Happy Monday Morning, Friends,
I read the story once about a guard posted outside a governmental building in London. A guard had been posted at that location as far back as anyone could remember — yet the positioning of the guard at that particular location made no sense. Finally, someone did a bit of research and discovered an interesting story. In the early 19th Century, the Duke of Wellington would often ride his horse to the building, so a guard was posted there to hold the duke’s horse. Somehow, the order for the guard was never rescinded. For over 150 years, one of the queen’s royal guards was sent to that post, and no one ever asked why.
The story, it seems, is not isolated. For example, it is said that the British civil service created a job in 1803 which called for a man to stand on the cliffs of Dover with a spyglass. He was to ring an alarm if he saw Napoleon coming. The position was not abolished until 1945. So often traditions continue long after the reason for them has been lost, and many of the old rules no longer hold true.
Our forefathers in America felt justified in clearing large forests to make room for a growing population. We now know that trees constitute one of our most important resources; to destroy them carelessly is both criminal and wrong. The rightness of a given course may change with changing times. Does this mean that there are no absolutes?
I’ve long believed that morality is what Creation intends. We do not establish right or wrong; our Creator God has done that. In God’s divine order, some things diminish life; others enhance it. We don’t establish those principles. They are written into the scheme of things. The fact that these principles are old doesn’t change their validity and truth.
Proverbs is one of my favorite books in the Bible, and Proverbs 13:15 says, “Good understanding gives favor; but the way of the transgressor is hard.” The writer wasn’t just moralizing; he was reporting the results of human experience. There are certain rules written into all creation. Living against these rules makes for a rough road to travel. The purpose of the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes impart the timeless principles that are written into the scheme of things. They are not subject to public opinion, and they are as binding as the law of gravity.
The secret to living, I suggest, is to determine what was intended from Creation and to be obedient to that intent. Like the law of gravity, they apply to everyone — thieves as well as saints. We either follow these principles, or we endure the consequences. The sooner we learn this lesson; the sooner life becomes what it was intended to be!
Wise is the person who accepts God’s principles and lives accordingly,
Bruce Jones, Pastor
Imagine Church
