Christian Ethics: An Introduction to Biblical Moral Reasoning

by Wayne Grudem

Overview

What does the Bible teach about how to live in today’s world?

Best-selling author and professor Wayne Grudem distills over forty years of teaching experience into a single volume aimed at helping readers apply a biblical worldview to difficult ethical issues, including wealth and poverty, marriage and divorce, birth control, abortion, euthanasia, homosexuality, business practices, environmental stewardship, telling the truth, knowing God’s will, understanding Old Testament laws, and more.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781433549687
Publisher:	Crossway
Publication date:	07/20/2018
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	1296
Sales rank:	476,090
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Wayne Grudem (PhD, University of Cambridge) is Distinguished Research Professor of Theology and Biblical Studies at Phoenix Seminary. He is a member of the Translation Oversight Committee for the English Standard Version of the Bible, the general editor of the ESV Study Bible, and the author of over twenty-five books.

 

Read an Excerpt

CHAPTER 1

Introduction to Christian Ethics

What is Christian ethics? Why should Christians study ethics? How should we study it? Why should we base our study of ethics on everything the Bible says rather than on a few major ethical principles from Scripture?

A. Definition of Christian Ethics

1. Definition for This Book. For purposes of this book the following definition of Christian ethics will be used:

Christian ethics is any study that answers the question, "What does the whole Bible teach us about which acts, attitudes, and personal character traits receive God's approval, and which do not?"

This definition indicates that our study of Christian ethics will be God-centeredand Bible-centered. This book will attempt, for each ethical topic, to collect and synthesize the teaching of all the relevant Bible passages about that topic and then to apply that teaching wisely to various life situations.

My approach here is similar to the approach I took in my book Systematic Theology, in which I defined systematic theology as "Any study that answers the question, 'What does the whole Bible teach us today?' about any given topic." But, as I explained there:

The emphasis of systematic theology is on what God wants us to believe and to know, while the emphasis in Christian ethics is on what God wants us to do and what attitudes he wants us to have. ... Thus theology focuses on ideas while ethics focuses on situations in life. Theology tells us how we should think while ethics tells us how we should live.

This book, then, is about how to live one's life as a Christian today.

This first chapter has several parallels to chapter 1 in my book Systematic Theology. This is because my approach is similar: I am asking what the whole Bible says about various topics in both books.

2. Relationship to Other Disciplines. The emphasis of this book will not be on historical ethics (a study of how Christians in different periods of history have understood various ethical topics) or philosophical ethics (studying ethical topics largely without appeal to the Bible, using the tools and methods of philosophical reasoning and analyzing what can be known about moral right and wrong from observing the world).

These two subjects, which are worthwhile for Christians to pursue, are sometimes also included in a broader definition of the term Christian ethics. In fact, some consideration of historical and philosophical matters will be found at points throughout this book. This is because the study of history informs us of the insights gained and the mistakes made previously by others in understanding ethics, especially in the light of Scripture. And the study of philosophy helps us understand theories of moral right and wrong that are common in our culture and have been common in other cultures throughout history, and often helps us reason carefully about difficult ethical situations. But these two areas of study are not the focus of this volume, which emphasizes interacting directly with the biblical text in order to understand what the Bible itself teaches us about various ethical topics. Even though historical and philosophical studies do contribute to our understanding of ethical questions, my conviction (which I will explain in chap. 3) is that only Scripture has the final authority to define which actions, attitudes, and personal character traits receive God's approval and which ones do not, and therefore it is appropriate to spend significant time analyzing the teaching of Scripture itself.

