Old & New Testament Contributions To Biblical Ethics Essay, Research Paper

Old & New Testament Contributions to Biblical Ethics.

According to “The Use of Scripture in Ethics” scriptures written at two different times and places can be applied to today as long as we decide which rules (laws) in the Old Testament apply to today, and how we are to apply these laws. General principles apply to many situations that confront Christians today and time and culture do not disqualify these principles to make them irrelevant.

The New Testament gospel, must not only interpret the Old Testament in general but our Christian duty in particular. The New Testament interprets the law of God, but we can’t interpret the law, as we would like. The Spirit leads us by constantly bringing the gospel to mind and by teaching us to apply it when circumstances impel us to ask, “What should I do?” Apart from the gospel, no one can interpret the law of God correctly. All we can do is what Isaiah 30:21 tells us ‘This is the way; walk in it’.

We must interpret the Old Testament and New Testament based on its social, political and religious context. Before we can understand if and how a biblical rule applies to today, we must understand how it was applied in its own day and we also need to find out the reason why their was this rule.

The writings of Paul are a good example of ethics. Paul begins his letters with a clear statement of what has been given us in the gospel. Romans 12:1 is typical of all his Epistles: “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—which is your spiritual worship”. Since God has forgiven us, we need to forgive one another (Col. 3:13). Since He was generous, we must to reflect His generosity (2 Cor.8:9). We should not be selfishly ambitious, because Christ humbled Himself to the death of the cross (Phil. 2:3-8). Since God has graciously included us in the death of Christ, we need to put to death all sinful deeds (Col. 3:3-5).

Matthew includes nine additional proof texts (Matthew 1:22-23; 2:15: 2:17-18; 2:23: 4:14-16; 8:17: 12:17; 13;35; 27:9-10) to drive home his basic theme: Jesus is the fulfillment of the Old Testament predictions of the Messiah. Matthew even finds the history of God’s people in the Old Testament recapitulated in some aspects of Jesus’ life (quotations from Hosea 11:1; 2:15). To accomplish his purpose Matthew also emphasizes the genealogy of Jesus lineage tracing it back to David (Matthew 1:1).

In our lives, all that God asks from us is to keep His commandments. He asks us to have respect for other people’s rights, be caring about other people’s needs, maintain respect for authority and human life, have respect for God’s Covenants, respect for property of others, to be truthful and too have continued obedience and grace towards Him.

When Christians differ on how to handle certain ethical issues, what approach should one take?

The dictionary defines ethics as relating to the morality of our behavior; having the principles of knowing what is right or wrong in our conduct. Ethics is about what is

good and what values and virtues we should cultivate; It is about what is right and what

our moral duties are for society and ourselves at large.

Our daily life is greatly impacted by the morality of our behavior. If we present

ourselves as having no values or standards then we reveal ourselves as people who do

not have any self-discipline, responsibility, obligation or accountability for our actions.

These influences are destructive and we are not affirming what is noble in mankind.

There isn’t any difference in our professional or personal ethical behavior. We are directed to live by God’s commandments and if we don’t we are creating a modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah.

We must be careful not to let sin take control of us. As it is stated in Romans 1:18, if we let ungodliness and unrighteousness rule us, we incur God’s wrath. If we incur God’s wrath then he will “give us over to our depraved minds”. If we allow this to happen we will be judged by God and found unworthy. We must not allow sin to control us for our own sinful ambitions.

Covenant-based ethics is what I consider to be Christian ethics. These ethics are

based on biblical standards which develops a depth and strength of mutual respect and

commitment too commonly held ideas and behaviors. This allows for deeper intimacy,

trust, caring and living a God-centered life.

In Romans 1:28-32 when a man or woman chooses not to acknowledge God, he or she then let mankind invents ways of doing evil. Even though man knew if (s)he practice being faithless ruthless, wicked and depraved he is worthy of death –God’s penalty for these crimes is death to the sinner. Every sin will be punished.

Romans 13:14 tells us that God asks us to live a Spirit-filled life. God asks us not to behave in an immoral way of drinking, indulging in immoral sex, fighting and jealously. We need to have Christ, through his Spirit completely dominating our lives so we have no room for our sinful natures. But take up the weapons of the Lord Jesus Christ, and stop paying attention to your sinful nature and satisfying its desires, living a spirit-filled life is the foundations of our ethical behavior.

In his Epistles Paul relates the gospel to give us the nature of Christian duty and the content of Christian behavior. He touches an entire range of relationships and practical duties- duties of husbands and wives, parents and children, rulers and subjects, masters and servants, pastors and church members, strong and weak members of the church, the rich and the poor, the unruly and the immoral, the married and the unmarried, quarrelsome church members and false teachers. Such things and many more are considered as the apostle reflects the implications of the gospel into all these areas of human existence.

