Morals Just Arose?

I’ve been asking for some time now; how does one justify belief in an ultimate good? It isn’t a new question. Apologists new, and philosophers old, have alike been wrestling with this question for centuries. A large portion of the debate about the existence of God has centered around this subject. This side of heaven, it will most likely continue, so long as man is in rebellion against God’s good, unassailable, and omnipresent nature. In response to the question, I’ve heard many answers, and non answers for that matter. It wasn’t until recently I finally heard with my own ears the following odd combination; “there is such a thing as good and evil, because as people began to form into groups, morals just kind of emerged with them”. I’ve read hints of this reasoning, and I’ve heard it inferred in debate, but never until now have I ever heard anyone actually state it plainly. It should come as no surprise I feel the need to comment on this.

Initially, I’m willing to grant the possibility that people arose (read evolved), banded together, and morals emerged in that context. I don’t believe any of it, but I’ll grant the point for a brief moment. If any of that were true, and one still holds that good and evil do indeed exist, then we have two truths which would have to accompany that thought. First, it would indicate morals are objective, and point to the fact they would then have to have been discovered. Secondly, there is still the problem of morality needing an anchor outside of the human realm, above our ability to change the rules. In other words, if the emergence of morals holds true, then the moral argument for God's existence remains completely intact, and more so, bolstered by the person who was attempting to disprove it.

I also find interesting what else is implied by this line of thinking. The admission is being made that morals are relational. Better put, morals are things which govern interactions between persons. Think about this. If we follow this trail, where do we end up? If we add objective morals to the relational aspect of morals, in my opinion it points directly to the vertical tension that exists as we act in conflict to what is right, and noble, and good. In essence, we point in parallel to the Gospel message as found in the Bible. Certainly we should understand there is horizontal tension when we fail to do good to our fellow man, but what of the vertical tension which must exist, and therefore certainly strains the relationship we have with the One who put those prescriptions in place.

Everyone will tell you “nobody’s perfect”. The Bible tells us “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God…There is none righteous, not even one.” In our conscience, we know this to be true, but we gladly suppress that truth. For those who are willing, there is a way which God has provided to deal with the vertical tension. His name is Jesus Christ.