Navigating the Straits of Moral Confusion in the Culture of Our Day

Moral confusion: Two Issues Two Words Two Ways Two Passages One Solution

Moral Confusion: Two Issues Issue of Morals What is right / wrong What is good / bad Problems with a standard of morals “my / your morals” “new morality” “situation ethics” Issue of Confusion The redefining of words to embrace or promote ungodliness Rebuking sin or condemning actions is called “hate speech” Embracing sin is called “love & tolerance” Isa 5:20 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!

Moral Confusion: Two Issues Morals Jesus to the Devil, “It is written” (Mt. 4:4) “What sayeth the scriptures?” The scriptures are the standard of right, wrong “Thy word is truth” Confusion When the Devil perverts scripture, Jesus puts it in context: “Again it is written” (Mt. 4:7) Psa 119:160 The sum of your word is truth… Some twist scripture Isa 1:18 Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.

Two Words that Illustrate: “Tolerance” “Love” Not found in many English bibles but… Properly defined… What bible words are similar? What things are Christians to “tolerate”? How does the world define it? What must we not “tolerate”? Are there different kinds of love found in the Bible? What is “agape” love? How does the world define “love”? Are there things that we don’t “agape”? The Issue is not the intensity of love but the focus or object of love!

Two Ways: Man’s God’s Prov 16:25 There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death. Jer 10:23 I know, O LORD, that the way of man is not in himself, that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps. Jas 3:16 For where jealousy and faction are, there is confusion and every vile deed. God is not a God of confusion but of peace. As in all the churches of the saints – 1 Cor. 14:33 The fruit of the Spirit is… (Gal 5) James says that the wisdom from above is … (3:17) Man’s way is confusion, God’s way is peace!

Things that Caused Confusion in the Bible… Sexual Immorality – Homosexuality Lev 18:23 And thou shalt not lie with any beast to defile thyself therewith; neither shall any woman stand before a beast, to lie down thereto: it is confusion. Lev 20:12 And if a man lie with his daughter-in-law, both of them shall surely be put to death: they have wrought confusion; their blood shall be upon them. Hebrew word: “mixture”, ESV “perversion”.

Things that Caused Confusion in the Bible… Sexual Immorality - Homosexuality Desire to be our own god – Tower of Babel Gen 11:1-9 Now the whole earth had one language and the same words… they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves… And the LORD said… Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another's speech." … Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the LORD confused the language of all the earth

Things that Caused Confusion in the Bible… Sexual Immorality - Homosexuality Desire to be our own god – Tower of Babel Greed - Ephesus

Greed at Ephesus Acts 19:24 For a man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought no little business to the craftsmen… These he gathered together, with the workmen in similar trades, and said, "Men, you know that from this business we have our wealth… And you see and hear that not only in Ephesus but in almost all of Asia this Paul has persuaded and turned away a great many people, saying that gods made with hands are not gods. And there is danger not only that this trade of ours may come into disrepute but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis may be counted as nothing…." When they heard this they were enraged and were crying out, "Great is Artemis (Diana, ser) of the Ephesians!" So the city was filled with the confusion, and they rushed together into the theater, dragging with them Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians who were Paul's companions…32 Now some cried out one thing, some another, for the assembly was in confusion, and most of them did not know why they had come together.

Things that Caused Confusion in the Bible… Sexual Immorality - Homosexuality Desire to be our own god – Tower of Babel Greed - Ephesus Lying – Jealousy, Resist! Acts 21:27-34 When the seven days were almost completed, the Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd and laid hands on him…And as they were seeking to kill him…Jerusalem was in confusion… And as he could not learn the facts because of the uproar…

Two Passages: 1 Cor. 13:4ff. Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never ends (never fails, asv … the , nkjv)

Two Passages: 1 Cor. 13:4ff. Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never ends… the greatest of these is love. 2Thess. 2:10 and with all deceit of unrighteousness for them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this cause God sendeth them a working of error, that they should believe a lie: 12 that they all might be judged who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

Love is the answer! But what is the affection of your love? One Solution… And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. - Luke 10:27 Love is the answer! But what is the affection of your love?