Whats Right With It?

cripture:

Philippians 4:8 KJV 1900

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

How many of you have ever had your kids ask you after being told no why not? Or “Whats wrong with it?” How many of you have wondered “What’s wrong with it?” when it comes to many things that we have been told by our forefathers we ought not to do? I know I have.

Growing up I was very concerned with trying to figure out what was wrong with this or that. Many times it would seem like two things were essentially the same and we would not do the one thing and yet the other was perfectly acceptable. I became very good at justifying things, entertainments, actions, standards, attitudes all based on the question “Whats wrong with it?” For the sake of being consistent I could equate one thing with another and then that thing with the next until I could justify many things. If anyone would question my conclusions I would ask, “Well, What’s wrong with it?” “How is it different than this other thing” and “Prove that it is wrong.”

Obviously my heart was in the wrong place, but so was my mind. You see I was asking the wrong question. Lets look at the verse and see what question it leads us to ask.

Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

This verse is dealing with the thought life. What do we dwell on? What do we allow to remain in our minds? A big part of what we think about is what we do or see. Our entertainment and our actions have great effect on our thought life, and inversely how we think guides how we live. This verse deals specifically with our thought life but applies broadly to our entire lives.

Well, I don’t see anything wrong with it is often the deciding factor in decision making, but is that the criteria? If this verse said, “Whatsoever is not true, whatsoever is not hones, whatsoever things are unjust, whatsoever things are impure, whatsoever things are not lovely, whatsoever things are of bad report, do not think on these things.” Then our question would be “whats wrong with it?” Instead it says to think on good rather than to not think on bad. Now thinking on good of course means to not think on bad but I think it goes just a tiny step further. The question we are lead to ask in this passage is “What’s right with it?”

That’s a similar question to “What’s wrong with it?’ But it is distinctly different. “What’s wrong with it” leads down a path of justifying doubtful things whereas “What’s right with it” Leads up the path of goodness and righteousness. Rather than something not being evil and so our lives being filled with not evil things, we begin to fill our lives and our thoughts with good things.

This though shift had dramatic impacts on my life. Many of the things that I at one time did not see anything wrong with I now see what it leads to or what is wrong with it in particular. Yet other things I still cannot prove are evil, yet they are not good, they are not profitable to fill the mind with. What’s right with it? Should be the deciding question in our decision making.

Another common decision making process that I think really causes problems that I mentioned earlier is the idea of consistency and how some can in an effort to be consistent end up at places they never thought they would.

I know of a family that began to allow certain things for the sake of consistency. I remember someone criticizing their parenting and warning them that once they started down the path they were on it might never stop. I remember those parents being offending and telling the person, we would never allow that. What we are allowing now would never lead to us going that far. This family was not a rebellious family that was against God and leaving the church. In fact the father was an adult Sunday School teacher and the mother was very passionate about God. Yet in 3 or 4 months those things that they said they would never do or never allow, they were doing and allowing. Things that were basically the same as that lead to the next step and the next step. Each time asking the question “Well, what’s wrong with it?” and saying “We already do this, that is basically the same thing!”

I am not against consistency. Do not get me wrong. Inconsistency is one of the biggest problems that people point out and accuse Christians of. They are often correct. We should strive to be consistent with ourselves and with scripture and whenever a clear area of inconsistency is identified we should corrects it! God’s Word is consistent. God’s Law is consistent. Therefore the life of a Christian ought also to be consistent. Do not misunderstand me to be saying that I am against consistency! One of the most vital things in our lives is to seek to always be consistent with the Word of God and with ourselves!

Yet why do we always throw out convictions for the sake of consistency and never throw out the similarly questionable behavior? We come with the assumption that what we are doing now is fine, therefore the thing that we do not do that is basically the same must also be fine. We never ask “What’s right with it?” Instead we ask, “What’s wrong with it?” and “How is it different than this?” If they are the same it does not mean they are both right, it might mean they are both wrong!

I’m struggling to get to the point. We also read in Scripture that “Whatsoever is not of faith is sin.” In our efforts toward consistency do not let consistency take priority over rightness. Never allow doubtful behaviors into your life just to be consistent. Maybe you can’t see the difference now, maybe you can’t quite see what is wrong with it but that is not the decision making process for the Christian.

That family that I know? It does have a happy ending. The kids grew up and began to make their own decisions. One reversed the direction and instead of asking “What’s wrong with it consistently asks What’s right with it?” The other has not drifted any further but has held firm and is serving God today. The parents have reversed some of their lifestyle decisions as well. I haven’t talked to them, I don’t know why, but the family is very different today that it was and it seems was pulled back from the brink of the precipice! The entire attitude is no longer self-justifying but now makes decisions to please God, rather than just to not do anything particularly evil. God continues to work and lead even through human ignorance and foolishness, but that does not mean we ought to be careless!

Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

I just wanted to challenge you toward a shift of thinking that has helped me in my life and I believe is Biblical. Stop asking “What’s wrong with it?” Instead ask “What’s right with it?”