My emphasis in this book is also different from a third approach that I will call theological ethics. Rather than seeking to understand and apply what the whole Bible teaches us about how to live (which is my approach), theological ethics begins with a few major Christian doctrines and then reasons from those doctrines to ethical conclusions. For example, Oliver O'Donovan starts with the doctrine of the resurrection of Christ and reasons from it to several significant ethical conclusions. Another example is Richard B. Hays, who starts with the New Testament doctrines of community, cross, and new creation, and then reasons to ethical conclusions. I agree that the doctrines they use as starting points are clearly emphasized in the New Testament, but rather than limiting our study to what can be deduced from those doctrines, in this book I will attempt to take into account the teachings of the whole Bible on each ethical topic — and that will include taking into account biblical passages that contain ethical teachings that could not be directly derived from those important doctrines.

While I agree that a study of the ethical implications of various Christian doctrines can and does bring beneficial insights into our ethical responsibilities, my concern is that the results of such studies are necessarily more limited in scope, more tentative, and more subject to bias in favor of the personal ethical conclusions of the practitioner, because they do not work on the basis of the richness of all the biblical data or face the constraints of having to be subject to every relevant passage rather than just those passages clearly related to the chosen themes.

Christian ethics, as I have defined my task here, also differs from Old Testament ethics and New Testament ethics. These two disciplines emphasize careful study of various ethical themes in the Old Testament or in the New Testament, but place less emphasis on attempting to draw together the teachings of the whole Bible on various topics as they apply to Christians today. At various points, I will make use of the careful work that has been done by specialists in Old Testament ethics or New Testament ethics, and I will then attempt to use that material to draw conclusions about what the whole Bible says to us today about various topics.

3. Major Categories for Ethical Study. This book is organized into seven broad areas that cover seven areas of ethical decisions. Although I do not think that the old covenant is morally binding on us today (because we are now under the new covenant; see chap. 8), we still need to use some kind of system to organize the study of ethical topics, and I find that the Ten Commandments provide a helpful structure for such a study. In using this structure, I am following in a long line of Christian writers on ethics who have done so. The broad categories that I employ follow the structure of the Ten Commandments (Ex. 20:1–17) in the following way:

Part 1: Introduction Part 2: Protecting God's Honor Commandment 1: "You shall have no other gods before me."
B. Ethical Systems: Secular and Christian

Because my goal in this book is to show what the whole Bible teaches Christians about how to live a life that is pleasing to God, I will not focus much attention on secular theories of ethics, for secular ethical systems do not claim to be subject to the moral authority of the Bible. However, it is useful here to give a brief overview of secular ethical systems. I have adapted and condensed the following overview from the clear discussion by Scott B. Rae in his book Moral Choices: An Introduction to Ethics.

1. Deontological Systems. The word deontological is based on the Greek verb dei, used in the sense "it is necessary, it should be done." Deontological systems are ethical systems based on rules for right and wrong, what ought to be done and ought not to be done.

Deontological systems can be secular (if the rules are based only on human reason and intuition) or Christian (if the rules come from God's Word, the Bible). All Christian ethical systems take God's commands in the Bible as rules that define right and wrong human conduct, and therefore all Christian ethical systems are deontological.

2. Teleological Systems. The word teleological is based on the Greek noun telos, meaning "end, goal, outcome." Teleological systems are ethical systems based on seeking the best results for an action. The most common secular teleological theory is utilitarianism, which involves seeking the greatest good for the greatest number of people. Most modern arguments about various political issues are based on utilitarian considerations.

Another secular teleological theory is ethical egoism, which involves seeking whatever is best for yourself personally, a position that is clearly contrary to Jesus's teaching, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Matt. 22:39). The twentieth-century writer Ayn Rand promoted ethical egoism.

In contrast to secular teleological systems, a Christian ethical system should have aGod-centered teleological aspect to it, because the Bible tells us that the result we should seek is the glory of God: "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31).

3. Relativism. Ethical relativism is the belief that there is no absolute right and wrong, and so ethical decisions should be based on what is commonly accepted in each person's culture (cultural relativism) or on each individual's personal preferences (individual relativism). In the area of sexual ethics, the dominant view in today's popular culture (television, movies, music, literature, higher education) is individual relativism ("What's right for you is right for you, and what's right for me is right for me.")

