The Ability to Distinguish Between Good and Evil

In the Biblical story of the Garden of Eden, we are informed that God planted a tree which he called "the knowledge or awareness of good and evil" (Genesis 2:8-9). In this story, God told the man that he could eat from any tree in the garden EXCEPT that tree (Genesis 2:15-17). Interestingly, this is followed by an account of the creation of a wife for the man (Genesis 2:18-24). Then, we read: "Now the man and his wife were both naked, but they felt no shame." (Genesis 2:25, NLT) As the story continues, the woman is tempted by a talking serpent to partake of the fruit of the forbidden tree, and that she was able to convince her husband to do the same (Genesis 3:1-6). Next, as a consequence eating the fruit, we are told that "At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So, they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves." (Genesis 3:7, NLT)

Now, obviously, the story is highly symbolic, but the implications for discerning what is/isn't morally acceptable are clear - especially as it relates to human sexuality. This is underscored by the conversation which followed in the narrative between God and the couple. We read: "When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man and his wife heard the Lord God walking about in the garden. So, they hid from the Lord God among the trees. Then the Lord God called to the man, 'Where are you?' He replied, 'I heard you walking in the garden, so I hid. I was afraid because I was naked.' 'Who told you that you were naked?' the Lord God asked. 'Have you eaten from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat?' The man replied, 'It was the woman you gave me who gave me the fruit, and I ate it.' Then the Lord God asked the woman, 'What have you done?' 'The serpent deceived me,' she replied. 'That’s why I ate it.' (Genesis 3:8-13, NLT) Clearly, prior to eating the fruit, the couple were not even aware that they were naked, or that there was anything shameful associated with being in that condition!

From God's perspective, EVERYTHING that he had created (including the man and woman and their ability to reproduce through sexual intercourse) was "very good" (Genesis 1:31). What are we to conclude from this story? That the shame and guilt associated with our bodies and their sexual functions should be regarded as HUMAN notions about what is/isn't morally acceptable - that those notions did NOT originate in the mind of God or should be considered a part of what he has determined to be good or evil. Hence, the clothing of the human couple after they were expelled from the garden must be regarded as a Divine concession to their feelings (Genesis 3:20-24)! Even so, we (as the descendants of that first couple) have retained their sense of shame about our bodies and the sexual act! In other words, like them, we have consistently called that which is good "evil," and that which is evil "good."

In the book of Isaiah, we read that God reprimanded the people of Judah and Jerusalem and said: "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and shrewd in their own sight!" (Isaiah 5:20-21, ESV) In other words, God was warning his people NOT to formulate their own moral standards and claim that they were God's standard! It is God who declares what is moral and what is immoral. It is God who separates light from darkness and made some things to be sweet and others to be bitter. And yet, we humans continue to substitute our own judgments about most matter for those designated by God! Indeed, we read in Scripture that "There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death. (Proverbs 14:12, ESV)

Moreover, as we have just demonstrated, there is nowhere that this phenomenon is more apparent than in the realm of human sexuality. For instance, God made fidelity to another human to be THE standard for all committed relationships among the Israelites (Exodus 20:14). In other words, God declared it to be a sin to be unfaithful to someone to whom you have made a commitment. The human standard: If you get tired of your partner, you can divorce them and remarry someone else (Deuteronomy 24:1) OR If you like variety, you can marry more than one person (II Samuel 3:2-5, I Chronicles 3:1-3, and I Kings 11:3). Once again, harkening back to the story of the creation of Eve, the story "explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one." (Genesis 2:24, NLT) No ceremony, no official license - just two people leaving their parents' home, coming together in sexual intercourse and making a commitment to each other! Likewise, in the Gospel of Mathew, we read that the Pharisees confronted Jesus Christ on the subject of divorce. He replied: "'Haven’t you read the Scriptures?' Jesus replied. 'They record that from the beginning ‘God made them male and female.’ And he said, 'This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.’ Since they are no longer two but one, let no one split apart what God has joined together.' 'Then why did Moses say in the law that a man could give his wife a written notice of divorce and send her away?' they asked. Jesus replied, 'Moses permitted divorce only as a concession to your hard hearts, but it was not what God had originally intended. And I tell you this, whoever divorces his wife and marries someone else commits adultery—unless his wife has been unfaithful.'" (Matthew 19:4-9, NLT)

Longtime readers of this blog know that Jesus condensed the entirety of the Law of Moses (Torah) into Two Great Commandments. He said: "'You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments." (Matthew 22:37-40, NLT) In other words, if people would apply these two principles to everything that they thought and did (including those things which pertain to human sexuality), they would fulfill the requirements of God's Law! In similar fashion, if humans could apply this standard to themselves, there wouldn't be any need for an elaborate list of dos and don'ts (like the 600+ commandments of Torah)! For instance, we can see how rape, incest, pedophilia, bestiality, adultery, prostitution, promiscuousness, etc. would be inconsistent with treating others the way that you would like to be treated. Likewise, in a primitive society based on paternalistic misogyny, slavery, and idolatry, we can see why a male penetrating another male in sexual intercourse or seeking the services of a male temple prostitute would be regarded as violating these two principles. In modern times, however, with our understanding of sexual orientation, not so much in terms of sexual relationships between members of the same sex. Indeed, with the application of the two commandments to our own times, we can see that some heterosexual behaviors could be regarded as sinful and some homosexual behaviors could also be regarded as sinful, while others could be regarded as perfectly consistent with them both!

Which brings us back to our original question about how to distinguish between good and evil. Do we need a long list of dos and don'ts to determine what is moral and what is immoral? OR Are those Two Great Commandments enough?

In Paul's epistle to the Christians of Rome, we read: "And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect." (Romans 12:1-2) Under the terms of the New Covenant, God's Law is written in our hearts - NOT on tablets of stone, parchment roles, or sheets of paper! (Jeremiah 31:31-33 and Hebrews 8:8-11, 10:16-17) This is what Paul meant when he wrote to the Christians of Galatia: "So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses." (Galatians 5:16-18, NLT) Hence, we see that it is the Holy Spirit that helps us to distinguish between good and evil by applying the Two Great Commandments to everything that we think and do!