Is this Biblically Wrong? A short series of rambles by Isabel :)
Hi everyone welcome to my intellectual mess! I was on the MRT and I was idly thinking of nothing when an idea popped into my head and I was suddenly thinking of something.
“What was I thinking of?” you may ask. Well, it struck me how much Christians (and by extension, the church) always say “don’t do this and that” but never really explain why. And if we did explain why, we would end up having to give many caveats and rationale behind what we do what we do.
I think my generation is very confused. What we need is clarity. What we need is discernment. So these posts are me attempting to provide some discernment to some notable grey areas in today’s world.
So. Random thought process: alot of things in life are often in the grey area, and its subjective as to whether or not they are beneficial to us.
1. Things that are clearly morally wrong, even without a religious standpoint — harming others eg murder, rape, blackmail
2. Things that are clearly harming us — drugs, self harm
3. Things that are fine in moderation but not excessively
- okay to exercise and workout and be healthy, not okay if its becomes a body disorder
- okay to play video games but not okay if it becomes an addiction
- okay to casually drink and socially gamble, not okay if its an addiction
So, actually, most things in life usually fall into category 3, and we are allowed to do most things. The problem is that everyone’s moderation, everyone’s limits is subjective, and so we cannot impose what we deem as a standard onto someone else.
So what does the Bible say? The Bible understands this! In 1 Corinthians 10:23, it is written, “Everything is permissible,” but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible,” but not everything is edifying.”
Allow me to take a quick detour here and delve in God’s mercies. Previously, God’s people had to be completely free from sin, completely blameless or else they would be struck dead instantly (see numerous instances in the Old Testament). Everytime they sinned, they would have to atone for their sin by drawing blood — they would have to sacrifice an animal as payment for their sin, or just…die. But with Jesus dying on the cross for us in the New Testament (see Romans 5:8), God extends grace to us whenever we do wrong! And so that’s good, because people aren’t falling down dead like flies everywhere, but its also bad, because now our world has gotten a lot more complicated and God has left us, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to decide what is good and what is…not so good. God allows us to do anything we want…but that doesn’t necessarily mean He is pleased with what we do.
Basically, Paul said that we are free to do as we please, but whether that is beneficial to us and others is a different matter. It is something we need to take time, prayer and open discussion with others to fully understand and decide which course of action is best to take.
One last note before I delve into my first topic — a note about speaking truth in love. This balance is one of the hardest things to do. I have neglected love before, and grievously hurt others in the process. I have also neglected truth, and in doing so am uncertain if I really helped someone constructively. Please bear with me, and help me as I strive to speak truth with love! In any circumstance, the first thing I want and will do is to extend grace, not judgement.