A particular kind of ethical relativism is called ethical emotivism. This is the view that there is no such thing as right and wrong, but when people claim that something is morally right or morally wrong, they are merely saying that they like one thing and do not like the other thing. They're just expressing their emotions with ethical language.

Another view that is similar to ethical relativism is called antinomianism. The word antinomian is based on the Greek prefix anti- (meaning "against") and the noun nomos (meaning "law"). An antinomian would say that we are not subject to any moral laws. Some of Paul's opponents were apparently antinomian and were teaching, "Why not do evil that good may come?" (Rom. 3:8).

One particular type of relativism that has gained much influence is called situation ethics. This is the view that there are no absolutely right or wrong actions, but a person should always do the most loving thing based on the facts in each new situation. This view was made popular by the 1966 book Situation Ethics by Joseph Fletcher, an Episcopal priest (later an atheist) and ethics professor at Harvard Divinity School and the University of Virginia.

Because the Bible does teach that there is absolute right and wrong, Christian ethics cannot accept ethical relativism. However, as we will see later, careful Christian decision-making will always take into account the factual details about the specific situation under consideration (see chap. 6).

4. Virtue Ethics. Theories of virtue ethics emphasize not whether specific actions are right or wrong, but the moral character of the individual. In virtue ethics, the primary concern is whether you are a virtuous person. In political elections, questions of a candidate's character are often important, and in those cases some emphasis on virtue ethics plays an important role.

A Christian ethical system should emphasize virtue ethics because the Bible teaches that we should seek to develop a Christlike character: Paul says that God predestined us "to be conformed to the image of his Son" (Rom. 8:29), and he also says, "Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ" (1 Cor. 11:1). Peter, in fact, uses the common Greek word for "virtue" (arete, meaning "virtue, moral excellence") when he tells Christians to "make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue" (2 Pet. 1:5). For this reason, I include a long list of Christlike character traits in the discussion of the goal of Christian ethics in chapter 4.

5. Conclusion. A system of Christian ethics based on the Bible does not fit neatly into any one of these categories alone. Rather, if our ethical system is derived from the Bible, it will be deontological (it will define right and wrong based on the rules God gives in Scripture) and also teleological (it will seek a good result, namely, doing all for the glory of God), and it will also include a component of virtue ethics (it will seek to develop Christlike character in each person).

A Christian approach to ethics will also exercise caution about adopting conclusions from the secular versions of these ethical systems, because all secular systems assume that ethical principles must be developed by human beings using only human observation, reasoning, and intuition, whereas a Christian approach believes that the Bible's ethical teachings are not merely the result of human thinking but have been revealed by God himself.

However, a Christian ethical system will not adopt moral relativism, for the Bible does teach that there is absolute right and wrong as defined by God himself.

C. Why Should Christians Study Ethics?

Why should Christians study Christian ethics? That is, why should we engage in the process of collecting and summarizing the teachings of many individual Bible passages on particular ethical questions? Why is it not sufficient simply to continue reading the Bible regularly every day of our lives?

1. The Basic Reason. In answering these questions, we must be careful not to propose a reason to study Christian ethics that implies that we can somehow "improve" on the Bible by doing a better job of organizing its ethical teachings or explaining them in a better way than the Bible itself has done. If we do this, we may be implicitly denying the clarity or sufficiency of Scripture (see chap. 2).

The basic reason that we should study ethics is to better know God's will for us. The New Testament tells us in several places that we should live in obedience to God's will. For example, Jesus taught that his followers should keep his commandments:

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. (Matt. 28:19–20)

If you love me, you will keep my commandments. (John 14:15)

If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. (John 15:10; see also Rom. 13:9; 1 Cor. 7:19; 1 John 2:3–4; 3:22, 24; 5:2–3; Rev. 12:17; 14:12)

But in order to keep Jesus's commandments, we have to know what they are and understand how they apply to us today, including their Old Testament background and their further explanation in the New Testament Epistles. That is the study of Christian ethics.

