Ethics # 2

I came to the conclusion that doing what is ethical is doing what the will of God is. I also deduced that good and evil do not exist independently of God. In other words, God is the creator of the standards of good and evil. God put within His creation to do things which are more in accordance with His nature (what we would call good) or to do things that are not in accordance with His nature (what we would call evil). In the days of the nation of Israel, God's people were commanded to do things that would enrage our Christianized western sensibilities. But on the other hand, God has a right to punish those who are doing that which is against His nature (which is what the Canaanites had been doing for hundreds of years). In the ancient world, it was not a foreign idea that a god would use a people group to deal out his/her punishment against another. To the Israelites, obeying God's command to deal out this justice was perfectly natural (though they did not completely eradicate the Canaanites; later Biblical texts make that clear).

Now we get to the million dollar question. If it was ethical for the Israelites to kill God's enemies then, is it ethical for Christians to kill God's enemies now? Is it ethical to kill anyone now? This is something we have to deal with because it is a very real issue today. Islamic fundamentalists say they are blowing themselves up and killing others because it is the will of Allah. Some Christian sects have bombed abortion clinics saying they dealing out justice to God's enemies. I cannot speak on behalf of the Muslims, except that I believe their religion to be false. However, I can for the Christian position on ethics.

The first misconception is that we can deal out God's justice in any way. God has already dealt out the justice through the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. As we can see through scripture (both Hebrew Bible and New Testament), God is "not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." God did not like the fact He had to punish the Canaanites and in many cases His own people in ancient times. However, through the crucifixion, God's wrath against the world is satisfied. His will now is that all should come to Him since He has forgiven their sins (note: this does not imply universal salvation). Through the teaching of Jesus, we see what God's will for the world is. It is not war, hate, and death, it is peace and reconciliation. It is God's will that we do not have an "us versus them" mentality, for God desires us all to be one through Him. Our mentality should be one of trying to reach out across boundaries of hate. We are to be pursuing peace.

The question comes to mind, what about in times of war? What about the woman at Fort Hood who shot the shooter? Are the soldiers in our military or the policemen doing God's will when they kill someone? The answer to those questions could be either yes or no. No, they are not doing God's will because it is not God's will for there to be war or criminals. However, they are doing God's will in that by averting tyranny or crime, they are preserving law and order in the world and in society. It is interesting to note that when a soldier came to Christ or the apostles, he was never told to give up his profession. The reality is, there are people out there who do not want to live according to God's will, and when they try to cause violence, it is sometimes necessary to use violence to stop them. If the woman at Fort Hood had not shot the man who was on a rampage, he would have killed many more. In that case, I believe her action was ethical; she was defending others and preserving life. The soldiers who go into battle to protect their homeland from an aggressor do it to preserve the lives of those who cannot defend themselves. The person who lied to the Nazis about hiding the Jews in his basement did so to preserve the lives of innocent people. None of these situations are in accordance with God's will. God does not want us to kill or lie since He values every human life. However, since He values human lives, it is more in accordance with God's will to take the life of one to save many, or to deceive killers to save innocents. Our job as Christians is to work for the most peace possible. It means supporting a war only if it is just (is it truly saving the lives of our fellow citizens in the world, or making a leader money?). When we do make war or have to use violence to put down violence, we should do no more than is necessary to bring it to a stop. Stop the violence and work for reconciliation.

God loves the world, He has redeemed it through Christ. Doing what is ethical means doing what the will of God is. God's will is that all will come to know Him. There is no "other" in God's eyes. God loves the Palestinian or IRA terrorist like He loves Mother Theresa or Billy Graham. All we can do as Christians is to stand up against the things God hates (like violence, idolatry, immorality, etc) and work for the things God loves (like peace, reconciliation, love). To believe we are involved in any sort of Holy War where violence is a key component is to deceive ourselves. While we may need to defend others to save their lives, Christ won the world through peace, and tells us to do so as well.