The question of how one is to make decisions concerning the matters of life is one that perplexes many Christians today. T. David Gordon has written a short, nontechnical but profound book on this subject entitled, Choosing Better: Five Biblical Models for Making Ethical Decisions.

Gordon begins by pointing out that within a theist worldview and framework, ethics is about living as God our Maker intended for us to live. Every decision that we make either contributes to or detracts from human life as God created it. Only human beings amongst God’s creatures have the capability to examine, ponder, and compare choices. This in turn means that when you wrestle with questions about life choices, you have already stepped into the field of ethics. What you need to do is ask the right questions that will hopefully yield good answers.

Furthermore, ethics is not merely choosing between “good” and “evil,” but choosing between “good” and “better.” Gordon points to Mary and Martha in Luke 10. The choice to serve is lauded throughout Scripture, but while Martha had made a good choice, it was Mary who had made the better choice in listening to Jesus.

Gordon lays out five models for making ethical decisions – the Imitation Model, the Law Model, the Wisdom Model, the Communion Model, and the Warfare Model. Each model asks its own sets of questions, brings its own insight to the matter at hand, has a Biblical basis, complements each other, and has their own special strengths and weaknesses.

The Imitation Model asks, “Does this decision allow me (or us) to emulate God or to cultivate human traits that reflect his image?” Amongst its strengths is that it brings the glorification of God back into ethics. A weakness it has is that you really have to do your homework to grasp God’s communicable attributes for you to emulate.

The Law Model asks, “Has God, in Holy Scripture, commanded or prohibited this behavior?” This model can be seen in the exposition of the Ten Commandments in our catechisms. One great strength is that it is a strong check against subjectivism. A great weakness is that it can get one focused on dos and don’ts and one ends up looking like a Pharisee.

The Wisdom Model asks, “What is the likely outcome of the decision?” This model is useful for addressing all those questions that do not have answers in Biblical Law. The great problem with this model is that the culture is totally opposed to it. The vast amount of “information” bombarding us (and who knows what part of that “information” is nonsense or worse), the exaltation of youth culture (the very thing the Bible points to as foolishness), and the fast pace of life today act against it.

The Communion Model asks, “How might this decision enhance or inhibit my (or our) communion with God?” This model is excellent in focusing on the relationship with God. If not combined, however, with the objective teaching of Scripture, it could result in the person drifting off into mysticism.

The Warfare Model asks, “Will this decision likely serve the forces of good or the forces of evil?” This model causes us to see that we are truly in a spiritual war and encourages us to be prepared. It does require an understanding of Satan and his tactics. All too often in this day and age, however, too few Christians have that understanding.

What model does Gordon favor? He believes that the Imitation Model is the basis of the ethical enterprise, and in fact embraces the other four models. Since all five models are seen in the Bible and each address ethics in its own way, I would agree.

The book is short (140 pages total), written with clarity for people in the pew, but packed full of solid thought. Gordon has done the Church a great service in laying out Biblical approaches to decision making, and showing that ethical decision making involves not merely making good decisions, but the best ones.