Tuesday, December 7, 2010

The Big Lie: Relativism

  
“For God gave them up to uncleanness through the 
lusts of their own hearts... who changed the truth of God into a lie...” Romans 1:24a & 25a

Absolute truth is being abandoned and being replaced by “the big lie.” Our post-Christian society wants to avoid the idea that there really is an absolute right or wrong, which has led to a nation with no standard of truth. Relativism is invading our society, our schools, and our homes. This is evidenced daily in our deteriorating judicial system, in our entertainment media (which continues to push immorality and indecency), and in our public schools (which teaches social tolerance, in addition to evolution). This moral relativism is encouraging everyone to accept homosexuality, fornication, abortion, and a  host of other "sin" that were once considered wrong, but are now being accepted and promoted in our society.

Relativism, which is also defined as an attitude that each decision we make is based upon the given situation, is wrong. Bible-believing Christians have been fooled by this ideology, and many don’t realize its presence in the Church or in their our own lives. Let me give you a few examples. 

Most Christians believe it is important to uphold the Ten Commandments. The commandment that keeps “the Sabbath Day holy” was protected by the blue laws until the 1980’s when Congress changed the laws to allow businesses to open on Sunday. The Sabbath Day, which was held as a day of rest, is now used for shopping, work, house projects, and family outings. No longer is Sunday devoted to God. We have accepted it for its convenience, thus making it difficult to avoid.

The second example illustrating how relativism has seeped into the Church, is how Christian women have left their homes to seek fulfillment in work and careers. The key to understanding our roles as wives is outlined in Scripture (Titus 2:5). God tells the wives to be submit to their husband (Eph 5:22), respect him (Eph 5:33), to be his helpmeet (Gen 2:18), and to be a keeper at home (Titus 2:5). When a woman tries to function like a man, the family becomes dangerously out of order. Many women believe this command is not relevant to them, however they are still leading their lives in rebellion to God. It is reflected in the Christian divorce rate, which is up to 52% of marriages ending in divorce.

Finally, immodesty is another way the Church has violated a command from God. In 1 Timothy 2:9, we are told to adorn ourselves in modest apparel. If you were to do a study on nakedness, you would find that the majority of clothing today would be considered immodest. Most women, including Christian women, are walking around in what the Bible would consider to be naked. The Church has blended into the world system so well that you can no longer differentiate the believers from the unbelievers – even while at church. The bottom line is that the topic of modesty is no longer taught in most churches, or they have redefined what they consider to be modest. [1] [2]

When these basic principles are violated, it is no wonder that Christian believers have difficulty receiving an answer from God. If you don’t believe that the Bible contains the absolute truth and offers guidelines for you to live by today, you won’t have the fundamentals to receive from God when you need that answer to prayer. You won’t have the key to unlock God's promises, because you have been straddling the fence on other clear issues in your life. If you are praying for a financial breakthrough, and have knowingly demonstrated unbelief in another area, you will likely not be able to gain the wisdom it takes to get that financial blessing. Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me…” (John 10:27). If you are not following Him in every aspect, then you practice unbelief (see verse 26). 

We are in a generation that has been fooled by the philosophy of relativism, which has resulted in unbelief.  We need to measure everything up the Word of God, lest we be fooled and miss a blessing from God.

 ~This edited article was originally written for the 
Kindred Spirits Journal, Issue #13, September 2005.

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