The Bible on Rights Versus Responsibilities
Introduction: There are No Rights Without Responsibility
In today's world, especially in America, everyone worries about rights. It's hard to get through a week before you hear one group or another scream that someone has violated their rights in some way. While I'm all for treating all people fairly, no matter who they are, what is rarely talked about is the place of responsibility. Rights without responsibility lead to recklessness.
We are living in one of the freest societies in history, but if no one takes responsibility for defending our liberties against those who would seek to destroy our culture and our way of life, how long do you think this free society would last? The answer is obvious. Not very long. Freedom isn't free.
From a biblical perspective, we don't look at human rights as those things that people naturally deserve because of their identity as human beings. Ethically speaking, the only thing we deserve, due to our sinful nature, is eternal damnation and separation from a holy God.
What the Bible does see is that all men and women are created in the image of their creator. Genesis 1:26,27 tells us that:
"Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. "So, God created man in His own image; in the image of God, He created him; male and female He created them."
So, technically speaking, the Bible doesn't refer to human rights in the same sense that we do in the 21st century. It rather assumes that because all humans are created in God's image, no person is better or superior to another in the eyes of the Lord. Or as the apostle Paul has said:
"God is no respecter of persons." (Romans 2:11).
Naturally, because of all of this, we each should have equal opportunities for seeking what God has given to all of mankind. Things like marriage and family. The opportunity to work and be part of society for safety and identity. And the opportunity to use one's God-given gifts to better yourself and to help your family and others around you.
Unfortunately, in a sin-cursed world, all do not all attain these God-given opportunities. However, that doesn't mean that only certain persons deserve what others don't.
What the Bible does focus on, rather than human rights, is each individual's responsibilities within their society to other people with whom we come in contact.
Take the Ten Commandments as an example (Exodus 20:1-19). The first 4 speak of our responsibility directly to God. They include:
- You shall have no other gods before me.
- You shall make no idols.
- You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
- Keep the Sabbath day holy.
However, the following 6 commandments discuss a person's responsibility to his neighbor. This implies that one's neighbor has rights given to them by God. They include:
- Honor your father and mother (A right to receive respect from the family as their God-appointed head).
- You shall not murder (A right to life).
- You shall not commit adultery (A right to have your own spouse given to you by God).
- You shall not steal (A right to private property).
- You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor (A right to retain your integrity and not have someone destroy your reputation).
- You shall not covet (Once again, the right of private property and to retain and enjoy the fruits of your own labor as well as the gifts that God has personally given to you and not others. One shouldn't covet the things that others have. Rather, they should get their own).
The truth is that rights, in Scripture, are what God wants us to have because He loves us, and not because of what any of us deserve. Further, if you honor God, you should treat people with the respect and dignity of fellow creatures who are created in God's image, realizing that they too are loved by the Lord as much as you are loved.
That is seen clearly in Jesus' explanation of the greatest commandment in Matthew 22:37-40. Matthew tells us this:
"Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
In Galatians, Paul seems to assume that a person has a love for God if he is following the Law. In Galatians 5:13-14 the apostle gives this summary of the Law when he says:
"For you, brothers, were called to freedom; but do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh. Rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is fulfilled in a single decree: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
Our God is a God of justice, and He expects us to treat other people with fairness and justice. We see this quite clearly in Micah 6:8 which tells us that:
"He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you. But to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?"
However, in this present world, justice isn't always administered, and rights can be easily taken away. For example, the stronger, more powerful persons can always take things away from those that are weaker and more vulnerable. Therefore, rights must be accompanied by even greater responsibilities if everyone is to live with the dignity and respect of those created in God's image.
I. The Bible and Our Responsibility to the Vulnerable
A major area of responsibility the Bible speaks of is the care for the poor and other vulnerable people in society. That is seen in both Testaments. Among the vulnerable are widows, orphans, and sojourners, or foreigners in Scripture.
Very few in the ancient world were more helpless than these groups. Especially widows and orphans. There was no welfare system in those days and women and children didn't have the legal status of men. These groups had no male head of the household to own property that could provide for them or to seek justice when they were wronged.
