I spent this fall studying Leviticus, and as I did, I found plenty of notable verses whose content continued to carry weight in the present day. In chapter twenty, God speaks sternly against Molech worship, which involved parents tossing their children into fiery ovens in the name of the pagan god. Naturally, God commands execution for any who engage in such horrendous practices, but He doesn’t stop there…

And if the people of the land do any ways hide their eyes from the man, when he giveth of his seed unto Molech, and kill him not:  Then I will set my face against that man, and against his family, and will cut him off, and all that go a whoring after him, to commit whoredom with Molech, from among their people. 

(Leviticus 20:4-5)

Not only was the actual worshiper of Molech held responsible, but the community around that barbarous act was likewise indicted. If the people hid their eyes and refused to execute such an idolatrous murder, they deserved the same wrath of God to be poured out against them as was poured out against the idolater. God’s face will be set against anyone—man or family—that stands by and does nothing while innocent children are burned in the fires of Molech worship.

Charles F. Aked, in 1916, famously said: “For evil men to accomplish their purpose it is only necessary that good men should do nothing.” JFK, in a 1961 speech, quoted that statement (incorrectly attributing it to Edmund Burke). It’s well-known. You might hear it phrased this way: “All it takes for evil to prosper is for good men to do nothing.” Either way, I disagree with the quote in one critical area…

If they do nothing, then they are not “good men.”

If you see wrong, you have an obligation, not just to yourself, or even to your community, but to the God above, to speak out against it, to sound the alarm, to demand evil practices cease and godliness prevail. Can we legislate morality? That’s a question oft-debated in philosophy classes and political science classes. I think the debate is foolish: “Can we legislate morality?” Not only can we, but humanity has been doing nothing BUT that for ages and ages. The only question is, whose standard of morality do we make the measuring stick?

I vote for God’s standard.

~Matthew