According to Walter Kaiser, the ethic of the New Testament does not supersede the Old Testament ethic, and they are in fact, one single ethic. (Biblical Principles and Business (Nav Press 1989, p. 75). Jefferson Davis in Evangelical Ethics: Issues Facing The Church Today (p.9) states “Teaching of Scripture are the final court of appeal for ethics. Divine revelation found in the canonical scriptures of the Old and New Testament, constitutes the bottom line of decision-making process. Many of the specific commandments of Scripture are directly translatable into our present context”.

Continuity is most evident in the embracing of ethical values that are tremendously important. It would be my fervent hope that we could agree on the approach we should take.

Three ethical standards as found in the Ten Commandments

The Sermon on the Mount is our mantra for moral and ethical living. Righteousness, being upright with God, is our thesis for kingdom citizenship. According to Matthew 5:17-20 we have to have a deep underlying principal and total commitment to the Law.

Our values come from Matthew 5:3-10:

Blessed are those who are poor in spirit

Blessed are those who mourn

Blessed are those who are meek

Blessed are those who hunger for righteousness

Blessed are those who are merciful

Blessed are those who are pure in heart

Blessed are those who are the peacemakers

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness

Our Seventh Commandment “You shall not commit adultery” tells us that marriage is a sacred bond between husband and wife. Adultery was considered to be in violation of that bond. The Old Testament defines adultery as carnal intercourse between a man and a woman married or betrothed to another Israelite (Lev.20:10; Deut.22:22-27). A man did not violate his won marriage or commit adultery against his own wife by having relations with another man’s wife; he violated the marriage of the woman’s husband. Adultery was a sin against the neighbor. The concern of the seventh commandment is not merely with sex; its real business is with marriage and its wholeness.

Jesus had a totally different view of adultery. He said that whoever look at a woman with lust in his heart is guilty. Adultery doesn’t just happen it begins in the lustful heart. Jesus warns us to purge our hearts so that we are able to look at a person of the opposite sex and see a person, not an object. In Philippians 3: 17-21 tells us about living a Christian lifestyle and not living for the flesh.

The question of adultery is a question of what sort of person we want to be. Our attitude towards adultery as a way of life, depends much on the kind of person we are. Do we want to be covenant-keeper or someone who looks only for their own satisfaction. We need to be covenant-keepers. People who subordinate the right to maximize their potential for sexual happiness to their responsibility for a covenanted partnership with another human being. Marriage is a link to the kingdom of God and we need to make a deep decision, not simply about sex, but about the meaning and purpose of human life so we can be in the kingdom with God.

Honor Thy Mother and Father, the fifth commandment, is our first moral commandment. This commandment tells us that our moral duty within the family is to honor those people who gave us our place in life. We are charged with respecting our parents which means to:

a. Prize highly,

b. Care for,

c. Show respect, and

d. Obey

In every culture parents believe in their right to be treated with respect by their offspring. Children are expected to show obedience and respect; a willingness to listen to the voice of their parents, as they are their teachers and guides about what is right and true about life. This is the parental authority teaching what one believes to be right and wrong.

Children also have rights, yet the first and foremost ‘right’ of a child is to show their respect for parental authority. Parental authority is the moral strength of family life. Parents cannot give up parental authority without robbing their children and eventually society, of a person who will be a productive member of society.

There is no single way to honor parents; there are a thousand ways to dishonor them. 1Timothy 4; 11-16 tells us how we need to set an example in life, in faith in speech, love and in purity.

Thou Shalt Not Steal, the eighth commandment is our personal relationship to things. Between persons and things is a bond we call ownership, and God tells us all people to respect that bond.

Today this commandment confronts a modern culture which accepts greed as style of self-affirmation and whose systems of exchanging property are so complex that recognizing the difference between stealing and dealing is a lost art.

Taking things that belong to someone else is the bottom line of this command. How we exchange things with each other is how we are meant to relate to and respect each other. Titus 2:7 speaks to life and our personal integrity of setting an example by doing what is good.

Stealing violates human community because it destroys trust. Only where most of our relationships are built on trust can we live together as persons. Trust breaks down fear. We have to care for this trust and the eighth commandment supports a morality of trust without which human life gradually slides into barbarity.

Sticky issues

1. Home

My brother has fallen on hard times. His job is very physical and his body is not as young as it once was. He is also going through a divorce and bankruptcy. He has asked me if he could come live with me and my family until he has found a job and earned enough money to get a place of his own. My husband is not thrilled with this idea because of the fact that we are having marriage problems.

According to our text our goal is not to please oneself but the please the Lord. The Golden Rule gives me the direction I need to take to convince my husband that he needs a place to stay and that maybe this might help us.

Family Life

One of our family members purchased a business from an acquaintance two years ago. This family member, at that time, was currently employed and receiving a paycheck and benefits from his current employer while running this new acquired business. He did not see any ethical problem with what he was doing. He believed he was not wrong in continually receiving a paycheck, 401(k) contributions, and vacation pay for over a 12-month period while he worked to make his business successful.

