Forcing Morality

Free Will

When did God in the Bible ever force anyone to follow his laws or to believe in him? Yes, there were consequences for not doing so, clearly spelled out, so no one could say they didn’t make an informed choice. But never in any instance was a person made to follow God’s laws and advice. So why do some Christians insist that man must pass laws to force certain behaviors—on abortion, marital contracts, prayer in school, on and on—when all the laws we need have already been given to us?

Everyone not insane or otherwise severely mentally handicapped has the ability, right, and responsibility to choose their behavior and beliefs. Christians say every life is ordained by God, who has a plan for each of them. Really? Bible doesn’t say that. Romans 8:28 and Ephesians 1:3-4 say all Christ’s followers have been known to him from the beginning of time. He has a plan for his followers. Hang in there. I’m following a point of logic.   

Forcing Morality

Jesus said that all people who follow him are first drawn to him by the Father and that few will enter the narrow gate and find the path to eternal life. So we can share Jesus’ message, sow the seeds, but all those lives born outside of God’s plan and will or not drawn to Jesus as one of his followers will never be changed through laws. If that were possible, all the laws in the Old Testament would have been sufficient and we wouldn’t have needed a Messiah.

Of course we humans don’t possess the knowledge of who is or isn’t God’s, which also means we haven’t the wisdom to judge others’ behaviors. Those we admire may turn out to have dark hearts and those we scorn may simply not have found their way yet. Manmade laws won’t make us more moral or more apt to follow Jesus’ teachings. They work only on those who already agree with them or want to avoid the law’s punishment, not the change of heart God requires.

Having faith means believing God has a plan despite the fact that we don’t know the details or always see its effects and believing He is perfectly capable of orchestrating that plan. We are meant to follow and serve his will, not force it on others. God has never done so. People trying to do it indicates fear to me and a lack of faith that God’s promises are true. Follow your beliefs, be an example to others—not a dictator—and let God take care of judging others.