Non-Christians believe that they have a right to do with their bodies as they desire. Are they wrong? No, because they do not care what the Bible says, nor do they desire to do as God says. They object vehemently to Biblical restrictions expressed as law in our culture. They rail against them. They honestly believe that the Constitution gives them the constitutional right to decide what to do with their body. What they find hard to believe is that the Constitution does not establish this right. That is what the ruling overturning Roe v. Wade was all about. [Bloomberg, Equality, Read the full text of the Supreme Court Ruling on Abortion Rights] “Alioto wrote of Roe (expressing the majority opinion): Roe was on a collision course with the Constitution from the day it was decided…Wielding nothing but “raw judicial power,” the Court usurped the power to address a question of profound moral and social importance that the Constitution unequivocally leaves for the people.” The dissenting judges “said that the majority had relegated women to “second class citizenship”. “
Overturning Roe v. Wade, in essence, said that the Supreme Court had overstepped its boundary as written in the Constitution. In the Wall Street Journal, Opinion commentary, the headline read, June 24, 2022, “The Supreme Court Reclaims Its Legitimacy”, “In the 1973 abortion case, not today the justices overstepped their boundaries and made their institution political.” That is at the heart of the controversy regarding overturning Roe v. Wade from the political point of view.
What non-Christians, and I assume some Christians, find hard to believe is that the Constitution does not elaborate the right that a woman can do what she wants with her body regarding abortion. The SCOTUS returned that decision to the states and its citizenry. That is our Constitutional Republic’s democratic process. Regarding abortion, our democratic process has been misused, maligned, and taken advantage of by the ideology of progressive liberalism that has championed that our Constitution is antiquated and needs to be updated, and interpreted in light of the culture and society in which we are living in the twenty-first century.
Such is the cultural war within our nation. Our Constitution was framed incorporating Biblical thought. August 19, 2019, the following was printed in the Chicago Tribune. “The Bible stands as the supreme constitution for all mankind.” From the writings of Rev. Billy Graham,
Question: Americans live by the Constitution of the United States, and I have heard it said that the Bible is the Constitution for Christians. Is this true? C.L.
Answer: A constitution is made up of principles by which a nation, or a people are governed. The Bible stands as the supreme constitution for all mankind, not just Christians. Its laws apply equally to all who live under its domain, without exception or special interpretation. God’s Word was given not only to those who believe in Him and follow Him, but to all mankind. Unbelief in God does not excuse anyone from God’s ultimate judgment.
As the U.S. Constitution is the highest law of the land (in America), so the Bible is the highest law of God. The American Constitution itself was founded upon Biblical standards. It is the Bible that sets forth spiritual laws and records God’s enduring promises. The most wonderful message of this document is that it reveals God’s plan of redemption for the human race.
Many citizens today do not know much about the U.S. Constitution, and many know less about God’s Word. The presupposition of the constitutional framers was that law was absolute. People were to be free, and they were to know what the law required and also what the law could not do. No judge was to be unfair but was to judge cases as the law required.
True Christianity finds all of its doctrines (truth) in the Bible; true Christianity does not deny any part of the Bible; true Christianity does not add anything to the Bible. Believing and following God’s Word brings the greatest freedom, because God’s truth declares His judgment against sin, and broadcasts his forgiving love to the whole world.”(This column is based on the words and writing of the late Rev. Billy Graham.) (c)2019 BILLY GRAHAM LITERARY TRUST DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE CONTENT AGENCY, LLC. copyright (c) 2022, Chicago Tribune
If our nation has progressed in opposition to Biblical thought, then it is only natural that a large swath of our population is in opposition to God, Himself; the Word of God; Christianity; and others that promote Biblical standards.
Our nation has become distressingly divided. Our division can be attributed to moral and ethical issues.
What are our moral and ethical issues that we are facing? The following are from news.gallup.com, Moral Issues/Gallup Topic, Polling Matters June 17, 2022, entitled “Untangling Americans’ Complex Views of Morality”
“Americans have negative views of the state of moral values in the nation, but at the same time have become more accepting of a variety of moral behaviors.” The following are Gallup headlines: “Record High 50% of American Rate U.S. Moral Values as ‘Poor’ (Politics, June 15, 2022); Americans say Birth control, Divorce Most ‘Morally Acceptable’ (Politics, June 9, 2022); Abortion poised to Be a Bigger Voting Issue Than in Past (Politics, June 6, 2022); ‘Pro-Choice Identification rises to Near Record High in U.S. (Politics, June 2, 2022); Same-sex Marriage Support Inches Up to New High of 71% (Politics, June 1, 2022); LGBT Americans Married to Same-Sec Spouse Steady at 10% (Politics Feb. 10, 2022); Changing One’s Gender is Sharply Contentious Moral Issue (Politics, June 11, 2021); American Still Oppose Overturning Roe v. Wade (Politics, June 9, 2021); Record-High 47% in U.S. Think Abortion is Morally Acceptable (Politics, June 9, 2021); Mixed Views Among Americans on Transgender Issues (Politics, May 26, 2021); Is Marriage Becoming Irrelevant? (Politics, Dec. 28, 2020).”
