In western society we hear people talk about rights, for example, animal rights, human rights, the right to free speech, the right to vote, the right to keep and bear arms.  People tend to think in terms of their rights. 

This is not a modern way of thinking.  America’s founding fathers in the U.S. Declaration of Independence wrote:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

“Unalienable” means, unassailable, sacrosanct, not subject to being taken away from the possessor.

The US also has their “Bill of Rights” which is the collective name for the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution.  It limits the power of the Federal Government and protects the rights of the people. The ”Bill of Rights” dates back to 1791.

Of course, the Americans were not the first.  Just over 100 years earlier, the English enacted their Bill of Rights in 1689.

In western society we tend to think in terms of our rights. But what does God have to say about our “rights”?  Is thinking in terms of our “rights” a correct way of thinking?  Is this a Godly way of thinking? 

When we stand before God do we have any rights?  Can we go to God and say to Him? “You must give me good health, it’s my right.  You must give me riches.  You must give me happiness, it’s my right.  You have to give me eternal life, I have a right to it.”  Of course not.  We are nothing.  As it says in the book of Isaiah, the nations with all their millions, billions of people are but dust on the scales. 

Isa 40:15  Behold, the nations are as a drop in a bucket, And are counted as the small dust on the scales; Look, He lifts up the isles as a very little thing.

Dust on the scales is so insignificant we don’t bother about it.  Compared to God we are nothing.  We are in no position to demand any rights from God.

Of course, God wants to give us all these good things and much more, but we cannot demand them of Him.  They are gifts, not rights.

Thinking in terms of “rights” is ego-centric.  It’s asking: “What does the world owe me?  What can I get?

When we look in the Bible, we don’t find a “Bill of Rights” that God has set forth for us.  Nowhere in the Bible does it say, “These are your rights as a human”.

In fact, considering abortion, as shocking as it might sound, the Bible doesn’t say that the unborn child has a right to life.  But nor does it say that the mother has a right to do what she wants with her body.

Instead, the Bible frames things differently.  The Bible commands us not to take the life of another human being.  Rather than talking about our rights, the Bible talks about our duties and responsibilities. 

For example, in Deuteronomy God requires us to fear God and keep His commandments. 

Deu 10:12  “And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul,
Deu 10:13  and to keep the commandments of the LORD and His statutes which I command you today for your good?

It is obedience to God’s laws that protects the “rights” of others.  If a mother obeys God’s laws, then the life of her unborn child is protected.  Its “right” to life is upheld.

The Bible frames things in terms of requirements or duties and obedience, rather than rights.

The book of Micah says that God requires us to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God.  In other words, it is our God given responsibility to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God. 

Mic 6:8  He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?

As another example, the book of Ecclesiastes says, “Fear God, and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of man.” 

Ecc 12:13  Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, For this is man’s all.

Ecc 12:13  Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.  KJV

God tells us to think in terms of duty, of what is required of us, of obedience to His laws.  And His laws are concerned with loving God and loving others and so are outward looking. 

Society tells us to think in terms of our rights, of what’s in it for us, of what we can get.  It is inward looking.

What about the “certain unalienable Rights” that we so dearly long for, Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness? 

If we fulfil our duty and obey God, then we will enter His Kingdom. 

Life

We will receive not just Life, but eternal life.  

Liberty

We will receive liberty. 

Joh 8:31  Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.
Joh 8:32  And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

The Pursuit of Happiness

We won’t be pursuing happiness.  We will be happy and have peace as well. 

Rom 14:17  for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

In conclusion, in western society we tend to think in terms of our rights, but God tells us to think in terms of duty, of what is required of us, of obedience to His laws.  If we fulfil our duty and obey God then we will enter His Kingdom and receive as gifts, eternal life, liberty and happiness.