The New Testament Epistles also give instructions to readers that sound very much like calls to study ethics:

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. (Rom. 12:2)

Try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. (Eph. 5:10)

And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. (Phil. 1:9–11)

We have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. (Col. 1:9–10)

For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge. (2 Pet. 1:5) For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. (1 John 5:3)

(Continues…)

---

Excerpted from "Christian Ethics"
by .
Copyright © 2018 Wayne Grudem.
Excerpted by permission of Good News Publishers.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

---

Table of Contents

Abbreviations,
Illustrations,
Preface,
PART 1: INTRODUCTION,
Chapter 1 Introduction to Christian Ethics,
Chapter 2 The Ultimate Basis for Ethics: The Moral Character of God,
Chapter 3 Our Source of Ethical Standards: The Bible,
Chapter 4 The Goal of Ethics: Living for the Glory of God,
Chapter 5 The Joys and Blessings of Obedience to God and the Harmful Consequences of Sin,
Chapter 6 How to Know God's Will: Factors to Consider in Making Ethical Decisions,
Chapter 7 Christians Will Never Have to Choose the "Lesser Sin",
Chapter 8 How Should Christians Use the Old Testament for Ethical Guidance?,
PART 2: PROTECTING GOD'S HONOR,
Chapter 9 No Other Gods,
Chapter 10 No Carved Images,
Chapter 11 Purity of Speech,
Chapter 12 Lying and Telling the Truth,
Chapter 13 The Sabbath Commandment,
PART 3: PROTECTING HUMAN AUTHORITY,
Chapter 14 Authority of Parents,
Chapter 15 Equality and Leadership in Marriage,
Chapter 16 Civil Government,
Chapter 17 Other Authorities,
PART 4: PROTECTING HUMAN LIFE,
Chapter 18 Capital Punishment,
Chapter 19 War,
Chapter 20 Self-Defense,
Chapter 21 Abortion,
Chapter 22 Euthanasia,
Chapter 23 Suicide,
Chapter 24 Aging and Death,
Chapter 25 Racial Discrimination,
Chapter 26 Health,
Chapter 27 Alcohol and Drugs,
PART 5: PROTECTING MARRIAGE,
Chapter 28 Marriage,
Chapter 29 Birth Control,
Chapter 30 Infertility, Reproductive Technology, and Adoption,
Chapter 31 Pornography,
Chapter 32 Divorce and Remarriage,
Chapter 33 Homosexuality and Transgenderism,
PART 6: PROTECTING PROPERTY,
Chapter 34 Property: The Goodness and Necessity of Private Ownership of Property,
Chapter 35 Work, Rest, Vacations, and Retirement,
Chapter 36 Increasing Prosperity: Is More Prosperity a Good Thing?,
Chapter 37 Poverty and Wealth,
Chapter 38 Personal Financial Stewardship,
Chapter 39 Borrowing, Lending, and the Question of Debt,
Chapter 40 Business Ethics,
Chapter 41 Stewardship of the Environment,
PART 7: PROTECTING PURITY OF HEART,
Chapter 42 Purity of Heart,
Appendix A: Should We Move Beyond the New Testament to a Better Ethic?,
Appendix B: Scripture Versions Cited,
Glossary,
Name Index,
Hymn Index,
Scripture Index,
Subject Index,

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“Insightful, encyclopedic, biblical, and distinctively evangelical, this new book from Wayne Grudem is a massive contribution to Christian ethics. It will stand as one of the most important and definitive works of this generation. Readers should engage it chapter by chapter, and then keep it close at hand for continuing consultation.”
—R. Albert Mohler Jr., President and Centennial Professor of Christian Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