There are many passages that speak on behalf of those vulnerable in society. Some examples include:
- Proverbs 14:31 "Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honors him."
- Deuteronomy 10:17-18 "For the Lord, your God is the God of gods and Lord of lords. He is the great God, the mighty and awesome God, who shows no partiality and cannot be bribed. He ensures that orphans and widows receive justice. He shows love to the foreigners living among you and gives them food and clothing."
- Psalm 68:5-6 "A father of the fatherless, and a judge of the widows, is God in his holy habitation. God sets the solitary in families: he brings out those which are bound with chains: but the rebellious dwell in a dry land."
- Psalm 82:3 "Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute."
- Isaiah 1:17 "Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's cause."
- James 1:27 "Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world."
- I Timothy 5:3a "Honor widows who are widows indeed..."
These are just a few of the passages that speak like this on behalf of those who can't help themselves. So, if we are to become more biblical on human rights, we need to learn to make working on behalf of the helpless and vulnerable a top priority.
II. The Bible and Our Responsibility Toward the Body of Christ
Further, if we are to be advocates on behalf of all mankind, (and biblically we are their advocates), then we are to especially care for the rights and the well-being of our fellow Christians. Paul says this very clearly in Galatians 6:10 when he writes:
"Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith."
That age-old question posed by the murderer Cain, after he killed his brother Abel: "Am I my brother's keeper?" can be answered with one word. Yes!
We have a responsibility to our brothers and sisters to see to it that they are taken care of and treated with dignity and respect. Paul said in Philippians 2:3 that we are to:
"Do nothing through selfishness or empty conceit but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves."
Also, in Romans 14:13-23 and I Corinthians 8, the apostle Paul is addressing the idea, which was a problem in his day, of meat offered to idols. The person strong in faith might know that this meat was good to eat because idols are nothing and the one true God is to be thanked for his daily bread. But he who is weaker in the faith might think that by eating meat offered to idols, he was in some way giving glory to those gods and going back to idol worship. Observing the stronger person's freedom could lead to his weaker brother going back to a pagan lifestyle. In that case, he would cause his weaker brother to stumble, even though he himself would be free to indulge in eating the meat.
What is Paul's answer to this dilemma? Here are his very words:
"It is good not to eat meat or drink wine, or to do anything by which your brother stumbles" (Romans 14:21).
He also said:
"Therefore, if food causes my brother to stumble, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause my brother to stumble" (I Corinthians 8:13).
The principle holds true today. We have a responsibility to help each other in our spiritual walks. And that is especially the case of those weaker in some areas than we are at the moment. For instance, suppose you like to drink a glass of wine at dinner. However, you know that the person that you invite to dine with you that night is an alcoholic. Normally, you are perfectly free to have wine if you wish, as long as you don't get drunk (I Timothy 5:23; Ephesians 5:18). But why tempt your brother with your freedom? The best thing to do would be to restrict your freedom, (i.e., your rights), for the sake of your brother, for that night. Our responsibility to our brother outweighs the rights that we possess.
III. The Bible and Our Responsibility to the Larger Society
Further, guarding human rights means we have a responsibility to the larger society in which we live. That includes helping those who are having their rights trampled upon to maintain them.
The fact that our rights don't ultimately come to us from the government but from God means that theoretically they can only be taken away by Him. However, there are many people in this world who will try to play God and take away our rights. Sadly, some will succeed, at least for a time. I think of slavery, for instance. This institution is due to the sinfulness of men and not because some have the right to enslave others. Therefore, it is the duty of Christians to fight against slavery in any form.
As noted earlier, we are all equally created in the Lord's image (Genesis 1:27). And He loves all of humanity, having sent His Son to die for all. We, therefore, should all be given the freedom to have an equal opportunity for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, to quote the Declaration of Independence.
But we must also add that equal opportunity doesn't necessarily mean equal outcomes for everyone within human society, according to Scripture. We must be allowed the freedom to carve out those opportunities for ourselves. But those who are lazy and aren't willing to work, don't have a right to take anything from those who are industrious and work hard in society. Provided that they are able-bodied and not sick, they should only take if they have, in some way, added to the larger group around them by working. As the Apostle Paul tells us:
"If any would not work, neither should he eat" (II Thessalonians 3:10).
