The Ethics of God: A beginner’s class on traditional Christian ethics. (The new audio from apologetics.com radio.)
What are the basic presumptions common to all “Christian” ethical systems? The moral law of God and the cultivation the traditional Christian virtues.
1. The existence of God.
2. The identity of God and the uniqueness of Christianity.
3. The veracity, historicity, and inerrancy of Holy Scripture.
4. The presentation and defense of a basic orthodoxy.
5. The promotion of a healthy spiritual life in faith and practice.
6. The understanding of a consistent Christian ethic applied to all of life.
7. Communicating the coherence and defensibility of the Christian faith with clarity, kindness, and grace to any that might be inclined to hear and teaching those that desire such how to do the same.
The Classical form for Individual and Social Justice
The Moral Law of God-
“Love the Lord your God with all your mind, heart, soul, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself; on these hang all of the Law and the Commandments”
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
“What you have done unto the least of these you have done to me.”
“Have mercy on the little children and do not keep them from coming to me for the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to them.”
The Cultivation of the traditional Christian Virtues-
Faith, Hope, Love, Wisdom, Justice, Courage, and Self Denial
Faith- “Without faith it is impossible to please God because to please God one must first believe that He exists and that He is the rewarder of those that diligently seek Him.”
Hope- “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13
Love- “These three remain: Hope, faith, and love, but the greatest of these is love…”
Wisdom- “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom”
Justice- “He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”
Courage- “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Self Denial- “Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”
Christopher Neiswonger
Neiswonger
Doug
Josh Hicks
Clay
It’s good to see a Christian use so many of Jesus’ own words when trying to define what it means to be a Christian–or, really, to be a good person. Too often, I’ve noticed, people who call themselves followers of Jesus define God and God’s will by quoting O.T. Scriptures about a wrathful, “jealous” God who hates his “enemies” (thereby, it seems, giving some people the idea that they are justified in hating those who believe differently), and N.T. writings that, as far as I can tell, often have very little to do with what Jesus was really trying to teach. Jesus often gets left out in the cold.
I’m not a Christian, but I believe in God and in the lessons Jesus–the man himself, and not those who later tried to “interpret” his teachings–tried to teach about how we should try to share God’s love with each other. It’s through Jesus’ words that all of us, Christian or not, can move toward a closer relationship with God and with each other.
Thanks for posting this.
Sara
Comment by saradode — June 1, 2009 @ 5:13 pm |
It is all about being a mensch and avoid to do others what we would not to be done us
Comment by Vlad — June 3, 2009 @ 7:39 am |
A very interesting comment saradode.
I always find it fascinating when someone like yourself finds such fulfillment in the ethical teachings of Jesus while thinking Him to be something less than God enfleshed. It is pleasant, and yet in a sense perplexing. What was there about His teaching that was less than divine? About His person, His manner, or His argumentation? What could there have been to draw one to the conclusion of His integrity that falls short of His deity? If he were simply a man drawn in by the unfortunate re-interpretation of his biographers, then they must have been the kind and sort of men that we find once in a milennia, not piled together in stacks in off center burgs like 1st century AD palestine. That the several of them wrote with such style, vigor, and force certainly leads one to think they were, if nothing else, men driven by a singular and sincere vision explicable only in terms of their firm belief that Jesus was more than just a great man, or even that they had been visited by the God of Israel.
All the best,
Neiswonger
Comment by Neiswonger — June 3, 2009 @ 8:19 am |
This is a great outline of Christian ethics Chris!
Comment by Donald McConnell — June 6, 2009 @ 9:00 am |