Biblical World View-Question 4

What is the basis of ethics and morality?

This question is a very important one. Today, people are trying to eliminate the line between right and wrong. Or they say that everyone has their own right and wrong. They claim it's all a matter of opinion. This is a chaotic view. But if it's not correct, on what grounds does a person decide right from wrong? What does the Bible have to say?

Deuteronomy 32:4 - He is the Rock, his works are perfect,
and all his ways are just.
A faithful God who does no wrong,
upright and just is he.

If God is upright and just, and his works are perfect, then He must be 'a' paradigm. A foundation of what we call right and wrong. But is He the only one? Is it possible that there is more than one basis for morality?

Matthew 19:17 - "Why do you ask me about what is good?" Jesus replied. "There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments."

Mark 10:18 - "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good—except God alone.

God is the only being that is good. He is the only one that can, in His own person, define good. Therefore, all that is moral has it's foundation in God. He is the basis of ethics and morality. As David Quine puts it; "Because His word is the exact expression of His character, God Himself is therefore the standard." God is the standard, therefore we must know God in order to know right from wrong. God made Himself known to us through his word, the Bible. So we must constantly study the Bible and learn from it what God calls right and wrong.

We have been given a map to life. If we know the map, we will know what our lives should be like. And we will not have to sit and wonder if what someone says about ethics and morals is true. So get out your map and start studying, and discover where the line between right and wrong really is.