Is Wrong Still Wrong or Have We Gone Astray?

What ever happened to right and wrong? People who say something is wrong are deemed judgmental. They are castigated as what is wrong with the world.

It seems that no one can say something is wrong if they have ever committed the wrong. The less people say something is wrong, the more people commit the wrong. Committing the wrong is a tacit approval of the wrong. Therefore, the wrong becomes the right and those who are saying anything is wrong are actually wrong themselves.

Let's take that a little further. Let's say that bank robberies were so common that just about everyone committed the robbery some time in their lives. They would say that they can't say that bank robberies are wrong because that would make them hypocrites. Therefore, fewer and fewer people would say that bank robberies were wrong because there is no one establishing that it is wrong. Eventually we will need to lock up the depositors because they are the only people saying it is wrong. They will be in the wrong because they have judged those who rob banks.

Yes, that's silly but let's take something that appears to be happening. Premarital sex was once said to be wrong. The commitment of marriage preceded sex. Time passed with more people saying it was wrong to judge those who had premarital sex. Many people openly admitted that they had premarital sex. They did not feel that they could "judge" others by saying it was wrong now that they were married. Thus, less and less people said it was wrong. More and more people joked about it. Before long it became the norm. Now, young boys and girls are ridiculed if they haven't had sex. Even the "G" rated programs speak of a person being ready for sex without any thought of marriage. Children born out of wedlock is more common in Hollywood than those who have married parents. Wrong has become right and right has become wrong.

People have to adjust their reasoning if we have any hope to preach righteousness in our churches. Committing a sin does not mean that you can't say it was wrong. In fact, you may have more right to say it was wrong than others. You can say that premarital sex has created a loss of trust that takes years to rebuild. (The husband wonders if his wife will sleep with someone else she is not married to if she slept with him before they were married. The wife wonders if he is using the moves on someone else he used on her before marriage.) You can say it is wrong even without admitting that you did it yourself.

Wrong and right must be established outside of what is going on. Righteousness is not determined by what everyone else is doing. Righteousness is established by Someone who has the right to determine what righteousness is. Only God can establish right and wrong. Mankind will always deteriorate the meaning of righteousness.

Righteousness must be established with authority. The Bible must be the written authority for God's Word. It should be preached regardless of the more' of a society.

Judgment is not saying something is wrong. Judgment is condemning someone for the wrong. We must stop the condemnation process while being able to say when an act is wrong. We must stop using Matthew 7:1 (Judge not lest ye be judged.) as a tacit means of approval of every sinful act. (Note that the following verses give instructions how to judge.)

Maybe a parable will help us understand:

A teacher who has been living with her boyfriend is told by one of her fourth grade students that she doesn't think that living together before marriage is right.

The teacher rebukes the child, "Judge not lest ye be judged!"

Later the teacher gives a math exam. The student gets her paper back. Several of her answers have big red X's over them. The student asks why they were marked as wrong.

"That's because those are the wrong answers, honey," the teacher explains.

"Judge not lest ye be judged!" the student replies.

Psalm 119:105-106 (NIV)

¹⁰⁵ Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path. ¹⁰⁶  I have taken an oath and confirmed it, that I will follow your righteous laws.