«　WEEK 2　DAY 2　»

　　Gen. 2:9 …The tree of life in the middle of the garden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

　　17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, of it you shall not eat; for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.

　　If our conduct is controlled by the principle of right and wrong, then we ask if something is right or wrong whenever we have to make a decision…When we ask whether it is good, we are, in effect, asking ourselves, “Am I right to do this or not?” Many people consider much whether something is good or evil. They consider whether they can or cannot do a certain thing… By taking care to decide whether or not something is good and right, they consider themselves to be good Christians. At the most, this practice is only a discerning of good from evil. At best, it is merely choosing and rejecting—choosing good and rejecting evil. This is not Christianity… It is the Old Testament, the law, worldly religions, human morality, and human ethics. (CWWN, vol. 56, “Two Principles of Living,” pp. 420-421)

　　Christianity is life… [It is] not a matter of asking whether something is right or wrong… [but] of checking with the life inside us whenever we do something. What does the new life which God has given us tell us inwardly about this matter? It is very strange that many people have only seen an outward standard, the standard of good and evil. But God has not given us an outward standard. Christianity is not a new set of Ten Commandments… [and] does not require that we ask whether something is right or wrong, good or evil. On the contrary, whenever we do anything, there is a life within us which rises up to speak with us. When we feel right inwardly, when we feel the life inside of us moving, when we are strong within and sense the anointing, we know that we have life. Many times something is right and good in the eyes of man, but strangely the inner life has no response and grows cold and retreats.

　　Our Christian living is based on an inner life, not an outward standard of right and wrong. Many worldly people, who are not saved, live according to the best standard of living they can attain: the principle of right and wrong. If you or I also live by the principle of right or wrong, we are the same as worldly people. Christians are different from non-Christians because we do not live by an outward standard or law. Our subject is not human morality or concepts. We do not determine whether something is right or wrong by subjecting it to human criticism or opinion. Today we have only one question: What does our inner life say? If the life is strong and active within us, we can do this; if the life is cold and retreating within us, we should not. Our principle for living is inward instead of outward…We can only see what is really right when the Spirit of God operates within us. If we feel that there is life inwardly, then that matter is right. If we do not feel the inward life, then the matter is wrong. Right and wrong are not decided by an outward standard but by the inner life.

　　Once this matter is resolved, we can see that we must not only avoid all that is evil but also all that is merely good. Christians can only do that which comes out of life. We can see that there are evil things, good things, and things of life. We are not saying that Christians should only do things that are good and things that are of life. Rather, we are saying that Christians must not do good things or evil things. God said, “But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, of it you shall not eat; for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” [Gen. 2:17]. Note that “good and evil” are put together here as one way, while “life” is another way. Christians should not just refuse evil; they should even refuse good. There is a standard that is higher than the standard of good; it is the standard of life. (CWWN, vol. 56, “Two Principles of Living,” pp. 421-422)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1978, vol. 2, “Life Messages, Volume 1,” ch. 26