Sometimes, we cannot see the harm in something simply because we have not bothered to actually look for it. Consider these guidelines when determining whether an action is right or wrong:
- The Personal Test: will doing this make me a better or worse Christian?
- The Social Test: will doing it influence others to be better or worse Christians?
- The Practical Test: will the results of my doing it be desirable?
- The Universal Test: if everyone should do this, would it enhance or degrade society?
- The Scriptural Test: does the Bible endorse it or is it forbidden -- even implied as wrong -- by the word of God?
- The Stewardship Test: will my doing this constitute a waste of talent God gave me?
- The Character Test: what will be the influence of my moral & spiritual stamina?
- The Family Test: will it bring discredit & dishonor to my family, and will it embarrass them?
- The Publicity Test: would I be willing for friends, fellow Christians, the elders, and the preacher to know about it?
- The Common Sense Test: does it agree with plain, everyday, ordinary common sense?
- The Fairness Test: is it honest, and it is practicing the "Golden Rule"?
- The Problem Test: is it potentially harmful to me and / or others?
No matter what "it" may be, if "it' fails even one of these tests, we ought to be wise enough to see the harm therein. On such a case, abstinence is the only policy.
Test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.
1 Thessalonians 5:21-22, ESV
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