Principle or Progress?

“Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshipped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”

Joshua 24:14-15

Principle or progress? That is a common conundrum in every generation. Do we hold onto our values and principles from the past that have gotten us to where we are, or do we jettison them in favor of new ideas or new ways of looking at the issues that we face today to shape the future? How do we know when it’s time to let go of the past and forge a new future? Some people think that this is a tough decision. But it really isn’t as I will explain.

What I am talking about here are principles that we rely on to guide our behavior as individuals and the policies and laws we enact as a nation. We often refer to them as core values. These are the principles that are timeless and do not change from generation to generation. While other things may change, such as technology, scientific discoveries, economic markets, and global politics, the principles and values that we rely on to guide our actions and decisions should not change. It would be dangerous for us to build our lives, or our nation, upon a shifting or unstable foundation (Matthew 7:24-27)!

Let’s first look at our nation’s principles and values. We just celebrated our Independence Day yesterday, but our nation is deeply divided. There seems to be a strong and growing desire in America today to ditch the principles and values of the past in favor of adopting new principles and values for the future. This is evidenced by the rewriting of the origin of America (1619 Project), the weakening of law enforcement (defunding police and open borders), and the promoting of economic policies based on ideology rather than what benefits Americans (replacing fossil fuels). There are also voices clamoring for changes to our U.S. Constitution, claiming it is out of date and not in keeping with the times.  As a result, some have lost confidence in the principles and wisdom built into our founding document. They would rather change these principles to fit current times instead of using them to guide our policies for the future.

But does our American Constitution need revision? Do the principles that guided the formation of our nation and Constitution need to be adapted to today’s culture? The only way to answer that question is to look at the principles and values embedded in our Constitution.

The principles in our U.S. Constitution reflect our system of self-government and include our citizens’ right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Some of these rights include equal rights for all citizens, free speech, freedom of religion, private property ownership, the right to bear arms, the right to a trial, and the right to pursue our own individual destiny. But some of these rights are under assault today as outdated or needing change to fit the current times. But if we change them to fit the current times, won’t we need to change them again in the future to fit the new current times? And while our nation has not always lived up to the principles embedded in our Constitution, the principles are nonetheless valid, beneficial, and worth keeping!

If we look at the Christian Church in America today, we see that there is also a desire to alter its founding document – the Holy Bible. The progressive movement in the Church today wants to redefine Scripture to fit current cultural norms rather than letting Scripture inform us of God’s principles for our lives. Some Christian pastors and denominations have aligned themselves with earthly cultural and secular values instead of Godly values. This is evidenced by Christian pastors and churches supporting abortion (Exodus 20:13), homosexuality (Leviticus 18:23), gender ideology (Genesis 1:27), and prosperity theology (Matthew 6:19-21). These are all clearly against Biblical principles and teaching as referenced in the noted Scripture passages. As a result, they lead believers away from God’s truth and His principles and advocate ungodly lives and behaviors which are harmful to them as well as to our nation.

Some American Christians also think that the Bible as our founding document is outdated and written for a different time that doesn’t really apply to today’s culture. But nothing could be further from the truth! The Bible has plenty to say to us today regarding our culture, just as it did to the culture when it was written. It is just that progressive Christians don’t want to accept it as truth or adhere to it. Rather than look to God’s Word for wisdom and counsel regarding today’s issues, such as justice, gun violence, abortion, sexual behavior, or any other current topic, they prefer to rely on their own truth instead of His principles. In essence, they are only seeking justification for their sinful lifestyles and secular ideologies instead of being obedient to God’s principles for living His way!

Christians do not get to decide what Scripture is good and what is not. It is God’s Word and not ours. It’s God’s revelation to man not our interpretation of our God. His Word cannot be changed, and it should never be changed (Revelation 22:18-19)! Instead, we are called to meditate on His Word (Psalm 1:1-2) and obey it (Acts 5:29)! Furthermore, we will be blessed when we do so (Luke 11:28)!

So, the answer is always principles over progress when it comes to our lives and our nation’s policies and laws. To do otherwise would be to destroy the solid foundation upon which our lives and nation are built and to suffer the consequences of our own sinful behavior and the influence of our corrupt world. The truth is that Biblical principles don’t need to change – people do!!

Can I get an Amen!