GUEST MEDITATION 7-02

The recent scandal of the governor of South Carolina has brought once again the issue of character to the news media. Many in the news media are saying that a person’s character is not the issue, but it is his or her performance as a public servant that counts. They say that an extra-martial affair is a family matter and that one’s private life is his/her own business. On the other hand, if a person lies or misuses public funds, then that is a concern to be addressed. 
If we accept these premises, then it doesn’t matter what a person does in private as long as his/her public performance pleases us. There is one problem with this kind of reasoning- we leave God out and what He has to say. The same Ten Commandments that states “Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not steal,“ also says, “Thou shalt not commit adultery.“ Now the question is should we be more concerned about pleasing others with our performance so we can keep our position in life or should we be more concerned about pleasing God to whom we must give an account of what we do?
The Biblical principal is “He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God,“ II Samuel 23:3. To believe that it is acceptable for one to be a ruler who has a dishonest private life and a reputable life of performance is an invention of man’s thinking. God requires public servants to rule justly and in the fear of Him. A servant worthy of public service does not set aside God and His word on the issue of character for the fallacy or fame of men.