What are your thoughts, does the end justify the means?

The consequences when man operates against God

The saying, “The end justifies the means” is used to say that a desired result is so good or important that any method, even a morally bad one, may be used to achieve it.  People that use and believe this phrase are convinced that the end justifies the means and will do anything to get their desired result.  I’m not going to give examples but there are plenty over the last 30 years that are all telling that there are people at the helm or have been there that cause disasters and they don’t believe in or support “One Nation Under God”. 

Is Faith Dead?

When I think of the saying, “the end justifies the means” it brings to mind overarching chaos, destruction and pain for many people either in the near term or the long term.  If that statement is true, then faith in God is dead or was never alive.  

I for one, don’t buy that.  If the “means” are evil then no amount of evil will produce “good”.  A person or group of people with the belief evil will produce good are capable of great evil because they deem an accomplishment of a goal is more important than morality.  You can recognize this when you hear the phrase  “it’s for the greater good”.  That mentality is not of God and if you are familiar with the Bible you are probably familiar with John 10:10. If not, I quote it below.

The Lies of Satan

I have to ask, where does that reasoning come from and why?  When you look at where we are in the world and you can recognize so many things that are out or sorts, things that make absolutely no sense such as: wrong deemed right and right is deemed wrong; men saying they can be pregnant; and give birth; boys think they can be girls and vice versa just to name a few.  

Satan's deceptions

To answer where does that reasoning come from I turn to 2 Corinthians 4:2-4 which states, “But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them”.  Where it comes from is two fold.  First and foremost, it comes from not knowing or accepting Jesus as their personal savior so there is no protection from evil.  Secondly, the god of this world, Satan, purposefully keeps unbelievers blind to the truth.  Arguably, there are more reasons but at the core and they hit the mark. 

Why do we sin?

That brings us to why and that can be found in the book of Revelation 12:9, “So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him”. To put it simply Satan was full of pride that cause him to be kicked out of Heaven.  Keep in mind that Satan is called “an angel of light” because he has a talent for presenting evil in a good light, which can confuse and deceive us if we let our guards down and drift away from God's truth.  Always be aware!

But....

It is very obvious to me that many people in this world are on a path to destruction.  As a Christian I’m deeply concerned on where the church stands on each of these issues not just across the United States but across the world.  

As I ponder about the world being on a path to destruction biblical verses like the following come to mind:  John 10:10 NKJV, The thief (Satan) does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I (Jesus) have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.  Ephesians 6:12-17 NIV, For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities,against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.  Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,  and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.  And the last verses that I will mention, even though there are a plethora I could choose from, today is 1 John 2:15 ESV, “Do not love the world or the things in the world.  If anybody loves the world, the love of the Father is not in them”.

Why these verses from the Bible

You might ask, why do these particular verses come to mind and how do they tie in with the opening phrase?  Even though these examples of  verses/passages are not all inclusive but a way to illustrate the following, 1. That we live in a spiritual realm where Satan is the way to destruction and death and Jesus is the way to life.  2. That within this spiritual realm we are at war and how, as a Christian, we should always be prepared.  3.  As Christians, even though we live in this world, we are not of this world.  Our forever home is with Christ in Heaven.   4. Faith in God (a guiding light) is in direct conflict with the phrase, “the end justifies the means” living outside the guiding light. 

 Strength and power come from Jesus

If you don’t know Jesus as your personal savior, I hate to break it to you, but by default your leader is Satan.  It doesn’t matter how good you say or think you are.  It doesn’t matter how many good works you accomplish because non of those things get you in the door of Heaven.  By worldly standards this may sound harsh but in reality God is full of grace and mercy and we just need to open our eyes to recognize it.  God has given us all the opportunity to enter through the gates of Heaven even though what we all deserve is death and destruction.  But because God so loved the world He gave his one and only Son (Jesus) that who so ever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.  There is a way made by God that allows humanity to spend eternity in Heaven but we must acknowledge and believe that Jesus died on the cross for our sins and was resurrected 3 days later. We must also repent of our sins and submit to Jesus’ authority.  Jesus even reiterated this point in John 14:6 where He said, “I am the way, the truth and the life.  The only way to the Father is through Me”.   If you have ever wondered about salvation, this how salvation is obtained.  The definition of salvation per the 1828 Webster’s Dictionary is, “Appropriately in theology, the redemption of man from the bondage of sin and liability to eternal death, and the conferring on him everlasting happiness. This is the great salvation”. 

Eternity in Heaven

At the point of salvation you secure your spot in Heaven and you become a spiritual warrior for the good side, fighting the good fight and able to stand firm on what is right or wrong without being so easily deceived.  You no longer are part of the world but rather a saint in the King of Kings and Lord of Lords court.  

Spiritual warrior

As a spiritual warrior for God doesn’t mean your life is going to be easy but it does mean your future is secure and your walk and talk will help others escape the destructive bondage Satan has other people in.  Your life will take on a whole new meaning.  The old you dies and a new you is born, hence “born again”.  All the sudden you will realize that life is not all about you but we are here to serve and to glorify God.  We all have a Devine mission {a God given purpose} to accomplish while we are here on Earth and Satan is doing his damndest to take us off track to keep us from that mission/purpose. We must stay focused on what is eternal and stay strong in Jesus.

Prayer

I’m going to close with the following prayer and comment. In the name of Jesus, I release the fire of God on Satan and every demon that brings hindrance, delay, and blockage to your purpose, destiny, family, loved ones, ministry, and finances.  Let them all be destroyed, completely, and fully in Jesus’ name.  Amen.

Where do you stand?

 And lastly, back to the original question, what are your thoughts on the phrase, “The end justifies the means”?  Hint, your answer will tell you volumes of who you are and what your beliefs are.