God’s Unchanging Standards

The world into which Jesus was born was filled with often confusing, conflicting morality. Many, including Rome’s Emperor, Caesar Augustus, favored what were considered “conservative” morals. But some, such as the poet Ovid, encouraged more of a “loose” morality.

Called the most brilliant poet of his generation, Ovid (who was born in 43 BC) achieved the height of fame about the time Jesus was born. In works filled with his cynical worldview, he encouraged manipulation for personal gain. Through his remarkable command of language, he influenced his generation (and beyond) with his twisted philosophy of life.

But eventually his beliefs brought him into conflict with the political authorities. Augustus summoned Ovid to Rome in 8 AD. For reasons still not clear, the poet was sentenced to exile in a remote location on the Black Sea. It was said that the cause was “a poem and a mistake.”

Ovid tried to win approval and gain freedom by writing poems for Augustus, but his efforts failed. He spent the last nine years of his life at that Black Sea location, separated from everything he loved. Never allowed to return home, he died about 17 AD.

Our generation, too, is a time of moral confusion. Biblical standards increasingly are ignored or defied. Lifestyles that just a few years ago would have been rejected have been encouraged as “normal,” championed by strong lobbying groups, articulate writers and actors, and brilliant politicians and personalities.

And just as in Ovid’s day, Jesus brings people worldwide into a confrontation with God’s unchanging standards. He came to establish His Kingdom, spreading the news that there is hope for lasting fulfillment through a relationship with Him. We can be saved and set free. We can have eternal life and peace with God.