Murder or...Murder?

A commentary by Chad Messerly

School is mostly over in the northern hemisphere and with it those dreaded exams! But here's one more test:

Abortion

1. Recently in the news a man was murdered while he was serving as an usher in his church. He was one of a few doctors in America who performed late-term abortions. Another man who was against abortion walked into the church and shot the doctor. Which of the two were godly men?
1. The doctor who performed abortions.
2. The man who opposed abortions but murdered the doctor.

There are times when life gives you only two answers and supposedly one is right. Yet there's another answer that's often overlooked and often not considered.

If you guessed the often not considered answer is "c. None of the above," you're correct. Neither of these men did righteous acts that would support a biblical reputation as godly men. In our corrupt society one legally murdered and the other illegally murdered, yet both broke the Sixth Commandment.

Homosexuality

Another highly controversial issue is homosexuality. Just saying the word provokes in different types of people anger and opinions at both ends of the spectrum.

But society has put people into two categories: 1) You either support it completely, or 2) you're a bigot and want to cause harm. However, there's a third category often overlooked. Some people don't support homosexuality, recognize it is contrary to biblical principles, but do have concern for the individual. Here's a case where the cliché is true: "Hate the sin, not the sinner."

Sin in the mind

Did you know that sin in the mind is the same as actually committing the act? Jesus said, "But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart" (Matthew 5:28).

This is the same for all actions. If you're angry to the point of hating someone—for whatever wrong behavior—then you're just as wrong as the wrong action or lifestyle itself. Righteous anger must be carefully measured and have godly motives and intents, as in, "Be angry, and do not sin" (Ephesians 4:26).

Although not always the popular view in modern society and becoming less popular every day, God's way of life is truth. Truth is always the right answer, no matter the question.

The vertical mind

Vertical thinking seeks to let a godly heart direct our thoughts and actions. Such a heart is motivated by love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control—there's no law against these!

Every day we face questions that have right and wrong answers. The answers we choose determine whether we live moral lives. How do we know what the right answer is? Develop a sound working knowledge of God's Word, the Bible—it has the correct answer for every question.

To gear your mind to find the right answers, take a few minutes to read "Got a Decision to Make? Read This First!" VT