1 of 10
True Morality
(James) James 4:17 Most people quantify morality by looking at those things which they do not do, or by looking at the things they have done. What if we looked at all of those things we should have done. Hickory Lane Christian Church Washington Courthouse OH Rob Hoos
Introduction There is a very controversial movie, made years ago, called the Boondock Saints. The basic plot of the movie begs the question, “What would happen if God brought forth judges into the world (more along the lines of OT Judges) and sent them to punish the wicked?� Though this movie raises a number of points about the nature of justice and our response as human beings caught up in a painful world. But one of the first themes it develops centers around the idea of indifference and morality. As the scene opens, they are standing in a catholic church building, and taking part of the mass services. We hear the preacher/priest calling out his message in a large, and powerful voice saying: ...and I am reminded on this holy day of the sad story of Kitty Geneviese. This poor soul cried out time and time again for help but no person answered her calls. Though many saw, not one so much as called. Her assailant wiped the bloody knife off on her lifeless little body. They watched as he simply walked away. Nobody wanted to get involved. Nobody wanted to take a stand... We must fear evil men and deal with them accordingly
2 of 10
but what we must truly guard against, what we must fear most, Is the indifference of good men. This short and simple message delivers a very powerful point. Do we fear most the problems of the world, the poverty, the injustice, the hatred, the lack of hope, the lack of knowledge of God, or do we rather fear the indifference we feel toward it which allows it to continue unimpeded? This call to end indifference is one which will, for the most part fall of deaf ears. When people are indifferent, that means they don始t care, and I am afraid that it takes a small miracle to make people who don始t really care about something to care about it. I know this from personal experience. I have been struggling lately with an attitude of indifference, and for whatever reason, I have started to care very little about too many things, and when I noticed this trend I found myself broken. I know how hard it is to battle indifference, and I know how easy it is to be indifferent without even thinking about it. I think that one of the major issues that feeds our utter indifference is the way we look at morality.
Morality I know that sounds weird, but please hear me out on this. One of the things that we identify as a necessary part of our composition as a Christian is that we are moral people. I would agree that morality is a good thing, but I would propose that the way we view morality is a big part of the problem. We view morality mainly in terms of not doing certain things, doing certain things, or what we claim is our belief.
3 of 10
Negative Morality To many people, what it means to be moral is best defined by who moral people are not supposed to be. If you really stop and think about it, this might be the plight that you find yourself in. People who think about morality in these terms see themselves as a moral person because of certain behaviors that they do not do. Most of the time, one of the first groups of actions that are considered non-existent within someone始s life to make them moral are the very obvious sins. People think that since they have not murdered, or stolen, or committed adultery that they are good, or moral people. Whether it be people who are outside of Christ talking about how they are not sinners or in need of a savior, or someone within the church who views themselves as the complete package when it comes to being a Christian. If they avoid the big ones, then they think they are good to go. Additionally, often times, we think that we are moral people when we not only avoid those major, obvious sins, but also when we avoid things that are considered taboo. You始ve probably experienced this, either in your own life, or in watching others. Sometimes, people believe themselves to be righteous because they avoid taboo things. You始ll see this in people who consider morality to be avoiding drinking, smoking, gambling, or things like that. These people think themselves because they do not do those things. As you can see, a great deal of how we view morality is shaped by those things that we either voluntarily or through force of will do not do. But that is not the only way we typify morality in a typical understanding. It is also influenced by those things we voluntarily choose to do.
4 of 10
Positive Morality In this second way of thinking about morality, we focus not on the things which we do not do, but on those things which we willingly choose to do. This person sees themselves as good or moral because of certain, isolated (or continual) events when they had chosen the right, or acted in a way that was good. This is the kind of person who has done a series of good deeds throughout their lives thinks that these are what make them moral. If we have the occasional good deed, then we are moral, or at least more moral than others. Included within this group would be actions like church attendance, or Sunday School attendance. These are the kind of people that pride themselves on their stellar attendance to religious events. They are also characterized by being nice people, nothing super sacrificial, but nice and easy to get along with. Sure they may give a homeless man a few pieces of change every now and again, and they are kind people over all, but that始s about it.
Would you say this is a fairly good characterization of how we view morality, and even our responsibility as a Christian. I think that the honest truth is that this is how we interpret our world and our faith whether or not we would like to admit it. And since we understand our role as Christians to be moral people, this is what we see as our responsibility to be like. This is what we think it is all about.
What this would look like Basically, if this morality was prevailing in our culture, here is what we could expect the world to look like. People would be nice, friendly, and probably even courteous. They
5 of 10
would avoid those large sins like murder, and stealing, and adultery. They may not drink or smoke, or use “bad words.” They would occasionally do acts of kindness and service for other people, and on rare occasions they would rise to the challenge of really serving someone in an amazing way, say once a year or so. These people would probably regularly attend church services, and the occasional bible study. They would look basically like a picture perfect church person by all accounts. Sure, theyʼre pretty good sounding arenʼt they. They would be a bunch of nice little boys and girls. There is a problem, however. This society, with all the great things about it, though it is so “moral” and “good” it does nothing to deal with the indifference of people. If morality is all about those things we choose not to do, and those things we voluntarily do, then where does the rest of our life fall? Sure, they may do good deeds occasionally, but do they consistently choose to do what is right and good? Sure they are decent, good people, but they are missing something. I say this because our way of thinking about who we are, and what it means to live like a Christian and be moral is missing something too.
