Jesus and Salvation Series (Part 16 A)

Welcome to the Summer 2006 study for the Koinonia Class of Calvary Baptist Church, Denver, Colorado. We’re looking at the issue of Jesus and Salvation, using the book “Is Jesus The Only Savior” [James R. Edwards, Is Jesus The Only Savior? (Grand Rapids/Cambridge: 2005)]. We encourage each person to buy a copy and follow along.


Sin, A Savior, and Moral Relativism

Chapter 8 is entitled, “Is a Savior from Sin Meaningful In a Day of Moral Relativism?” To understand the question that leads this chapter, we first have to grasp the effect of moral relativism on the culture and the church. Edwards takes some time to explain what moral relativism is and how is has made inroads into the church.

Edwards is not the only Christian writer to treat the subject of moral relativism. In doing a quick search on Amazon.com, I found over 40 books on the subject. And looking on Google for “moral relativism” over 1.1 million sites were found. The first site on the list was on wikipedia.com (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_relativism). It’s a good place to go for a quick introduction to the concept.

In April, 2005, one of the most famous statements on the subject was made by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (who was quickly thereafter elected Pope Benedict XVI). The entire text of his sermon is at Vatican Radio and many other sites. Here is the paragraph with the memorable phrase “dictatorship of relativism”:

"How many winds of doctrine we have known in recent decades, how many ideological currents, how many ways of thinking… The small boat of thought of many Christians has often been tossed about by these waves – thrown from one extreme to the other: from Marxism to liberalism, even to libertinism; from collectivism to radical individualism; from atheism to a vague religious mysticism; from agnosticism to syncretism, and so forth. Every day new sects are created and what Saint Paul says about human trickery comes true, with cunning which tries to draw those into error (cf Eph 4, 14). Having a clear faith, based on the Creed of the Church, is often labeled today as a fundamentalism. Whereas, relativism, which is letting oneself be tossed and “swept along by every wind of teaching”, looks like the only attitude (acceptable) to today’s standards. We are moving towards a dictatorship of relativism which does not recognize anything as for certain and which has as its highest goal one’s own ego and one’s own desires."

That is a great statement about relativism from the current Pope: (that “which does not recognize anything as for certain”). Edwards also has a very readable style, but unfortunately it is not easy in this chapter to find a simple definition of moral relativism. He seems to equate it with pluralism, but then does not provide a clear definition of pluralism either. One quote comes close to a definition: “In ideological pluralism, objective virtues are replaced by subjective opinions. When virtues are replaced by subjective judgments, then statements about virtue become like color preferences. One opinion of right or wrong, virtue or vice, beauty or ugliness is as valid as another.” (page 144)

Here is the crux of the matter for the church. If someone says there is no objective standard for morality (no right nor wrong, only different opinions), then for them there is no such thing as “sin”. If there is no sin but only mistakes or improprieties, then there is no need for a savior. And if there is no need for a savior, there is no salvation. “If sin and hell are merely metaphors, perhaps God, heaven, and salvation are metaphors too.” (p148)

Ironically, a favorite Bible verse of the moral relativist (who otherwise doesn’t accept the Bible as an objective moral authority) is, “Judge not, that ye be not judged.” (Matt. 7:1 KJV) It seems OK (or PC) to condemn someone for judging another (even though that in itself is judging another) because it is not OK to make someone feel bad about their sin. So, the topic of sin is avoided or changed into something more palatable.

If we get to the point in the church were we look at sin, salvation, heaven, hell, a Savior, and even God as metaphors, rather than reality, our message of Jesus Christ suddenly becomes meaningless and irrelevant. The Christian message (the gospel) is based on the historical events that changed the world—the incarnation of God in Christ, the death of Jesus Christ for the vicarious atonement of our sins, and the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

If none of those events were real and true, the message of the church for the past 2000 years has been a lie. And attempts to proclaim the “heart of the message” by claiming the events are true as metaphors, leaves us with a Jesus who is only a model or an example to follow. Personally, I need a savior, not a model.

More in the next post about how a savior from sin is meaningful in a day of moral relativism.