RECIPE FOR CHAOS

If the whole Bible was made into a movie, some parts would be too graphic for any censorship board to handle. This morning, I read the last three chapters of Judges, a portion of Scripture that describes a series of unbelievably brutal and hideous events. The wanton bloodshed and sheer stupidity of people who were supposed to be God’s witness in the world – well, it blows the mind.

I think a lot of people have the wrong impression about the Bible. Some detractors seem to think that it’s dull and dry, full of pious do-gooders who are about a zillion miles removed from real life as the rest of us experience it.

Other people seem to think that the Bible is just a vast compilation of rules and laws that are designed to spoil everyone’s fun.

Truth is, the Bible gets right down to the nitty-gritty of life (in the three chapters I read this morning, the emphasis is very much on the gritty!)

The last verse of Judges reads like this: “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”

Although that might sound good and noble, it was actually a recipe for disaster. Lawlessness and violence prevailed throughout the land because there was no consensus about what was right and what was wrong.

The Bible continues to speak powerfully to every generation. To ours, it shouts a warning about the consequences of neglecting God. Without the moral consensus that God provides, chaos is always going to reign. Either that or tyrrany and dictatorship.

There is much talk these days about domestic violence, bullying, sexual abuse, obesity, suicide and a host of other social issues. But the answer is not more legislation, more royal commissions, more expensive government committees. The answer is to be found in a national revival, a return to Christian faith and values. As long as the Bible is pushed aside as dull, irrelevant or socially constrictive, the rot will only continue.

Australia, and indeed every nation, needs to come back to Jesus.