Covetousness is a terrible evil according to God; man views it as the route to all kinds of personal fulfillment. When we become consumed with the consumption of things, things that are here today and gone tomorrow, we have sold our soul. Material things cannot fulfill our deepest spiritual needs. This family member is not following in Christ’s footsteps. In 1Peter 2:21 “Christ…leaving us an example that ye should follow his steps.”

Work Place

One of my friends told me a story about what a salesperson did at her company, this person decided to exhibit the company’s services at a two-day industry conference. His reason for wanting to be visible at the conference was to get all the attendees business cards. He would then begin to develop business leads.

A ‘Palm Pilot’ was offered as the enticement for some lucky winner to receive it in a drawing. However, this salesperson had no intention of following through with the offer of a free Palm Pilot. He collected all the business cards and decided he did not have to give away any item because no one would know there wasn’t any winner.

This person does not have any personal integrity as he is cheating stealing and taking advantage of others. Unfortunately, this person does not see any problem with what he has done. To me he has destroyed his character and as it says in Proverbs 20:17 “Bread gained by deceit is sweet to a man, but afterward his mouth will be full of gravel.” Deceit is the ultimate destroyer of good relationships because good human relationships are built on mutual confidence.

Situation

Marriage and Family Decisions

People are influenced by the society around them as they make choices; social conditions change in ways that may impede or support family life. The process of creating and maintaining marriages and families requires many personal choices and people continue to make decisions, even “big” ones throughout their lives.

I. Marriages and Families

A. Family diversity has progressed to the point there isn’t a typical family form today.

B. Today marriages and families are composed of separate unique individuals

1. In Genesis 2:18 and Matthew 19:3-6 “Man by himself is incomplete. He needs a mate”.

2. Genesis 2:24 “A man must leave his father and mother before he can adequately cleave to his wife in full identity of life.

II. Loving Ourselves and Others (Ephesians 5:22-23)

A. Love is a Deep and Vital Emotion

1. Love involves caring and acceptance

2. Love is a commitment to sharing

B. There are six love styles that have distinctive characteristics or personalities that a loving relationship can have.

1. Eros a Greek word meaning love is characterized by intense emotional attachment and desires.

2. Friendship an affectionate companion style of loving.

3. Pragma emphasizes the practical element of love

4. Agape is the unselfish concern for your beloved’s needs even if that means some personal sacrifice.

5. Ludus is fun love playfulness in a relationship.

6. Mania is an obsession or possessive love.

III. Choosing Each Other

A. Inter-Religious Marriages

1. Religious similarity improves the changes for marital success.

2. Religious orientation affects many facets of marital interaction.

B. Inter-Class Marriages

1. Status striving can impact marriage negatively

2. Status differences create stress

C. Inter-Racial Marriages

1. Cross cultural marriages can be difficult

2. Common values can transcend differences

IV. Family Commitment

All of us are accountable before God to recognize the value and priority of children.

A. Loving

1. Sons are a heritage from the Lord, children a reward from Him (Psalm 127:3)

B. Providing

1. Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me. (Mark 9:36-37)

C. Responsibility

1. Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discourages. (Colossians 3:21)

IV. Spiritually

A. The Church’s Primary Responsibility

1. Bringing people out of the darkness into the kingdom of light.

2. Building Christians, who are committed, courageous, filled by the Spirit and informed.

B. Enhancing Family Relationships

1. The church plays a prominent role

2. The church gives moral guidance

Conclusion

We can pursue a righteous life that is based on the work of Jesus in us rather than

what we can do to please Him. When we turn from our sins and trust Christ to be our

savior we are guaranteed eternal life. As Christians we are followers of Christ. We then

enjoy the fruits of our labors of living according to biblical and Christian ethics.

We have to evaluate whether or not we want to achieve what is acceptable to God in our marriage and family decisions. Growing in Christ is an on-going interactive process. We have been given our absolute moral principles from God; love God, love our neighbors, do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with God. These are the principles that guide us in every situation.

72d

American Bible Society. The Bible in Today’s English Version – Good News Bible.

New York, NY: American Bible Society 1976

Barker, Kenneth, gen ed. The NIV Study Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. 1995

Carson, D.A. God with Us Themes From Matthew JKO Publishing, Inc. Brentwood, TN

1995

Douglas, J.D. and Tenney, Merrill C., eds. NIV Compact Dictionary of the Bible.

Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1989

Dockery, David S. and Garland, David E. eds. Seeking the Kingdom Harold Shaw

Publishers Wheaton, IL 1992

McQuilken, Robertson. An Introduction to Biblical Ethics. Tyndale House Publishers,

Inc. Wheaton, IL 1995

Shelly, Rubel. A Book-By-Book Study of the Old Testament. Nashville, TN: 21st

Century Christian, 1982

Smedes, Lewis B. Mere Mortality What God Expects from Ordinary People Wm. B.

Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, MI 1996