Can you imagine if everyone decided that the government, or anyone else, owed them a living and stopped taking the responsibility of going to a job? The economy would soon shut down for lack of money and a lack of products to be sold, and all the necessities of life would not be manufactured by anyone.
Another thing to consider is that when we are so concerned with our rights, but we neglect those of others, then we quickly begin to step upon each other to make sure that our selfish needs and desires are met. We get this survival of the fittest mentality, and only those who are strongest and most able to defend themselves will thrive and have any rights. Or, at least that is true until it is taken from them by someone with even more superior power. That is why, as we talked about in an earlier section, the continuation of our own rights depends upon our ability to defend those of the weakest among us.
What it all amounts to is that, if my rights cause someone else to be hurt, or lose freedom in some way, I am not free to indulge in them. My right to swing my fist ends where my neighbor's nose begins. For instance, I cannot use my freedom of speech to cry "Fire!" in a crowded movie theatre. The results of this could be disastrous and many could get killed or maimed if they fall and are trampled. Once again, we need to take responsibility.
IV. Jesus: Our Example of Giving Up Rights for Responsibilities
Finally, in this study of rights versus responsibilities, we cannot leave out our Lord Jesus Christ's example. Jesus, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, gave up the privileges of Heaven for a season, becoming a man so that He could die on the cross for our sins. The apostle Paul tells us to:
"Each of you should look not only to your own interests but also to the interests of others. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross. Therefore, God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name above all names, that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:4-11).
Jesus didn't need to give up his rights for us. He rather chose to do so out of love for us and obedience to the Father. He is truly our example of the way we should view our own rights and responsibilities.
Conclusion
A good way to start to wrap up this discussion on rights versus responsibilities is through a story that was in the December 1991 Closer Walk Magazine. It relates this true account to us:
"In the summer of 1986, two ships collided in the Black Sea off the coast of Russia. Hundreds of passengers died as they were hurled into the icy waters below. News of the disaster was further darkened when an investigation revealed the cause of the accident. It wasn't a technology problem like radar malfunction--or even thick fog. The cause was human stubbornness. Each captain was aware of the other ship's presence nearby. Both could have steered clear, but according to news reports, neither captain wanted to give way to the other. Each was too proud to yield first. By the time they came to their senses, it was too late."
The moral to this story is that both captains had a right to be sailing on that Sea. And they had a right to be going in opposite directions. Yet they were both wrong in not giving up their rights in order to avert destruction. They both had a responsibility to get their vessels where they were going, safely. And, for that, one of them had to move out of the way of the other. Because they didn't do that, many lives were lost.
When all is said and done, there can be no true rights without responsibility. They are opposite sides of the same coin. And we all need to stop worrying about our rights so much and start worrying more about how what we do affects others. We have to think more about our responsibility to make this world a better place, not only for ourselves but for all mankind, including our brothers and sisters in Christ. For if we are all looking out for one another, our personal rights will be taken care of automatically.
Let us all do what we can to show the world who God is, by being those who care about others more than ourselves. May the Lord give us a servant's heart that puts other people ahead of ourselves. Then, and only then, will the glory of God begin to shine through us, and more people of this world will know what it is like to enjoy the privileges of being created in the image of God and being saved by His grace!
© 2013 Jeff Shirley
Comments
Jeff Shirley (author) from Hesperia, Michigan on March 25, 2013:
You're right MsDora. Unfortunately, there are those who never grow up. Thanks for the insights.
Dora Weithers from The Caribbean on March 25, 2013:
"Rights without responsibility" is the desire of immature and selfish hearts. Growing up is the first responsibility we ought to face. Thanks for this timely insight.
Jeff Shirley (author) from Hesperia, Michigan on March 23, 2013:
Thanks again lifegate for your support of my hubs and your comments. I value them greatly.
William Kovacic from Pleasant Gap, PA on March 23, 2013:
If we all practiced responsibility, we would be so much better off. Now that I've read your hub, I'm responsible to deal with it. Thanks for making us accountable.
