Is there a Moral Standard?
An Apologist will always run up against regular people who will put forth the idea that Morality is an evolutionary thing that can change as man changes, they will argue that something that is Wrong or considered Wrong, in modern times, may have at one time be considered Right. An example that many people try to use is the idea of Slavery. They also would point out that Slavery is not considered Right because man has evolved.
Slavery mentioned in the Bible is not of the same context. The assumption that the word "Slavery" in ancient Israel had the same definition as we use it today is an incorrect assumption. The Bible actually forbids Slavery as we know it. Here are the verses which are referenced to support this statement.
This is one reference that strictly forbids slave trading. Which would mean that there would be no way to transact a purchase of a person that would have been taken without his free will surrender to slavery. This would mean that the Bible would and does forbid the type of Slavery that is in the context of the current modern world.
There is a further explanation of debt slavery in Leviticus. Specifically Leviticus 25:39-43 explains the contracts and limitations of bondservants.
"39 And if thy brother that dwelleth by thee be waxen poor, and be sold unto thee; thou shalt not compel him to serve as a bondservant: 40 but as an hired servant, and as a sojourner, he shall be with thee, and shall serve thee unto the year of jubile: 41 and then shall he depart from thee, both he and his children with him, and shall return unto his own family, and unto the possession of his fathers shall he return. 42 For they are my servants, which I brought forth out of the land of Egypt: they shall not be sold as bondmen."
Therefore when things are proposed that go against a Moral Standard or against a Moral issue that is to be compared to the Biblical acceptance of such an action, there should be a heavy amount of research done into the context of the stated Moral issue.
However, there does exist a Moral Standard, a Transcendent set of Moral Standards that explain what is right and wrong. Morality is not an evolutionary element that is forever changing. Murder since the time of Cain and Abel has been wrong and continues to be wrong. This is a good example, that even those who do not want to accept the reality of a moral standard, can agree that murder is wrong.
I have had arguments with others who say that Morality changes with the acceptance of man as they evolve and things change to accommodate the entire community's acceptance or become morally accepted as a community standard. I argue that this does not constitute a Moral Standard, because a Moral Standard cannot be considered a standard if it is based upon a subset of the entire group of humanity.
An example is that it is Right to be able to Murder someone. If a group of people, lets say all the people in one Nation, lets say Australia, all decided that Murder was Morally right and it was Right as part of the Moral Standard of Australia. I argue that it is not morally Right but would instead contend that it is considered an acceptable action, in Australia. Because the rest of the world may not accept murder as Right.
This then becomes the argument of opinion based morals. A Moral that is based upon the opinion of man is not a moral standard but is an Accepted Activity if one nation, makes an action acceptable then another nation could make the action unacceptable, therefore creating a shifting Morality and not a baseline Standard.
God has set the baseline for Moral Standards, he has engrained it into our being and from the time he created us he has given the understanding of Right and Wrong to us within our being. He did not give us the ability to determine Right or Wrong from our own decisions.
It would be very conceited if I myself were to say at somepoint in time that something is morally Right. There are a few things that are wrong with this.
1. What Authority do I have to make that decision?
2. Who does it apply to? Since I would not have influence over all of mankind.
3. Opinion based Morality is not a standard.
4. A Standard cannot be a Standard if it is not applied equally across all of those who would be affected.
Drawing from my personal perspective and faith grounded in the Bible, I've observed that when individuals deny the existence of God, they sometimes use this denial to justify heinous actions, as it allows them to determine their own moral standards. This is far from being a trivial matter. The pages of history bear witness to the gravest of atrocities, such as the Holocaust, abortion, and genocide, which can be traced back to a rejection of God's existence, resulting in the absence of absolute moral guidance.
However, it is paramount to acknowledge that humanity does not possess the authority to arbitrarily define what is morally right or wrong. From my personal faith perspective, I believe that one day, we will all be held accountable before God for the deeds we have undertaken, both good and bad. This divine judgment serves as a reminder that there is an ultimate standard of morality beyond our individual opinions.
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