The Self-Destruction of the "Man is Basically Good" Narrative

What is there to say about the avalanche of daily reports of sexual harassment/assault coming out of the entertainment and political world?  We’re seeing the collapse of the “man is basically good” narrative.

Consider that the general consensus in the non-Christian world is that man in his natural state is benevolent.  Left to himself, untainted by evil influences, he will be committed to the good of others.  It takes outside forces to make a person evil. 

Then consider how different that notion is from the Bible’s statement on man’s natural condition.  Genesis 6:5 tells us that every intention of the thoughts of the heart of man are only evil continually.  In other words, man is not basically good.  He’s basically rotten, eaten up with evil from the inside.  Man is naturally motivated by sinful self-interest.  His heart is deceitful above all things and desperately sick (Jer 17:9).  Additionally, the whole world lies in the power of the evil one, delightfully following him (1 John 5:19; Eph 2:2).

Prior to a few months ago, in Hollywood, Washington, D.C., and press rooms across the country, it was easy to explain away the few sexual predators around as aberrations.  But now, with additional stories coming out every day about another actor or reporter or government official who has crossed sexual lines in varying degrees, that narrative is much harder to maintain.  Perhaps some of them would say we have an epidemic on our hands.  “There are many more people infected than we thought, but it’s still a minority.  That being said, we’ve got to do something serious to deal with this huge problem.” 

But is it just a minority?  Think about the many people within the entertainment industry who have testified to the news media and on social media regarding Harvey Weinstein that “this was common knowledge.”  If you believe what you read and see and hear, no one was shocked by this.  What might that tell us?  There is an entire industry there motivated by sinful self-interest.  Everybody knew that women were being harassed and assaulted but nobody said anything.  Why?  It would hurt their careers. 

The same could be said of some of the cases in the news industry or the political world.  Powerful people were known to be exploiting others, but no one said anything because of the fallout they themselves would receive.  You see, depravity is not only behind the sexual sin but also behind the silence of those who knew about it but did nothing to protect the weak. 

“Man is basically good” is a myth.  Man is an opportunist for self.  When he gains power over another, he will abuse it for his own gain.  When others are victimized, if getting involved will have negative personal consequences, he stands down. 

Those of us who are believers are right to be disturbed by what we’re seeing, but we ought not be surprised.  We know the biblical worldview.  We know that man is deceitfully wicked and that his only hope is faith in the atoning death of Jesus Christ, who makes all things new (2 Cor 5:17).  We have seen the evidence of depravity in our own hearts.  We ourselves were dead in our trespasses and sins, living in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind (Eph 2:1-3).  The only difference between us and those in the news is that by God’s sovereign grace, we heard the gospel and were drawn by His loving hand to believe (Eph 2:8-9).    

At the same time, we should rejoice that evil is being exposed and in some cases justice is being done (Micah 6:8).  We should also rejoice that each of these stories vindicate the Christian worldview.  That shouldn't lead us into any kind of smug victory lap, but out of concern for the lost, we should use it as a tool to share the gospel.  It’s a very natural thing to take a conversation about the latest scandal and turn it toward the sinful condition of man and his need for a Savior. 

Man's self-deception about his own nature cannot hold up in God's world.  When it is exposed, we should see it in biblical terms, thank God for the gospel and its effect in our lives, and begin to share that gospel with anyone willing to talk about it.