Each of these headlines have a story. I have not included their stories, just the headlines, to present a sampling of the moral and ethical issues that confront this nation according to Gallup polling.
I believe that the list of moral and ethical issues and their corresponding polling data is the result of one’s world view. In a Journal Article entitled, “Different Worldviews, Different Morals: America’s Culture War Divide”, Lene Arnett Jensen, says, “In this article, it is argued that moral reasoning is premised upon more comprehensive worldviews, and it is suggested that moral behaviors in part serve to maintain these worldviews. A worldview is defined as providing an account of what it means to be human, the nature of reality, and the reasons and remedies for human suffering, interviews with adults whose moral evaluation and reasoning place them on opposite sides of the current American culture war are used to illustrate the argument. It is argued that these adults differ in their moralities because of differences in their worldviews.” (jstor.org, 1997)
I agree. Therefore, I present the following paradigm. The two major world views are the secular world view and the Biblical world view. A secular worldview is said to “deny the existence of a transcendent, divine, or spiritual dimension of reality and affirm that reality has a different makeup, and it is the basic features of this reality that have importance for how we should understand live our lives.” (May 5, 2021) [googled]
“A Biblical worldview, also called a Christian worldview, is built upon the framework of ideas and beliefs through which a Christian individual or group interprets the world and interacts with the world. Our worldview shapes the physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual dimensions of our lives. “[googled]
I do not believe that it is a stretch of the imagination to put each of these worldviews at opposite ends of the spectrum. The liberal progressive left embodies the secular worldview, and the conservative Christian right embodies the Biblical worldview.
Making that comparison puts our thoughts into midst of the political arena where we find our nation battling it out. Between these two endpoints are a myriad of combinations of thought where most people in our nation live, think, and struggle morally and ethically most every day. This political struggle has caused a chasm of division in our nation.
What is the root of the division? The root of the division is not the color of one’s skin; one’s economic status; one’s nationality; one’s political position; or one’s world view. The root of the problem of division is the condition of one’s heart.
The problem of one’s heart is an issue for a Christian as well as for a non-Christian.
Proverbs 4:23,24, says, ” Guard your heart diligently for from it flow the springs of life. Put away perversity from your mouth and keep devious lips from you.” (Tree of Life Version)
Jesus said, ” Out of the good treasure of his heart the good man brings forth good, and out of evil, the evil man brings forth evil. For from the overflow of the heart his mouth speaks.” (Luke 6:45, Tree of Life Version)
[Note: only two categories of humanity are mentioned: good and evil, nothing is said about skin color, economics, nationality, politics, or belief system)
Jesus, speaking to the pharisees, the religious leaders of the Jewish nation, says, “Either make the tree good and its fruit good or make the tree rotten and its fruit rotten; for the tree is known by its fruit. Your brood of vipers! How can you are evil say anything good? For from the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man from his good treasury brings forth good, and the evil man from his evil treasury brings forth evil.” (Matthew 12:33-35, Tree of Life Version)
Jesus follows this truth up with a statement of fact. “But I tell you (that’s certitude) that on the Day of Judgment, men (humanity) will give account for every careless word they speak. For by your words, you will be justified and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12:36-37, Tree of Life Version)
It matters what we say. What we say is a matter of the heart. The condition of our heart is based upon our world view. As a believer, our world view is based upon the Word of God, and who do we say Jesus is? A non-believer’s worldview does not consider the God, the Word of God, or Jesus the Son of Man, the Son of God.
Jesus talking with His disciples inquired of them, “When Yeshua came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do men say that the Son of Man is? They answered, “Some say John the Immerser others say Elijah, and still others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.” He said, “But who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Yeshua said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven!” (Matthew 16:13-17, Tree of Life Version)
Question: Who do say Jesus is? Who does our nation say that Jesus is?
The answer to that question will bring healing to our nation.
TBC, praying for the visitation of God to our nation, a brother in Christ, deo
Living Words of Encouragement 