The quest for utopia is not a new one.
Mankind has been searching for utopia from the time Adam and Eve left Eden. Who can blame us? The Bible says that even unbelievers have a code of right and wrong written upon their hearts (Romans 2:15). 99.9% of humanity wants to see a world dominated by love and peace where everyone gets along. The problem for humanity is the belief that we can produce utopia. Man cannot create utopia and all attempts to do so will only make the world worse.
Efforts to create a utopian society work to rid the world of inequality and injustice. But to actually accomplish this task, every heart would need to be rid of selfishness, prejudice, and hate. We know from Scripture that sin is going to exist in this world until Jesus returns for His bride.
Even Jesus made note of this. When the disciples were unhappy with the expensive perfume being poured out to anoint Jesus, they complained it could have been sold and the money used for the poor. Jesus response: “You will always have the poor” (John 12:8). Why is this? You would think there would be enough food all over the world to feed everyone. Well, I think there is so why are people still starving. Certainly, there is enough food in America to feed everyone, but still people are starving, even in America. How can this be? Well, the answer is sin.
The enemy to a utopian society is sin.
Sin causes us to do harm. Sin causes us to harm ourselves by drinking too much, using drugs, being lazy, being deceitful and greedy. I could go on and on. These behaviors lead to broken lives and a corrupt heart that continues to do more harm to self and others. So when America, in all of its excess, sends food to other places, often, it never gets to the people who need it because the controlling class is selfish.
Poverty will always remain because the underclass can never move up because of their own destructive behavior, suppression by the upper class, or both. Sin is here to stay until the end. And if this is the case, the quest for utopia will end in failure.
Attempts to limit our sugar intake, carbon output, and freedom of speech in order to make the world a better place will never work because the methodology is universal government regulation. But for the most part, people know they shouldn’t eat junk or overeat. They know pollution is not good for society. They know that just because they have the freedom to say something, it is not wise to be offensive in their speech. Policemen know they shouldn’t use excessive force. Even racists know they shouldn’t kill people of another race. The problem is not a lack of training, programs, regulation, proposals, committees, executive orders, or laws. The problem is sin.
Sin cannot be dealt with on a universal level. Laws, regulations, and the like attempt to address bad behavior, but they don’t address the heart of individuals. In fact, those who are trying to forcibly control the behavior of others universally with more laws and regulations are not innocent themselves. How many times have we seen politicians trying to adopt some regulation only to disregard it themselves?!? The answer is Jesus.
Bad behavior comes from the sinful heart that puts self above others. Wickedness disappears when people put others above themselves, but this is a heart change that only Jesus can do. And it doesn’t happen through universal policies, but heart to heart, man to man, woman to woman, sharing the Good News of Christ, teaching Biblical principles, and ushering in the Holy Spirit for heart transformation.
As Christians we should support causes, policies, programs, and laws that work to make the world a better place, but we also must be wise to uncover the spiritual strategy of Satan to replace the Gospel through these same efforts. The enemy would love to see Christians protest abortion all day long if it keeps them from witnesses to women who are considering abortion. Christians should work to end, or at least diminish abortion, but the greatest impact will be through individual mentoring, not holding a sign on a street corner. Christians should support efforts to retrain police officers, to rehabilitate prisoners, and stop human trafficking. But the greatest impact would occur when the church, as individual ambassadors of Christ, would work to make disciples of Christ who live devoted to the lifestyle principles found in the Bible.
And when we see human efforts to create a utopian society that are going to lead to more harm, let’s not be fooled. The quest for utopia will only ever be a Heavenly happening!
Leave me a comment. How do you see our society attempting to use universal government policy to do what only God can do?
Live Blessed and Be a Blessing!
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