In the book of Judges, we read the following phrase (or something very similar) continually repeated.

In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes. (Judges 21:25)

It seems that today, we are seeing the same thing. There are still lots of people who consider themselves Christians, but many (most?) do what is right in their own eyes. They define for themselves what is right rather than seeking the truth from God’s word, the Bible. They seek teachers who will confirm their desires, just as predicted.

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. (2 Timothy 4:3-4)

How do we avoid these errors? First, we have to make sure we have a relationship with our God and Savior. Have you admitted your sins (errors/disobedience) and turned away from them? I recently had a conversation with a gal who claimed to be a LGBTQ Christian. Only God knows, but I have a hard time believing someone is a Christian when they embrace their sin and name their Christianity after their sin. God tells us clearly in the Bible what is right and what is wrong. Yes, we all fail and sin sometimes. That won’t completely change until we reach Heaven, but we should feel guilt about our sin. We should ask God to help draw us away from our sin. We definitely shouldn’t have pride in our sin. That is a sign of an unrepentant heart that “does what is right in their own eyes.”

Although repentance and faith are all that is needed to become a Christian, growth in our faith and closeness with Jesus are critical parts of the Christian life. We grow closer to Jesus by knowing and living out the truth communicated by God in the Bible. How do know who God is without the Bible? How do we know what is right and what is wrong without the Bible? How do we imitate Christ without the Bible? If we don’t use the Bible as our standard, we will wind up doing what is right in our own eyes, and that never turns out well.

The ancient Israelites definitely had a habit of drifting off course. They “do all that the Lord had commanded them” but then almost immediately drift off course and grumble or worship idols or be led astray by the unfaithful around them.

After God used Joshua to lead them into the promised land and to conquer the evil nations there, God, through Joshua, warned them:

Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go. This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success. (Joshua 1:7-8) {emphasis mine}

This particular admonition may have been aimed specifically to the Israelites, but it is good advice for us today.

• “be strong and very courageous” - living life according to God’s word requires being strong and courageous. It requires being intentional. If we are not intentional about being Christ-like, we will almost immediately start to drift to becoming like the unbelieving culture around us.

• “be careful to do according to all the law” - At the time this was written, the Israelites only had the Pentateuch (law of Moses) which is the first 5 books of the Bible. Today we have 66 books to learn from. We have the fulfillment of many of the prophecies in the first 5 books. We have clarifications of things only hinted at in the first 5 books. All Christians need to be careful to do according to all the Bible. We are to imitate Christ. We are to obey the Father. We are to follow the Spirit.

• “do not turn from it to the right or to the left” - Obedience requires following the path set by Jesus exactly. It is easy to err to different extremes. Truth without love is worthless, but love without truth leads to damnation. There are so many other ways to err from the straight and narrow path designed by Jesus. Only by knowing God’s word can we know the exact path we are to take. If we do follow the narrow way, we will have success, although that success may not look like the success defined by the world.

• “This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth” - We should know the Bible and speak the Bible continually. We should have the words of the Bible ready “… for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.” (2 Timothy 3:16b) We should use the Bible to correct ourselves and to bless others.

• “you shall meditate on it day and night” - God’s word should continually be on your mind. You should think about. You should ask, “What does this explain about God, Jesus, and/or the Spirit? What does this explain about me? What does this mean for my life? What does this mean for my relationship with those around me? How do I need to change to be more Christ-like?”

• “be careful to do according to all that is written in it” - We need to actively and intentionally test our beliefs and actions against the Word of God. Anything in our thoughts or actions that isn’t in perfect alignment with the Bible needs to be changed. This change may not happen in an instant (although sometimes it does), but there does need to be a continual move away from sin and towards Christ-likeness.

May God give you a love for His word and a desire to constantly know Him better. May He guide your life on the straight and narrow path that leads to our Savior and to eternal blessings. May He uncover the hidden sins in your life, so that they may be addressed and corrected, so that you life may honor Jesus and draw unbelievers to Him. May your mind and heart become in perfect alignment with His, so you want what He wants and you are blessed by His glorification.

Trust Jesus

All verses are NASB unless otherwise noted.