Jesus vs. Our Morality One of the reasons that I feel so comfortable saying that there is something lacking from our concept of what it means to be a Christian is because of how different Jesus was than what we consider morality. Jesus was a person who I believe would probably not be welcome in some Churches today because of the way he acted. I say this because to me, our basic understanding of morality sounds a lot like that of the Pharisees. Seriously, I want you to consider Jesus as opposed to our nice, neat view of morality.
6 of 10
1. Jesus went against many of the norms and social customs of his time. Jesus would not be welcome at churches because he shook too many things up. Jesus associated himself with tax-collectors, sinners, prostitutes, and other shady characters. He actually cared about them. He welcomed them as brothers, and not rejects. This flew right in the face of everything the religious leaders of his time taught, and still teach. He ate with them, spent his time with them, and met them where they were at. He cared for them every time. 2. He ignored some of the traditions and customs that the religious leaders made, and blatantly opposed other rules they had made. Just because that is how people have always done it was not good enough for Jesus, because he was asking for something more than mere tradition. He was not seeking to not rock the boat, but challenged the traditions, and pointed to their weaknesses. 3. Jesus called people out in a very blatant and harsh way when he saw that they were hypocrites. When he confronted people that were acting in ways other than how they should and guising it under the name of religion, he called the broods of vipers. Jesus was not what we may consider to be nice, or tame. He was no good little boy or girl. Sure, he was known for doing good, and not doing what was wrong, but the taboo, he would flaunt in the face of religious leaders to show them where they were wrong. Jesus doesn始t fit our ideas of morality. In addition to that, there is one characteristic of Jesus that makes him totally different from the way we view morality... Let始s look at a story about Jesus from Mark 3:1-6 and see if we can see this characteristic shine through.
7 of 10
Mark 3:1-6 1 Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. 2 And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. 3 And he said to the man with the withered hand, Come here. 4 And he said to them, Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill? But they were silent. 5 And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, Stretch out your hand. He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. 6 The Pharisees went out and immediately held counsel with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him. Here we read this amazing story about Jesus. He is in a synagogue, and he sees this man who is suffering, and he sees the cold hard hearts of the other people in the room who would not allow this man to be healed because of their stubborn cling to a tradition. Jesus looking at these people is amazed at them and asks: “And he said to them, Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But, they do not answer. The bible says that Jesus was angry with them, and healed the man in spite of the wishes of the religious leaders. Jesusʼ anger was a result of their indifference and hard-heartedness. Something that Jesus was not is indifferent. He chose to do the right thing no matter what the consequences were, or who he offended. Jesus cares, and the way you know he actually cares is because he acts on behalf of those who he cares about.
Another Angle on Morality While weʼre at this whole thing, letʼs also take another look at a biblical concept we keep running into in the book of James, over and over again. James wants the reader to
8 of 10
understand that actions and being are linked together, and are inseparable. This is a similar idea to what Jesus teaches in the New Testament. Basically speaking, you are how you act, and you are how you speak. Your heart is what causes the actions that you do, and so whatever you do reflects the state of your heart. You canʼt say you are one way and act another. This brings us to a big point. If we are, in our hearts and souls, how we act, then morality is indicative of who we are. And as James points out in his book, there are three different components to this. What you donʼt do reveals who you are. What you do reflects who you are. And finally, What you donʼt do even though you should reflects who you are.
James 4:17 There is one passage in James that says a lot. James has been trying to convince these people that certain actions are wrong, and some are right, and in a way of trying to convince them to choose the right he says something very profound. James writes: 17Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin. In this one verse, he speaks volumes to us about what it means to be a Christian, and how we ought to live our lives. If you know that you ought to do something, that something within your power is right and good and pleasing to God, and you willfully choose not to do it, even though you are not committing an outright wicked act, it is a sin.
9 of 10
This is the sin of indifference, or omission. This is something very serious that many people leave out of how they view themselves. Sure, we think weʼre righteous because we donʼt commit the major sins, and we may not do anything that is even taboo for a christian. You know what, we may even have done some good deeds in the past. But if we are indifferent, and do not act when we know something to be right and good. Then we sin. Apathy and indifference are not an option for a Christian, because caring and acting are to be a part of who we really are, and the degree to which we care and act reveal our hearts.
Application This means we must act, not as good little boys and girls who desire only to maintain, and be just good enough. Instead, we are called to be activists for God. We are called to take every possible opportunity to serve someone else, to show them love and affection that goes beyond kindness and civility to actual raw sacrificial love. That is the opposite of indifference. Let me ask you. Why donʼt we witness to our friends? We claim they will be in hell without Jesus. Either we donʼt believe that, or we have been overcome by indifference and really donʼt care what happens to those we claim to love. We know that Jesus served the lowliest, but we are so indifferent that we pass by them without serving, or by making excuses in our heads as to why they really donʼt need help.
10 of 10
We see opportunities for ministry, and we do not take them because we have been made indifferent through circumstances, stress, laziness, or plain lack of passion, but one way or another, the sin of indifference runs rampant throughout the church, and throughout our own lives. When I read how angry Jesus was at the Pharisees who were unwilling to give up their stupid tradition so one man would be restored, and who were unmoved and indifferent to his plight, I cannot help but think that Jesus is angry with the church now. Simply because we have stopped caring, and acting. Simply because we know the good we ought to do, and continually choose not to do it. We must fear evil men and deal with them accordingly but what we must truly guard against, what we must fear most, Is the indifference of good men.