Tools for Monday: How to Discern What is the Good or Right Thing to Do (Part 2)
Last Monday, we discussed how decision-making can be confusing and anxiety provoking. Yet, we found that God, because of his absolutely loving nature and character, does not want to keep us in the dark concerning his will for us. We also noted that making crucial decisions is much more involved than feeling a “vibe,” ensuring good karma, or trusting that there is some sort of universal good out there just waiting to be found and applied.
So where do we start when it comes to making good and right decisions? Three of the more popular and non-biblical methods for decision-making today are formally called Naturalism, Stoicism, and Monism. Don’t let these terms intimidate you. Once you see them in action, you can’t unsee them.
For instance, Naturalism is the idea that human beings are simply sophisticated animals, so we should make decisions based on what comes the most naturally to us. In this way of thinking, truth is always relative and changing, depending on our circumstances. The naturalist would say, “Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die.” It is the philosophy that emphasizes doing whatever is right and true for you.
Stoicism proposes that if we let our minds be guided by increasing knowledge and reason, then we will achieve a sort of bliss which will harmonize our decisions with that which nature originally intended for us. Stoicism is best described as a resignation to life. Everything supposedly happens to us for a reason, so one is simply to get over it, adjust as best as possible, and move on. A Stoic would say something like, “It is what it is.”
Monism offers that there is one universal truth out there and, should we find it, we have the key which unlocks the door of good decision making. A man named Immanuel Kant is quite famous for monism. He said that there is a “categorical imperative,” or one big command out there that we need to locate, isolate, and ensure is followed, no matter what.
Did you notice that these three popular philosophies ultimately evade the hard questions of life? Each also discounts the role of sin, and therefore discounts redemption. A faith element is mostly absent from them, as well.
The Bible points out the fallacies of Naturalism, Stoicism, and Monism. For example, God’s word is clear that we are animals in the natural world, but we don’t simply run on instinct like dogs and cats. In fact, God made us “a little lower than the angels,” with a heart designed for relationship with our Creator.
And just think if Jesus chose the ways of the Stoics. He would have never taught authoritatively, interacted with poor and oppressed people, and he certainly would not have borne the cross.
Also, Jesus agreed with monism on principle that there is only way truth, but this truth is not an elusive, legalistic straight-jacket that takes all the joy from life. Jesus said that he is the actual embodiment of truth!
Could it be therefore that right and good decision-making starts with who God is? Making the right choice is not about having just the right philosophy or strategy. It is about understanding that our actions can flow from our relationship to the One who created us and loves us beyond comprehension. Our actions essentially reflect our response to the one, true God who is reaching out to us.
Next week, we get into some specifics of how God is at work around us and how we can respond.