“Wayne Grudem and I have always been on the same page, both in theology and in theological method. Christian Ethics: An Introduction to Biblical Moral Reasoning has all the excellent features of his Systematic Theology: biblical fidelity, comprehensiveness, clarity, practical application, and interaction with other writers. His exhortations drive the reader to worship the triune God. I hope the book gets the wide distribution and enthusiastic response that it deserves.”
—John M. Frame, Professor of Systematic Theology and Philosophy Emeritus, Reformed Theological Seminary

“This work by Wayne Grudem is the best text yet composed in biblical Christian ethics, and I mean that in several ways. It is more comprehensive, more insightful, and more applicable than any comparable work, and is sure to be a classroom classic. But what I like most is how Grudem unites a scholar’s mind with a disciple’s heart more committed to pleasing Christ than contemporaries and more zealous for strengthening the church than impressing the world.”
—Daniel R. Heimbach, Senior Professor of Christian Ethics, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary

“Wayne Grudem has a rare gift in making complex theological and ethical concepts accessible. He also has encyclopedic knowledge and an organized, analytical mind. All this is fully evident in this important book, which provides an invaluable resource to both scholars and practitioners.”
—Peter S. Heslam, Senior Fellow, University of Cambridge; Director, Transforming Business

“Wayne Grudem is a master at cutting into meaty intellectual topics, seasoning them, and serving them up in flavorful, bite-sized morsels for the ordinary person to savor and digest. Don’t let the size of this book deter you! This rich feast will help you figure out what the Bible says about how to live today. Dig in. Taste the wisdom that is sweeter than honey. Eat from the bread that will bring health to your spirit and life to your bones.”
—Mary A. Kassian, author, Growing Grateful

“So much in the field of ethics today merely describes the issues and the alternatives. The very idea that there is a ‘right’ answer to anything is anathema. In such a stagnant climate, Wayne Grudem’s Christian Ethics is a breath of fresh air. It demonstrates how the Bible provides specific answers to particular questions. However, this is not merely a compendium of his personal views on issues. Where his views are at odds with other views, even within evangelical Christianity, he explains those alternatives to his readers and invites comparison. Readers are challenged to think and are given the material they need to do so in a God-honoring way. We are in Grudem’s debt for this massive labor of love.”
—John F. Kilner, Professor Emeritus of Bioethics and Contemporary Culture, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School

“Wayne Grudem has done it again. His Systematic Theology has equipped countless Christians, churches, and pastors in the truth of God’s Word in a clear, accessible, and faithful manner. Now his Christian Ethics promises to do the same in helping us apply God’s Word to our lives. In a time when obedience is often minimized in the name of grace, this book equips us to delight in God’s will for our lives in response to grace.”
—C. J. Mahaney, Senior Pastor, Sovereign Grace Church of Louisville

“Through this encyclopedic treatment of applied ethics, Wayne Grudem shows how his method of whole-Bible hermeneutics can help Christians sort through the thorny ethical issues of the day. From the beginning of life to the end of life, and everywhere in between, Grudem demonstrates what faithfulness looks like in a God-centered, Scripture-centered life. Read with an open Bible and an open heart.”
—C. Ben Mitchell, professor; author, Ethics and Moral Reasoning: A Student’s Guide

“This is the best all-around book on Christian ethics I'm aware of, and I plan to require it as the primary textbook for my course on biblical ethics. Grudem writes in his characteristic style: clear, logical, accessible, and (usually!) persuasive.”
—Andrew David Naselli, Professor of Systematic Theology and New Testament, Bethlehem College and Seminary; Pastor, the North Church, Mounds View, Minnesota

“This nearly exhaustive treatment of Christian ethics is destined to become the standard evangelical text for many years to come. It is wide-ranging, thoughtful, and unafraid to engage with controversial issues and with those who take a different approach. Regardless of whether one can side with Grudem on each topic, all of us can benefit immensely from his lucid presentation. There is hardly an ethical issue he doesn’t address, and I will be consulting his work regularly for wisdom and guidance on a variety of matters that the church faces in a morally decadent and confused world. Highly recommended!”
—Sam Storms, Founder and President, Enjoying God Ministries