How Should I Live in This World?

How Should I Live in This World? offers a concise introduction to Christian ethics, exploring how Scripture provides principled guidance for moral decision-making in a confused and pluralistic culture.

Dr. R.C. Sproul begins by distinguishing between ethics and morals—between what people ought to do and what they actually do—and warns against collapsing the two into a “statistical morality” that treats cultural norms as ethical standards. He then examines the authority of biblical revelation as the foundation for ethical reasoning, showing how God’s Word supplies not only general principles but also specific commands that define what love requires in practice.

The book addresses several competing ethical frameworks, including legalism, antinomianism, and situation ethics, arguing that each distorts the biblical ethic in its own way. Sproul applies scriptural principles to pressing moral questions—materialism and profit, capital punishment and war, and abortion—while also treating the role of conscience in ethical decision-making. Throughout, he maintains that the conscience, though important, must be informed and corrected by the Word of God rather than treated as an autonomous moral guide.

Part of the Crucial Questions series, this booklet equips readers to think carefully about ethical issues by grounding moral reasoning in the character and commands of God as revealed in Scripture.

Key Themes

• The distinction between normative ethics and descriptive morality
• Biblical authority as the foundation for ethical decision-making
• The dangers of legalism, antinomianism, and situation ethics
• The role and limitations of conscience in the Christian life
• The application of scriptural principles to contemporary moral dilemmas

Featured Quotes

“As legalism distorts the biblical ethic in one direction, so antinomianism distorts it toward the opposite pole.”

“When my brother is in need, I must attempt to meet that need.”