Values

So how does the love of God play out in the values that we hold? Church is a good place to start. Some people who claim to have good values are not active members of a church. Since the 1960’s, in Western nations, many people began to neglect church. We thought that we did not need it to live good lives. As a result of this, moral, family and social values have been steadily eroded.

In Australia, in the 1960’s, most people we knew went to church. On Sundays most shops were closed, so workers could be free to attend churches with their families. We are not advocating a legalistic view of the Sabbath day, but an awareness of the most important values. If people in a society do not put God first, there is no hope for their future.

Today the bottom line is often the dollar. There has been a sharp increase in divorce and with that, an increase in the number of dysfunctional children, bringing down education levels and increasing crime. Abortion levels have sky rocketed where values are increasingly self-centred. In the 1960’s the sexual revolution meant people started to cohabit without marriage. This has since developed into an acceptance of homosexuality and an increasing tolerance of paedophilia.

The biggest enemy to society is not terrorism, but its own decadence. There is no need to be fatalistic about this. This is not a sign of the end of the world. Decadence has been turned around in the past and it can be turned around again. It will take the involvement of Christians. Instead of withdrawing, Christians must stand up to promote godly values without apology.