It has been said that “liberty, without wisdom, is license.” A powerful remark when one thinks about it. In what sort of way is the remark powerful? Think about it along these lines. We live in a country where freedom is the norm for each of us; yet, this freedom is not absolute. If it were, then each of us could do what is desired at no risk of arrest or imprisonment. Thus, our freedom has limitations. These limitations, however, are necessary for a civil society, and thoughtful people can easily see the rational and wisdom of this.
The limitations that are placed on society have their origin in one of two sources. They are from God or man. Consider the limitations placed on man (society) by God. First, man’s moral makeup is such that there are certain behaviors that are absolutely wrong at any time and in any context. Murder, for instance. Since murder is the taking of innocent life (or unlawful killing with malice as a motivation), there is never a time in which it is morally warranted to take the innocent life of another person. This is why abortion is an inherent evil. Consider another illustration. Adultery. Adultery is willful (voluntary) sexual intercourse of one with another not his/her spouse. When a man and a woman marry, there exist an implied trust between them both. When a man gives himself to his wife, she trusts him to be loyal to her and to no other. When that trust is broken, then the sabotage of the marriage, if not already completed, has a jump start toward completion. Thus, from the vantage point of God, man has placed on him a limitation. The value of this is obvious to any who think on it.
Consider the limitations placed on civil society by man. If God is not the source of liberty, then man determines what it is that can and ought to be done. With regard to the two previous examples (murder, adultery), it cannot be objectively established that either is morally wrong. We have seen this readily in the last half-century. Many in society have jettisoned God and all things righteous and moral from the local community, even including the larger community. Consequently, we have no earthly idea (as a people) what is right and what is wrong. In this there is no liberty, only confusion.
A perfect illustration of this is the current immoral behavior of transgenderism, especially as our current president and those who think as he does have been promoting it. Transgenderism is a choice between two ways of thinking: natural, unnatural – a lot like homosexual marriage. Unnatural behavior is self-defeating, that is, it can’t procreate, but results in extinction. Neither can it defend itself in a moral universe, not only because it is self-defeating, but also because the moral compass of man is the origin of its morality. What this means is this: man’s moral base has no more of a substantive foundation than his “I thinks.” What is moral today will be considered immoral tomorrow—by the same source.
In our freedom loving country we have liberty, but our liberties are eroded with people in political power who are more loyal to partisan parties than to anything originating with the Lord. No Christian should support such a way of thinking. Paul said in Romans, “Though they know God’s decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them” (Romans 1:32, ESV). On a practical level, no Christian can escape their contribution to an immoral society who vote/support such behavior. What about in regards to eternity? RT
