By M. Thurston

“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.”—Colossians 2:8

Moral relativism, the belief that right and wrong are dependent upon the individual and situation, is rapidly sweeping our nation, and sadly, our church. In fact, according to a 2002 survey by the Barna Group, only 32% of Christian American adults believe in moral absolutes (that right and wrong exist, no matter what the situation is)! The numbers are even more staggering when it comes to teenagers. In that age group, only 9% believe in absolutes. Are the two beliefs compatible with one another?

The answer is: absolutely not! Jesus clearly states in John 14:6 that, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” That is definitely absolute! The Ten Commandments (Deuteronomy 20: 3-17) are absolutes. In fact, the entire Bible is absolute on everything! Nowhere in the Bible does God come even slightly close to implying that moral relativism is even remotely possible.

So how can we fight against this enemy? Perhaps the best thing we can do is to know God’s word through consistently studying the Bible. If we are to truly stand against relativism (or any other philosophy or religion, for that matter) we must have a firm understanding of what we believe, why we believe it, and why it is true. While many great apologetic resources exist, the best thing to read is the Bible. God gives us everything we need to know in His word, we just need to study it…and most definitely live it out in our lives.

Something else we can do is to pray. Prayer is vital to all Christians. Our battle is a spiritual one (Ephesians 6: 12) and prayer is the most powerful weapon we have! We can pray not only for friends, but for our entire nation as it becomes more engulfed in this dangerous philosophy.

And finally, we can live out a life that reflects the absolute truth of God’s Word. The best witness is sometimes not the one who speaks, but rather the one who is a quiet example. While moral relativism has been around for years and will probably exist until Christ’s return, we can still fight it. In the end, Christ will be triumphant because He always wins.