, tells the brethren he's writing to in First, Peter 3, 16, he says, Having a good conscience, that whereas they speak evil of you as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation or your good behavior in Christ. And of course, the brethren there that he's he's writing to, there was a time that they, they were just like the rest of the world. But then, they obeyed the gospel, and then they were obeying the Lord, and the people that they used to run with would speak evil of them. But what Peter says Now you having a good conscience, whereas they speak evil of you as evildoers, they're evil doers, and so they that they may be ashamed that they falsely accuse your good behavior in Christ. So and that's what people do to Christians. They will even though we're doing things conscientiously that we believe to be true and right, because we learn them from from God's Word. And there's others that accuse us of being evil, and of course, those are false accusations that are provided to Christians by those who aren't.

Arnie: 10:47

One of those passages there, First, Peter, chapter three, verse 16, contains one of the words that in the in the King James Version, there are a number of of words that have changed their meaning and their use in the English language over the past 400 years, and so people sometimes miss misunderstand what the passage may be saying. For example, that and this word conversation is, is one of those words, and that's a good example of the the change of meaning. When we talk about conversation, usually it's a discussion, and you're talking to me, and I'm talking back to you, and and we're responding to one another and and so forth. That's not the meaning of the word conversation in, in this passage, and, and there are a number of words in, in the King James version that that have made those changes. Here is, is a case of the word actually meaning your manner of life. How do you live? Do you live according to to God's will. Or do you live according to concepts that men just want to make excuses for and think of themselves as being okay and doing them for whatever, for whatever reason they might might offer. So conversation. Is, is one of those changed words and and periodically as we're reading the King James Version, and we often use that ourselves, uh, just because it's comfortable we've we've used it for a long time and and memorize whatever passages we've memorized have been from the King James Version, and and so as a result of that, we need to explain the words that were that we're referring to there. Well, you know, our consciences have a, have a have a job that God has has given them and, and that job is for us to to recognize what is right and and what is is wrong. To some degree, other human beings are a part of of the of programming our our consciences. Our parents have a lot to do with that. They they lay down rules about what is right and what is is wrong. For the most part, parents do a pretty good job of that. Sometimes that's not always the not always the case, but those are events where a child is warned once or twice, or maybe even three times, about doing a certain thing or not doing that certain thing, and then at some point, why some some penalties come into play to enforce what the parents are teaching with regard to what God's word has said. Other times, parents teach evil behaviors themselves because their their conscience has been seared and and they feel that they can get away with it or or whatever like that. And so we need to understand that, that our conscience can be counter educated and and it can become desensitized if we, if we get used to doing things that are that are wrong. We get get used to stealing things. We get used to using profanity. We get used to to sexual immoral immorality, or something along that line. Then, then all of a sudden, our conscience has been deprogrammed and reprogrammed with some with some principles that are that are not, not acceptable, that with the conscience becomes seared. I'm looking Fred at First Timothy, chapter four, and and verse one in in that regard, where Paul writes to Timothy, he said, Now the Spirit speaketh expressly that in the latter time, some shall depart from the faith. How would that be? Be possible? Well, exactly the very way that I've just just talked about is how that can happen, Giving heed to seducing spirits, doctrines of devils, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their conscience seared with a hot iron. Of course, that's a figurative expression. There's no real physical injury that that occurs when the conscience is is seared. And so, so here is, here's a situation where, where a young man, or maybe even an old man, has has left the the principles that God has given and has begun to go in the direction that he wants to go for whatever reason he wants to go. Are there other passages along that line, Fred?

Fred Gosnell: 16:31

Yes, I've got one. Paul writes to the Ephesians. In Ephesians, Chapter 4, 17, through 19. And here he says this, I say, therefore and testify in the Lord that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk in the vanity of their mind, having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them because of the blindness of their heart. Who, being past feeling, have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. And of course, what happens is that, of course, he's he's writing to the Ephesians. He's writing to Christians here, and he's telling them. He's saying, don't have your life follow, following the things, walking like other Gentiles walk because they're not doing the things that God says. And then what happens is, if you start drinking and smoking and running with the crowd and doing the things that the world does, pretty soon as as you just read, your conscience becomes seared and it doesn't work anymore, and you are well satisfied to do the things that you do, all those fun things, quote, unquote, that are sinful, and you are doing yourself great harm. And notice, he says, because of the blindness of their heart, they have affected the their heart affected the way that that they look at things, their understanding is darkened. They they missed the point, they missed the truth, and here they are. They're following the things that the people of the world, the Gentiles that he's talking about, the things that they were doing. Of course, a lot of the Ephesians, they were Gentiles before the and they were idolaters. They worshiped idols and did all of the things that the Gentile worship was engaged in. And then they had become Christians. But then, of course, they still had that all of those things in their mind that they used to do. So if they're not careful, Paul saying that, you know, you'll end up doing that again. And you know, the, you know, the philosophy of the world, the way that people who are not Christians do things, there's a lot of pull that they sometimes affect us with. You know, we're not part of the crowd anymore. We're Christians. We're members of the church and so, and then they speak evil of us because of the things that we do. We're righteous people. Sometimes people look say, well, you're judging me. We're not judging anybody. We're just trying to do things according to what God says and and if we don't, we will sear our conscience, and at some point, it'll quit working the way it's supposed to, and we will have gone off the rails as as some would say,

Arnie: 19:25

That's a good way to put it, off the rail. I you know, I have to plead guilty to being one of those people who who makes little notes in the margins of the Bible and highlights things with colored pencils and and stuff like like that. But it helps me to to find passages or to emphasize passages that that I want to refer to at another time. And and and I wrote in Ephesians, chapter four, I numbered the concepts that that, Uh, Paul was talking about there, starting in verse 18. Number one is under theirs understanding was darkened. Uh, Number two was being alienated from the life of God. Number three was being past feeling. You know, people, people get that way, don't they, when they when they decide that they they want to do this, and suddenly they realize, hey, I don't feel guilty anymore about that. And number four was having given themselves over to lasciviousness, that that's a pretty dangerous condition spiritually, if, if we get into into that shape, I see you've got Romans Chapter Two there in front of you, Fred.

