Standards and Convictions

Timothy Chevalier, M.A.

When a student asks a math teacher "why" a certain equation works, a good math teacher will sit down and explain the mechanics of the equation. The improved understanding results in a student who is better able to function in the classroom and who is better able to fulfill his teacher's expectations.

However, in the realm of Christian living the question "why" becomes challenging and almost frightening. Instead of sitting down and explaining the reasoning behind our rules of conduct and lifestyle, we skirt around the responsibility to explain. If the math teacher refused to explain the equation, the result on the student would be frustration, unnecessary anxiety, and an improper attitude toward the teacher. A refusal to adequately answer our young people's questions concerning the boundaries which are placed around them will also result in frustrated and bitter kids who have no desire to please God.

God made man with the ability, even the need, to reason. When we are uncertain of a logical reason for certain behaviors, then it becomes difficult to be motivated to properly behave. Peter exhorts us in his first epistle to be "ready always to give an answer unto every man that asketh...(us) a reason of the hope that is in...(us), with meekness and fear." It is the responsibility of the authorities (parents, pastors, teachers, etc.) to explain to young people why we live the way we do as Christians.

We have made some tragic mistakes in Fundamental Christian circles. Some have reduced Christianity to a set of specific standards of external conduct, but have left out the heart of obedience. Young people who only conform to external mandates end up, as the Scripture says, "having a form a godliness, but denying the power thereof" (2 Timothy 3:5). They become spiritual zombies who look good on the outside, but are far from God in their hearts. And once they are away from the rules, they will live in a manner that their corrupt hearts lead them. If young people simply conform to boundaries placed around them by their authorities, without developing a heart for God, they are at best delaying the inevitable process of corruption in their lives.

There is nothing wrong with having good expectations of conduct. The Ten Commandments are just that--a list of "thou shalt nots" which teach us that God has very definite expectations for our conduct. Rules are not the problem. But the simple keeping of rules does not equal spirituality. Christ indicates in Matthew 5 that it is not good enough to just keep the law externally. The law has to be in the hearts of the people. The question we must ask ourselves is do we want to produce the kids who really have a heart to please God, or kids who simply look good externally. The real test is when our students leave the confines of the school rule book or parentally-imposed guidelines. What are their lives like without the imposed standards of their authorities?

Let's distinguish somewhat between a standard and a conviction. A standard be definition is "something used by general agreement as a type of model or pattern: a criterion." There are many external authorities that place boundaries of expectations (criteria) around us, such as parents, school administration or teachers, a pastor, the government, an employer, or even an athletic coach. Young people often comment that they cannot wait until they are on their own and there is no one telling them what to do. They fail to realize that no matter how old they get or where they go, there will always be someone over them who will have certain expectations for their conduct.

Society, in general, has certain criteria for conduct. Even though society's standards continually change and would not always be acceptable to us as Christians, there are still some behaviors which society considers to be unacceptable. Acceptable behavior is that which conforms to the criteria. As Christians, our goal is the development of Christ-likeness in our lives. Christ is the standard, the criterion, that determines the acceptability of our lives. However, in an effort to develop Christ-likeness in the lives of our young people, Christ-likeness is sometimes reduced simply to conformity to a set of external standards of conduct.

Authorities place boundaries around us for several reasons: (1) They are concerned for our safety and wish to protect us from physical harm. Parents don't allow their children to play with fire--not because they want to rob them of fun, but because they do not want them to get hurt. (2) They want things to function in an orderly manner. Many rules are simply an effort to help things run smoothly in a community of people. Young people need to learn to live with consideration for the whole, not simply themselves. (3) They love us and are looking out for our best interest. Experience has taught them that certain actions have undesirable consequences. In an effort to protect us from those consequences, they restrict us. (4) They are concerned that we have a good reputation before those who see us. An employer may impose dress regulations upon employees in an effort to maintain a good image. (5) The ability of an individual to handle the responsibility properly determines the extent of certain boundaries. A mature person considers how his actions will affect his future and avoids that which results in undesirable consequences. An immature person lives only for the present, with no concern about the consequences until it is too late. (6) And of course, there are boundaries placed whenever a Biblical principle mandates it.

