For A Good Cause?

But if our unrighteousness brings out God’s righteousness more clearly, what shall we say? That God is unjust in bringing his wrath on us? (I am using a human argument.) Certainly not! If that were so, how could God judge the world? Someone might argue, “If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory, why am I still condemned as a sinner?” Why not say—as we are being slanderously reported as saying and as some claim that we say— “Let us do evil that good may result”? Their condemnation is deserved. (Romans 3:5-8)

At some other moment, I might be able to think of a perfect example of what Paul is talking about. At this moment, the examples that come to mind aren’t perfect, because they are secular, but I think they’re heading in the right direction. I’ve been told that when police or government agents question suspects, they are free to lie, they have to lie in order to get the truth from the suspect.

Several years ago, a book was published that chronicled the hell on earth experienced by a family in South America. It became mandatory reading in schools across America. When it was discovered that the book was completely fabricated, the book was not eliminated, because even if it wasn’t true, it could be true and students needed to understand that truth.

In the vampire stories that were so prevalent for a while, the heroic vampires tended to be penitent, reluctant sorts who were trying to be good and trying to fight for what was right. In their battle against the evil vampires or other monsters, they would endure repeated defeats until they faced the make or break challenge: someone they love was in danger, or the end of the world was upon them. In this crisis, they reverted to the vampiric side of themselves, and in the might of evil, destroyed the “greater” evil and saved the day. Good triumphed, or so we’re assured.

Another example. There is a series of best-selling novels involving “end times events” in which most of the heroes have no qualms about “lying to the devil.” People have argued with me that this is to be commended.  Any means to the good end is good. They point to examples in which people in Scripture lie to the enemy. What they don’t address is whether those descriptions are prescriptions (what God tells us we should do) or descriptions (what we do, regardless of God’s preferences in the matter.)

 I think what bothers me about these is that they are accepted without question or qualm. There is a story from the life of David that I believe addresses this. David wanted to do the good thing of bringing the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem. He arranges a cart and sets guards around it. Along the road, the ark is jostled and one of the guards reaches up to steady it. He is instantly killed by God and David ends up angry with God. He was trying to do a good thing. The guard was trying to do a good thing. Why was God freaking out?

The answer seems to be that what man considers “good enough” is not good enough for God. I know that we don’t do anything “good enough” and that God is gracious, but I think we should be very careful about using the “it’s for a good cause” argument.