Our Duty And Obligation As Christians example essay topic

As Christians today we are faced with many ethical issues living in our society. Every time we turn on the TV to watch the news, pick up a newspaper and read the headlines, or read a magazine about world issues we can see situations happening in this world that challenge our morals and ethics. It is our duty as Christians to know what we believe and where we stand so we can back up our beliefs and try to interact with this world as morally correct as possible. There are some situations that we have no control over that appear ethically wrong to us and there is not much we can do if anything at all.

At the same time there are things that we can do to try and reach people in some situations. It is our job to know the difference and stand up where we can but not force our own morals and ethical principles on everyone we come in contact with. One issue that is very prevalent in the world today and all through out the history or the earth is the issue or war and combatancy. Now as Christians we know the bible says, "Thou shall not kill", but is this issue really that simple?

If we just took that stance and said that as Christians we shouldn't go to war then our country and the world we live in would suffer. Let me get something straight right now before I go into this topic, I do not like war; I think it is an ugly thing, and I wish there would not be any more wars on this earth for the rest of its existence. But the fact of the matter is that there is war, there always was war and there will always be war until the second coming of Jesus Christ. War has become a way of life, it was not God's original plan, but because of the entrance of sin into our universe, war was created. The first war we know of was a war in heaven between Satan and his angles and Jesus and His angels.

All throughout the old testament we see the Israelites, God's people, lead by God, going to war to obtain the land that God had promised to them. War is real and has become a necessity. Just because war is here does not mean that it is an ok thing to do. War came about as a result of sin; with the beginning of sin there was the beginning of war.

War has become a necessary means to get by in a sinful world. To protect the peace and the free way of living that we enjoy here in America, sometimes, we must go to war. As members of society we owe a duty to our country to defend it and uphold the principles on which it was built. So if we go to war to protect our principles and what we stand for then I believe it is our duty to get involved. I am not saying just go to war for any reason we see fit, but have it as a last resort, when the other person leaves us no choice. For example, Desert Storm, we had to take action against Iraq and Sad am because he left us no choice.

If everyone who was a Christian decided that war was wrong and didn't fight, then we would have lost the war. As Christians, I believe it is our duty to try to avoid war, but when it become necessary we must take action. Even though we might not desire to be out on the front lines with the people who are actually doing the killing and combat, we must support our country. We can take roles in the army as non-combat ance if it is necessary for us to actually go out to war, but whatever we do it is our duty to our country to show support and be involved so we can make sure that the war is just for what is necessary and not taken out of hand.

You see, if we stay out of war then our country and way of living will be threatened all together, but most of us do not wish to go in headfirst and kill everyone who opposes us. We just find a median where we can help control what is going on and seek the best possible outcome for the world in which we live in. The next topic that we will discuss is the Christian's involvement in matters relating to the division of church and state and religious liberty. I believe that a separation between church and state is a necessary thing to have in the world today. As Christians I think it is important for us to get involved in our government and try to influence it as much as possible, without forcing our opinion on everyone, so we can have a better more moral society.

It is important for us to be involved in the government so that we can preserve our religious liberty and freedom. I don't think however that the government should be run by the church or the church by the government. If the church ran the government then it would be claiming that all of their actions are ok because they are the church and their directions came directly from God. We would have a society like back in the middle ages when the government was ruled over by the papacy. People would go out on Holy Wars and make claims for God that are really just their claims but they force on God. It would give other surrounding nations and countries the wrong picture and idea of God.

I believe that it is our duty as Christians to stay involved in the government so we can keep it free for everyone to worship the way they want. Its important that we do not get so involved as to force our beliefs on other people of different religious backgrounds. It is important for us to keep our government free from meddling in our and everyone else's religions and provide religious liberty and freedom for everyone. In dealing with racism, discrimination, and other social injustices I believe it is our duty as Christians to stomp them down with all of our effort. One of the fundamentals of Christianity is to love your neighbor as yourself.

This is a commandment that came straight from Jesus' mouth himself. As Christians we are here to act like the model that Jesus Christ gave us, and if he said to treat everyone the same because we are all made with the love of God, then that is something that we should do and stand up for. I believe that it is our obligation to stop racism discrimination and other social injustices when we see them happening to others in our community. This is an issue that I believe that we should put a lot of effort into stopping, not to the point of force, but very close. When we see someone treating a person of another race, nationality, or creed wrongly it is our duty and obligation to step in and put it to a stop. This is a lesson that we must teach everyone that we come in contact with and demonstrate it to everyone who crosses our path.