When children are very young, the boundaries are very restrictive. Few privileges are enjoyed by a 5-year-old. Ideally, the older one gets, the more responsible he becomes; this results in more privileges. Privileges, however, may be withheld on the basis of previous improper responses to established boundaries. When we live within established limits, we earn the trust and the respect of our authorities. But when we push against the limits, the boundary tightens. It is very important to learn to live within established boundaries. Even society expects it, and has a place for people who will not live within established limits--jail, and the boundaries there are very restrictive.

A conviction by definition means "to convince." Biblical conformity to Christ will take place only when an individual is convinced in his heart by the Holy Spirit that Christ is the only standard of conduct. Romans 12:1 teaches is that we are not to be "conformed to the world." Immediately Paul answers the "how" of that concept. The only way to not be conformed to the world is to be "transformed by the renewing of [our minds]..." And that type of convincing can only be done by the work of the Holy Spirit in the heart of an individual.

God's desire for his people is that we be sanctified vessels that are holy and usable (I Thess. 4:3-4). He wants our conduct to be acceptable, to be in line with the criteria. But there is a problem--lust. Our lusts war against our spiritual nature and constantly attack our purity. When we are young and immature, we cannot always discern this problem. In order to protect our purity from our lusts, older, wiser, external authorities place boundaries around us to help us do right. However, if a young person is not becoming personally convinced of what is right, based upon his relationship to Christ; if he is not becoming personally convinced that Christ is the only standard by which he must live, then when the imposed expectation of conduct is removed, lust will be freed to reign in the life and destroy the young person's purity.

There are four primary bases for the development of personal convictions:

1. Love for God--I will not do anything that will in any way hinder my relationship to God. When Joseph was in Egypt and being tempted by Potiphar's wife to commit adultery, it was not his father that stopped him. He could not bring himself to sin against his God (Gen. 39:10). The principle is walking in the Spirit. When God speaks to our hearts, we obey, without reservation or hesitation. We might refer to this as LUI (Living Under the Influence of God's Spirit in our heart). We cannot escape the truth that what we love determines what we do. Proverbs 23:26 says, "My son, give me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways." There is a logical progression in these words. Love God in your heart first, and then that love will be evidenced in the ways you observe. The proof of our love is seen in the way we live (I John 3:9). The life of the one who loves God is not characterized by unrighteousness, but is characterized by pleasing God.
2. Love for God's Word and its principles--I will not do anything that is prohibited by Scripture or by a Scriptural principle. The principle is obedience. The child's song says, "Obedience is the very best way to show that you believe." And Jesus said in John 14:23 that "if a man love me, he will keep my words."
3. Love for weaker Christians--I will not do anything that will in any way hurt another Christian spiritually. The principle is selflessness. Whereas the greatest commandment is to love God, the second greatest is to love your neighbor as yourself. The surrender of personal rights for the spiritual welfare of others is a principle the Apostle Paul not only wrote about, but lived. In I Corinthians 13, Paul said that love "does not seek her own." He exhorted the Christians at Philippi to "let nothing be done in strife or vainglory, but in lowliness of mind, let each esteem others better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others." The root evil of fallen man is in wanting his own way. The age old question of Cain is, "Am I my brother's keeper?" and the answer is an emphatic "YES!" I am responsible to God for how my conduct affects others in the body of Christ.
4. Love for the lost--I will not do anything that will in any way hinder my testimony before the lost. The principle is testimony. We should want our witness before those who do not know Christ to be sincere, without any question of our loyalty to Christ. In I Corinthians 9, Paul said that he had the right to expect certain treatment as an apostle. But he refused to accept what was rightfully his so that the gospel would not be hindered. Paul wrote the Thessalonians and said, "Only let your conversation (lifestyle) be as it becometh (adorns) the gospel of Christ." We are responsible to God for the clarity of our testimonies.

In conclusion, we must stand on the premise that Christianity is not a religion; it is a relationship. Christianity is not conforming to a list of external expectations of conduct, but it is conformity to Christ in the heart that results in a life that pleases God. If we can help our young people get back to the why of their faith and the why of their lifestyle, if we ourselves live in such a way that proves our relationship with Christ is real, if we will pray that the Holy Spirit will work in their hearts to convince them that Christ is the only standard by which to live, if we will point them to the Christ who loves them and gave Himself for them instead of only correcting the deviation from the standard, then, when they leave the confines of the imposed boundaries, from within their own hearts, the constraining love of Christ will keep them near to the heart of God.

Reprinted from Balance, a publication of the School of Education, Bob Jones University. Used with permission of Bob Jones University. Please write BJU Press, for permission to reproduce this article.