Proverbs 10:29

"The way of the LORD is a refuge for the righteous, but it is the ruin of those who do evil."

The Lord has never given up His Sovereignty. Many who want to reject the bible, Christianity, and their ethical absolutes think that in so doing they have freed themselves from the shackles of an undesirable master. In reality, they are still duty bound. It is their response to their Master that makes Him undesirable.

The way of the Lord is the way of life that applies to all the living. There is only one right way--His way. There may be differences in application among various cultures and individuals, but the ultimate realities do not change. Those who oppose those realities will find that they still govern, only to their own injury.

For instance, the way of the Lord is the way of a merciful righteousness applied to undeserving sinners. One may prefer the way of religious effort earning merit and favor, but this is not the way of the Lord. Those who stand before Him on the day of judgment with a bundle of presumptive merit in their hands to offer an infinitely holy God will find Him hostile to their offering and face the eternal judgment of hell. Those who stand before Him claiming nothing but the mercy He has given them to make them acceptable will find Him to be a Father receiving them with open arms and bestowing upon them a home and a kingdom.

This can be seen clearly in the story of the Pharisee and the tax collector:
"To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: 'Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: "God, I thank you that I am not like other men-- robbers, evildoers, adulterers-- or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get."
"'But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, "God, have mercy on me, a sinner."
"'I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.'"

So the Proverb is true--to one, the way of the Lord was a refuge, to the other it was ruin.
This is true not only of ultimate issues, i.e. those related to salvation. It is also true concerning moral issues. Sexual morality such as fidelity in marriage, abstinence outside of marriage, the divine intent of heterosexuality, etc., when embraced reward those who embrace them with confidence and trust in their union, avoidance of illnesses borne through immorality, and households that deflect the ravages of divorce. Those who will not embrace the way of the Lord find their rejection to be the source of ruin. Innumerable other examples can be given from the realms of diligence, honesty, charity, respect, etc. In all these things, the Lord has never abdicated His right to rule. One may oppose His standards, His authority, and His expectations, but they will not escape the obligation they have to these. The way of the Lord is supreme and all-constraining. The question is whether it will be a refuge or a ruin for you.