The demarcation line between good and evil

"With great power comes great responsibility" - Uncle Ben, Spiderman (2002)

These words from Uncle Ben in the movie 'Spiderman' guided Peter Parker to understand that because he was given incredible spider super powers, he carried a heavier weight of responsibility to make virtuous decisions based on a strong moral compass.

It is the same in our lives. Everyday we make decisions that can influence not only ourselves, but our families, communities, and nations, all depending on how much influence or power we happen to be entrusted with (whether we wanted it or not).

But what determines whether our decisions are good or evil? Is there an arbitrator or judge designated for ruling good vs. evil in the decisions we make everyday?

Rattlesnake ledge, Snoqualmie Pass/NorthBend area, WA - January 25th, 2014

There is such a judge, and not only does this judge monitor every decision in every circumstance of each moment, but this judge is also recognized by all people as the absolute authority on every issue without exception.

This judge is the innate conscience residing within every man and woman, and his standard of judgement is based on the universal principle of living for the sake of others. The demarcation line between good and evil is whether your motive, which only you and your conscience can know, is solely to benefit your counterpart or if it is to benefit yourself at the expense of your counterpart.

But knowing this, when we look at our lives, what is the greatest force and power in the world that we should take the utmost care to utilize properly, in alignment with this principle? What is the one and only power that can cause nations to fall or rise, that can influence countless generations and that goes beyond any cultural/national/religious distinctions? This is the power of love. Love even has the power to engender new life and form a lineage.

Since the most powerful force in the universe is something that we ourselves possess it must also be our most important responsibility to use it according to the fundamental principle of living for the sake of others. We should be grateful that God entrusted us with this most valuable gift and utilize our own free will to manage and use it to bring about a world that we truly aspire for in our hearts and souls.