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before his conception. And so
Harry was born blind. He was
paying a penalty because someone
else broke a law-or, more likely,
probably denied that such a law
even existed.
But that law existed all right,
and sti ll does. It goes like this:
"Thou shalt not commit adultery."
Those who frequently break this
law often contract venereal disease.
And that may lead to blindness in
chi ldren, or to sorne other deformi–
ty. Harry knows.
The hundreds of times that Har–
ry was "down" emotionally, the
countless hours he brooded and
suffered, the times he poured out
his heart to me and others, the
many, many times he got drunk to
"forget"-all these bear ample tes–
timony to those who are willing to
understand that a law was broken
and a terrib l e penalty was
incurred.
Harry knows. He paid much of
that penalty- along with millions
of others.
The Whole World Suffers
Not only are the individual suffer–
ings of those like Har ry increasing,
but intelligent men everywhere
know that they are living under the
giant shadow of nuclear war. Yes,
we have more knowledge than any
previous generation. But that mere–
ly increases our capacity to kill and
destroy one another.
Noted American columnist Sid–
ney J. Harr is once summed it up in
these words: "The problem is this:
that intellectual knowledge
is
addi–
tive, while moral knowledge is not.
What tbis means is that each gen–
eration knows more than the last,
but acts no better.
... "
" Moral knowledge does not seem
to increase from generation to gen–
eration. All we Jearn from the past
is to commit the same mistakes in
greater volume and with more con–
sequences."
With the advent of nuclear war–
fare, this scandalous lack of moral
and spiritual values in modero
knowledge ass umes frightening
proportions. At this point in human
history, we cannot afford to keep
making the same mistakes over and
over. Yet, in spite of having to live
16
with the ever-growing reality of
cosmocide , modero education,
science and philosophy have come
up with virtually nothing to alle–
viate this dangerous situation.
Flnd the Cause
l s there no way to bring an end to
all war? An end to mount ing crime,
violence, broken homes, teenage
pregnancies, babies born bl ind
because of venereal di seases,
mounting drug abuse and deep per–
sonal frustrations nearly every–
where?
lt
sounds like quite an order. But
the genuine solution to these prob–
Jems is as absolute as it is practica!.
Many are busily trying to find solu–
tions to the above problems. They
are sincere men and women. Often,
they do a certain amount of good–
in a very limited way and for a
limited time- within an overall
framework that never changes.
They treat a few of the symptoms
of war , crime, violence, broken
homes. But they are not getting at
the real cause of these tragic ills.
There is a cause for every effect.
Far beneath the immediate provo–
cations, there is a single, basic
cause or unde rlying reason for
mankind's basic ills. One way of
putting it would be to say that it is
the way human beings live. The
way of greed, of get. But there is an
opposite way that would genu inely
insure peace and happiness, if it
were only applied.
A " Law of Liberty"?
To most people, certainly including
many in the field of religion, " Jaw"
has a foreboding connotation .
As a society, we tend to have
negative fee lings a bout law.
lt
should not be so. For the great Cre–
ator, the God of your Bibl e,
revealed a way of life based on Jaw.
lt is a way that most professing
Christians have heard practically
nothing about.
Yet it is the way that would solve
all the world's major problems.
lt
is
the way of )ove, of giving.
The Son of God, Jesus Christ, was
asked, "Master, which is the great
comma,ndment in the law?" He
answered, "Thou shalt love the Lord
thy God with all thy beart, and with
all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
This is the first and great command–
ment. And the second is like unto it,
Thou shalt !ove thy neighbour as thy–
self. On these two commandments
hang al! the law and the prophets"
(Matthew 22:36-40).
Notice! All other laws of God
hang on or are outgrowths and
magnifications of these two great
spiritual principies. There are
lO
Commandmen ts in God' s great
spiritual law. The first four tell us
how to love and honor God; the last
six tell us how to !ove our neigh–
bor.
Man needs these laws today.
Mankind is sick from neglect and
consequent d isobedience to thcse
great principies of !ove and concern
for others.
Again, Jesus was asked: "Good
Master, what good thing shall l do,
that
I
may have eterna! life?"
He answered, " Why callest thou
me good? there is none good but
one, that is, God: but if thou wilt
enter into life, keep the command–
ments. He saith unto him, Which?
Jesus said, Thou shaJt do no mur–
der. Thou shalt not commit adul–
tery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou
shalt not bear fal se witness, 1-Ionour
thy father and thy mother: and,
Thou shalt love thy neighbour as
thyself' (Matthew
19: 16-19).
J esus, in answering, named sorne
of the Ten Commandments- par–
ticularly, in this case, tbose telling
man how to love his neighbor. For
the religious leaders of that day had
become overly strict with respect to
the first four commandments. But
they were weak and lax in regard to
the last six.
Whenever Jesus spoke of the law
of God - or "the command–
ments"- He was aJways referring
to that great spirituaJ Jaw that has
existed from the beginning, the
Ten Commandments, which were
set forth in codified form at Mount
Sinai. He carne to " magnify" and
expound this law to its full spi ri tual
intent and glory (lsaiah 42:21 ).
The living Christ inspired J ames
to write: "For whosoever shall keep
the whole law, and yet offend in
one point, he is guil ty of all. For he
that said, Do not commit adultery,
said also, Do not kili. Now if thou
The PLAIN TRUTH