THE NAGGING QUESTION OF GOOD AND EVIL

 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Ephesians 6:12 (NIV)

                Two of the most popular movie series over the past decade or so have been the Star Wars series and the Lord of the Rings/Hobbit series. To these we could add the multitude of Superhero movies that have dominated the theater. All of these movies have one thing in common; they are all about the struggle between good and evil. What I find interesting is, in a society that denies absolute truth and refuses to define right and wrong, we still crave a clear, black and white distinction between good and evil. We just cannot escape our desire to see good triumph over evil.

                What these movies highlight is the reality that deep within us we know that there is right and wrong, good and evil. Not only do we know it, but we long for it. We long for good and evil to be defined. We long for right and wrong to be clearly declared. As long as we do this in fictional worlds, with fictional characters, it is safe. But when we try to apply right and wrong to our everyday lives, things get a little trickier. We are allowed to cheer for the heroes of right and jeer at the villains in the movies, but in real life we are not allowed to make such distinctions.

                As human beings, we cannot get away from our ingrained sense of right and wrong. Although we may not be able to clearly articulate the particulars, we know that they exist. Our internal conscience is an alarm bell that warns us of the dangers around us. It sounds the alarm when we have taken the wrong path and it affirms us when we have taken the right path. We can ignore our conscience; we can even silence our conscience, but we cannot eliminate it. In our unguarded moments, it rises up to confront us with our own right and wrong, good and evil.

                What the above-mentioned movies and our own conscience tells us is that right and wrong are not subjective. We do not get to choose what is right and wrong for us, independent of the world around us. There is an absolute standard of right and wrong that transcends our preferences and opinions. In our heart of hearts we know right and wrong are constants that exist outside of any human invention. If this is not true, then might does make right. Those who are strongest and have the most power get to do whatever they choose and the rest of us just have to live with it.

                The current situation in Ukraine highlights just how ludicrous that idea really is. The majority of the world has lined up on the side of Ukraine because they recognize that the actions of Vladimir Putin and the Russian army are wrong. It doesn’t matter if Putin believes that he has the right to invade Ukraine. In this case, it is clear that right and wrong are not subjective but very objective.

                God has placed within our hearts a moral compass that points toward Him and His design for humanity. We have distorted this compass. We have allowed the pull of sin to redirect it. But it constantly tries to correct the error. It constantly tries to pull us back to true north. Without even knowing it, our world continues to declare that there is an absolute right and wrong; that morality is not a personal choice. We depict it in our movies and in our protests. Without this reality all of our attempts at justice are meaningless. It is time to apply what we applaud in the movies to how we live in real life.

For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for it is light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said: "Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you." Be very careful, then, how you live--not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.
Ephesians 5:8-16 (NIV)