If there is something going on in our community of this nature and we know about it we should step in and try as much as we can to put a stop to it. This is something that should not be tolerated in such a culturally diverse nation in which we live. For example, if we know of a person who runs a business and treats people of a different race or nationality worse just because they are different then they are I think, as a Christian, we should confront that person and try to help them realize what they are doing and help them see the wrong in it. We should not stand idly by and watch something like this happen to another one of God's beautiful creations.

At the same time we should not go out on a crusade and claim racism on everything we see that remotely looks like racism. We should watch with a discerning eye and be able to tell the difference between a social injustice and just something that happens to an unfortunate individual. Sometimes there are situations that arise in the world that do not effect us personally or effect our everyday lives but they are issues that we know about and some feel obligated to help out with, like the situation that has been going on in Kosovo. Some people think that it is our obligation to do everything in our power to try to make these things and injustices come to an end, others think that because its happening so far away and doesn't effect us that we shouldn't bother with it or worry about it. Personally I fall in between these two viewpoints.

I think that these injustices that are going on in the world are very far away and don't effect us personally but if we do have the power to help a little bit than we should to the best of our ability. The Adventist church has setup organizations like ADRA to give us opportunities to help out people in other countries even if we do not have the time to fly over there and lend our support ourselves. I think that organizations like this are great and let us help in more than one way. If someone feels the call to go out and help these people who are being oppressed, massacred or just on the very low end of the economic scale then they can go with these organizations to these places and help the people themselves. If you do not feel impressed to go to these places yourself, I do believe it is our duty and obligation as Christians to give what we are able. These organizations that are setup give us the perfect way to allow everyone who is able to help out.

I do not, however, feel that we should put a burden on people to try and force them to give if they don't want to. Asking for donations for these organizations is ok but to put a guilt trip on someone who doesn't believe that they should have any part in giving is wrong. I have seen some people get in front of my church and talk about donations for a specific fund to help out people in another country and the way they talk it makes you feel that if you do not give you are a bad person. If we take that view as a Christian then our whole purpose for collecting the money is lost. We as Christians should give because it helps out our fellow humans, just as Christ gave his all so we can live we can give a little of ourselves to help out other less fortunate than us. The last issue that I will address is the issue of health and temperance in the world.

As Adventists we believe that we have a health message for the world, and it is our duty to spread this message to everyone who will listen. It is scientifically proven that living a vegetarian life-style is better for human beings and that if one lives by these rules their chance for a longer life is increased. This is a great message and a treasure that we hold and can share, but I do not think that we should force it upon people. Personally, I am not a vegetarian, however I do believe that a vegetarian lifestyle is probably better for me. I have come a crossed people who have said to me that if I know about the vegetarian health message and do not practice it that it is a sin.

This is not a good thing to do and gives Adventists a reputation of thinking we are better. Informing a person is what we should do, not force it upon them. Telling a person that he or she has to do something has never been the way to change people; it only makes them less receptive. The health message that we preach about does not just stop at diet though; we also teach that we should abstain from alcohol and cigarettes. As Christians I think that we should practice this ourselves because by partaking of these things we defile our body, the temple of God. We should tell people about the effects of these things in our body, but as the same as with diet, we should not force it upon people.

I know people in my life now who do drink all the time and smoke cigarettes and I ask them all the time why they do these things if they know its bad for them. They just say that the reason they do it is because so many people told them when they were growing up that they shouldn't do it. You see, it's not so much that they like it but they were just told not to do these things, so they did them. We have to inform people and let them make their own decisions; we cannot just force our opinions on them, and that never works. This is the same for all of our views as Christians.

It does not just stop with health but it extends into our entire way of life. We must live our lives as examples for all to see. As you see in all these issues we, as Christians, must take stands on what we believe is right, but we should not force our opinions and beliefs on others. This is what everything boils down to. God gave us the gift of choice, and this is something he gave everyone. As Christians we are called to try to lead people to God and his work not to force them.

If they want to come to him that is a personal decision, all we can do is help them along, not push them. The best way to help someone is to show him or her by example. If we set good examples for other people in all the ways mentioned in this paper then we can begin to reach other people and help them to change.