Many years ago, I worked in the U.S Senate. One of the phenomena I often witnessed was when a senator rose to state his support of an issue, insisting that “it’s the right thing to do.” Then, another senator would take the opposite position, claiming “it’s the right thing to do.” Wait a minute! Who’s right about being right? In their minds, both senators sincerely believed they were right. But can opposites both be true?

Not according to Aristotle’s “Law of Non-Contradiction.” Basically, this fundamental law of logic says that a statement cannot be true and false at the same time. For example, I cannot claim that “I am here” and “I am not here” at the same time. Or take God. He either exists or He doesn’t. Both beliefs can’t be valid. Only one statement can be true while the other cannot.

Now, it’s possible that two people making conflicting claims are both wrong. One might say, “the US flag is pink and purple,” and the other says “no, it’s green and orange.” Well, we all know they are both wrong. In this situation, either person A is right and B is wrong, person B is right and A is wrong, or both A & B are wrong. But A&B cannot both be right.

Like belly buttons, everyone has an opinion, and those opinions should be respected out of common courtesy. But that doesn’t mean you have to agree. In the confused world we live in today, people are pushing the boundaries of reality by rewriting what is right and wrong. And if we don’t agree with these redefined morals, we may find ourselves attacked for being narrow-minded, time-warped or even evil ourselves. 

But whether we like it or not, truth and facts are stubborn things. One plus one will always be two, even if we want it to equal five. If we try to put less expensive water or Pepsi in our gas tank when the sign clearly says, “unleaded gas only,” we will discover that our “truth” or “preference” doesn’t work.

So, what is right, what is wrong, and who says? I believe we need someone a whole lot smarter and wiser than us to show us the way. I believe we find this in the “instruction manual,” or Bible, given to us by our Creator as the guide to choices that will benefit our lives. A compass will always point north, and anyone who ignores true directions will inevitably get lost. It’s true in navigation, and it’s true in life.

When a society demands to do things its way – what some call “collective conscience” – rather than God’s way, it’s just a matter of time before things implode. Isaiah 5:20 warns: “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil.” History has a long trail of crumbled cultures that proved this adage true.

But there is a freedom in trusting God’s truth about right and wrong. It brings clarity to a confused world. As Jesus said, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.”

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A version of this article appears in the August 2022 issue of STROLL The Canyons at Scenic Loop magazine.