Fred Gosnell: 20:58

Yes. And of course, morality, it's, not something that's that's relegated to a group of local people. Morality is universal. It's morals. The same morals that are applicable here in Sumter, South Carolina are the same morals that are applicable in any foreign country in the world. And and Paul, Paul to the to the Romans. He says, there in chapter two, verses 14 through 16, he says, For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature, the things contained in the law, these having not the law, are law to themselves, which show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the meanwhile, accusing or else excusing one another. So we're saying, well, the Gentiles didn't have the law, but nevertheless, their conscience bore them witness that they nevertheless did some of the things that were written in the law, things that were right and contrary to what Gentiles generally did. So morality is universally applicable. Doesn't matter where you live. God's moral law applies to every human being everywhere on the face of the earth. It's not just something local. Sometimes people will kind of make it that way. When I was stationed in Germany, there was a, there was a preacher in northern Germany that said, Well, you know, drinking alcohol is not, not really a problem here Germany, children drink it and and it's no problem there. It's, a it's part of their culture. No, culture doesn't change God's moral law. People may use it to excuse it, but it doesn't change God's moral law.

Arnie: 22:51

Well, that keeps the wine industry going, you know, if you, if you get them hooked while they're young, then they'll continue while they're older. So maybe, maybe that was what the what the thought about that actually, actually was. Well, so we want to be we want to be careful that we that we don't allow ourselves to really, to misrepresent things that they that the Bible says, And that happens so very often and and I think you're exactly right that that to some degree, the same moral principles are upheld by every society, wherever you go in the world. It used to be that if you killed somebody, you're going to pay with your own life. I see that now, in the last century, that's become less of a situation. You might spend prison, your life in prison now, whereas some societies and some cultures, aside from the society you may pay with your life. And then there are other things as well. If you, if you have a relationship with somebody else's wife, they're probably not going to take kindly to that, and you steal somebody else's property, they're not going to accept that, all of those principles are universal, pretty much universal, at least some of them still are. And all mankind maybe doesn't realize that it's because God gave those in the beginning, they they may think that it was something that they kind of came up with on their own, but usually that's not the not, not the case. Looking, looking now, I think that was in Ephesians chapter four that that you had read that? Was it not? Oh, that was Romans two. Okay, so in in Romans two, the universal applicability of of God's morality. Romans 10 accompanies that and speaks of that as well. In verse 12 there, there's no difference between the Jew and the Greek. The word Greek is one of those words we're not talking about. He's from Greece, necessarily. That was the term that the King James translators used for for the Gentiles represented the the Gentiles. There's no difference between the Jew and the Gentile. For the same Lord overall is rich unto all them that call upon Him. So it doesn't matter where you live in the world. It doesn't matter what culture you grew up in, if you honor God's word and obey God's word and seek to promote God's word, he's pleased with that, and he supports you and and things go well for you,

Fred Gosnell: 26:18

Yes. And, and, of course, one of the things that that really the Bible points out to us is that there was a time that when the gospel was first preached, that it was it was only preached to and taught to Jews. But then in Acts chapter 10, we have Peter was sent to a military man, Cornelius, to teach him the gospel and and part of part of his teaching there in Acts 10, 34 and 35, Then Peter opened his mouth and said, Of a truth, I perceive that God is no respecter of persons, but In every nation, he that feareth him and worketh righteousness is accepted with him. Of course, it doesn't matter whether you're in the USA or whether you're in Russia, you're in China, you're in your India, Iran or somewhere in South, South America, God's law is applicable to every human being everywhere. God is no respecter of persons. Doesn't matter who you are. He requires your obeying His law. And then he says that in every nation, he that feareth him and worketh righteousness is accepted with him. Of course, when we look at that statement, well, then the other side of that statement is that if you don't fear the Lord, and if you don't work righteousness, then you are not accepted by God. So so his morality, his rules, that that he has set down for us, and, of course, for us in since, since the cross, we're under the law of Christ. So we find in the New Testament, we find those moral codes and those things that we are required to follow from from God. And everybody in the world in every nation is required to follow those, that that moral code. So it is, it is universally applicable. God has made those laws, and those who he created, mankind, we are all subject to them, and we are all expected to to follow them. God is the one that makes those rules, and we're His creation, and we are expected to follow them.

Arnie: 28:41

As as we recognize that God is the is the giver of what is, what are the rules of morality or immorality, we need to understand that that the word morality, or rather that the word immorality is almost the equivalent of using the word for sin. That that, since God has has denoted what is moral, to do otherwise is, in fact, a matter of sin. We need to understand that. And I'm just we have just part of a minute here. Now I'll just refer you to to James chapter four. And in in James, chapter four and and verse 17, the the apostle writes and says, Therefore to him that knoweth to do good and doeth it not to him, it is sin. To him it is immoral as a matter of fact, there. So we're when we're thinking in terms of morality, it's just, it's not just a a sexual thing or a thing with regard to to minor issues of right and wrong, as we might think of it, but the whole realm of things that that are right, and the whole realm of things that are wrong are the issues of morality and immorality. But we'll stop at this point, because we're at the 30 minute point, and we'll hope that you come back and be with us again next Lord's Day. And let's talk a little bit more about this. Let let's think in terms of of immorality being a synonym, so to speak, of the word sin. We hope that you'll have a good week. We look forward to to the next Lord's Day. Have a good week.