Ethics or moral philosophy has to do with what is right and what is wrong. Natural law has to do with right and wrong based on natural or universal concepts. Revealed law has to do with right and wrong based on concepts revealed by God. Both concepts were generally recognized as valid in the past by western civilization and by the founding fathers of American culture. The problem, with basing our culture on natural law, is the proclivity of man to justify his actions. This is verbalized during the period of Judges in when it was said, "every man did that which is right in his own eyes" (Judges 17:6; 21:25). In other words, man cannot be trusted, in the final analysis, "to do the right thing." The practice of slavery, infanticide, and ethnic cleansing make the point.
The foundation of the moral values in American culture, as in western civilization as a whole, was (alas, no longer "is") based on the moral philosophy founded in Christianity. Our concepts of "a man's word is his bond, actions speak louder than words," etc. are basic Christian principles. But then, many of us are no longer principled people. When our President, our Secretary of State, and our Ambassador to the United Nations tell a bare faced lie about Benghazi, and there is no outrage by our elected representatives nor by the people that elected them, "we have come a long way baby," to quote an old cigarette commercial. There are still Americans "that cannot stand a liar," but they are fast becoming a minority. John, the apostle of love, put it this way after listing a number of natural and revealed wrongs, "and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death" (Revelation 21:8).
When Israel was at a moral or ethical low and God caused them to be carried into Babylonian captivity, Jeremiah the prophet raised the question, "Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination?" and then answered it, "Nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush" (Jeremiah 8:12). Too many, like Israel of old, are not embarrassed when faced with obvious sin. We are, too often, not embarrassed when one of our own is found guilty of one of the works of the flesh listed in Galatians 5:16-21. We dwell on the fact that "God is love" (1 John 4:8), and ignore the fact God now commands "all men every where to repent" inasmuch as He "will judge the world in righteousness" (Acts 17:31).
However, there is hope. Many of us are realizing we are in a cultural war. We are losing the America we love and admire for its uniqueness. We were planted by the Bible and cultivated by Christianity. When Kate Smith sang "God Bless America," we were moved. We long for the days when righteousness exalted our nation, and when we were free to speak our mind without fearing the Gestapo of Political Correctness. If we repent of our lukewarmness, and turn to put God first in our lives, He will hear our prayers. Let us then put on the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18), and marching forward, singing, "Onward Christian Soldiers" to the tune of the "Battle Hymn of the Republic."
Dale I. Royal Elk City, OK
