Read Online Free to Live: The Utter Relief of Holiness by John Eldredge - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: John Eldredge
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yes. Jesus clearly doesn’t agree. He felt that because the townspeople of Capernaum had seen him in person—God in the flesh—witnessed with their own eyes his life and miracles and had still rejected him, their crimes were far more serious than the homosexuality of Sodom. Whoa.
Jewish radio commentator and teacher Dennis Prager calls it “moral equivalency”—blurring moral differences, making all ethical issues equal, and therefore all sins equal. The idea is devastating for several reasons. First, I believe it has added to the sexual collapse I mentioned earlier. Good grief, if in the heat of passion you believe “a sin’s a sin” and this is really no different from cheating on a test, and what the heck, you’ve already gone this far, you aren’t going to have much reason to keep your clothes on. Confusing the weight of sins actually hurts our ability to resist temptation.
But the blurring of moral differences has also torn many a tender conscience apart. When a dear soul comes before God to repent of lying to her boss, and she believes (because she’s been told) that she has done something just as awful as murdering her neighbor, she finds it very hard to receive forgiveness. She puts herself through all sorts of severity that frankly the offense simply doesn’t call for.
This is not the view Jesus holds on the matter. All he said to the woman caught in adultery was “go and sin no more.” But to the cities that rejected him, he shouts a warning that it is going to be a mighty black day come the end. There are moral differences; some matters are far weightier than others.
Furthermore, you can’t pursue genuine holiness if you are walking around under the crushing weight that tossing a wrapper on the sidewalk is just as bad as harboring resentment toward your parents. It’s crippling; it also keeps you from focusing on what Jesus called “the weightier matters.”
The idea has also had devastating consequences when it comes to our influence in public life. It has clouded many a Christian’s thinking around election time. Trees are important, but not nearly as important as human life. Education is important, but not nearly as important as the sanctity of marriage. Blurring moral differences tries to make all things equal. They are not.
Popular “Goodness”
Let me try another example I think will help you here.
Last Saturday I was shopping at our local grocery store. It’s one of those hip “organic/fair trade/eco-friendly” markets that are becoming popular. When I reached the checkout line, the cashier asked, “Do you have your own bags today?” I did not bring my own grocery bags. To be honest, it hadn’t even crossed my mind. But in that culture, with all ears listening, I felt like a scumbag. I felt like the guy who doesn’t care what his impact is in the world. I’m “that guy” who is sending the polar bear to a watery grave and chopping down the last rain forest myself.
Now, you wouldn’t think that morality would ever become popular in the world, but there is a certain kind of “goodness” that is actually quite hip these days. Issues such as the size of your carbon footprint (and therefore the car you drive), where your coffee and chocolate come from, how your vegetables are grown or your fish is caught, the kind of shoes you wear—these are the causes du jour. Before I continue, let me say clearly I think these things are important . I don’t think they are as important as other issues, but I think they are important. I do my shopping at these kinds of stores.
But what I want to point out is the softness of popular “goodness.” Recycling can make you feel like “Hey, I’m a good person,” while you ignore the fact that you’ve abandoned your children through your latest divorce. This is human nature: to find a morality that is comfortable and convenient and let it suffice for holiness. But it is not. So you ride your bike to work, or drive a hybrid car—but you
Jewish radio commentator and teacher Dennis Prager calls it “moral equivalency”—blurring moral differences, making all ethical issues equal, and therefore all sins equal. The idea is devastating for several reasons. First, I believe it has added to the sexual collapse I mentioned earlier. Good grief, if in the heat of passion you believe “a sin’s a sin” and this is really no different from cheating on a test, and what the heck, you’ve already gone this far, you aren’t going to have much reason to keep your clothes on. Confusing the weight of sins actually hurts our ability to resist temptation.
But the blurring of moral differences has also torn many a tender conscience apart. When a dear soul comes before God to repent of lying to her boss, and she believes (because she’s been told) that she has done something just as awful as murdering her neighbor, she finds it very hard to receive forgiveness. She puts herself through all sorts of severity that frankly the offense simply doesn’t call for.
This is not the view Jesus holds on the matter. All he said to the woman caught in adultery was “go and sin no more.” But to the cities that rejected him, he shouts a warning that it is going to be a mighty black day come the end. There are moral differences; some matters are far weightier than others.
Furthermore, you can’t pursue genuine holiness if you are walking around under the crushing weight that tossing a wrapper on the sidewalk is just as bad as harboring resentment toward your parents. It’s crippling; it also keeps you from focusing on what Jesus called “the weightier matters.”
The idea has also had devastating consequences when it comes to our influence in public life. It has clouded many a Christian’s thinking around election time. Trees are important, but not nearly as important as human life. Education is important, but not nearly as important as the sanctity of marriage. Blurring moral differences tries to make all things equal. They are not.
Popular “Goodness”
Let me try another example I think will help you here.
Last Saturday I was shopping at our local grocery store. It’s one of those hip “organic/fair trade/eco-friendly” markets that are becoming popular. When I reached the checkout line, the cashier asked, “Do you have your own bags today?” I did not bring my own grocery bags. To be honest, it hadn’t even crossed my mind. But in that culture, with all ears listening, I felt like a scumbag. I felt like the guy who doesn’t care what his impact is in the world. I’m “that guy” who is sending the polar bear to a watery grave and chopping down the last rain forest myself.
Now, you wouldn’t think that morality would ever become popular in the world, but there is a certain kind of “goodness” that is actually quite hip these days. Issues such as the size of your carbon footprint (and therefore the car you drive), where your coffee and chocolate come from, how your vegetables are grown or your fish is caught, the kind of shoes you wear—these are the causes du jour. Before I continue, let me say clearly I think these things are important . I don’t think they are as important as other issues, but I think they are important. I do my shopping at these kinds of stores.
But what I want to point out is the softness of popular “goodness.” Recycling can make you feel like “Hey, I’m a good person,” while you ignore the fact that you’ve abandoned your children through your latest divorce. This is human nature: to find a morality that is comfortable and convenient and let it suffice for holiness. But it is not. So you ride your bike to work, or drive a hybrid car—but you
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