FIVE REASONS TO TURN FROM EVIL

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In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Evil will never leave the house of one who pays back evil for good.

Blows and wounds scrub away evil, and beatings purge the inmost being.

The violence of the wicked will drag them away, for they refuse to do what is right.

The wicked become a ransom for the righteous, and the unfaithful for the upright.

Proverbs 17:13, 20:30, 21:7, 21:18

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Friends, we have a big problem. We are all sinners and there is nothing we can do about it, at least in this worldly existence. Ever since Adam and Eve chose to disobey God’s commandment in Eden’s garden, evil has been present in the hearts of men and women, leading them to be likewise disobedient to God’s commands and will. This evil within us has resulted in a dark cloud of wickedness hanging over the creation that God intended to be fully lit with the light of His righteousness and this is the environment we live in today.

Everyone has equal capability to be good or evil. No one is good or righteous enough on their own to avoid falling into evil’s grasp. This is why we see a multitude of people who we considered good failing and falling after committing illicit acts. We act surprised when these things happen but we shouldn’t be. Without the help and strength of God and His word, we all are at the mercy of sin and the wickedness it manifests within our hearts and minds. Maybe this is why the word of God spends time talking about evil and we would be well served to pay attention. These proverbs lead us the following five good reasons to turn from evil toward the righteousness God expects us to live in:

1. Evil will come back on you and your household.

Evil will never leave the house of one who pays back evil for good. Proverbs 17:13

You’ve heard the saying, “What comes around, goes around.” Essentially, it means that when you do something wrong to someone, you will eventually suffer through someone wronging you later. This proverb gives us an even sterner warning. For if you choose to do evil to someone who has done only good for you, then evil will never leave your house. This means that not only will you suffer from evil but so will your household to include your spouse and children.

In other words, your decision to commit evil can have consequences far beyond your penalties.

2. Evil will bring God’s wrath and judgment upon you.

Blows and wounds scrub away evil, and beatings purge the inmost being. Proverbs 20:30

God will not just stand by and watch you be evil. No, He will do whatever it takes to drive you from choosing evil and opt for righteousness instead. He will not rest in this effort and if we stubbornly resist His will and way, refusing to change, expect His attempts to correct to become harsher and harsher, not because He loves you less but because He loves you more. He loves you so much that He would not allow you to perish because of your sin-based evil but rather do whatever He needed to do to bring you to His side through salvation from His Son Jesus Christ.

This is the awesome nature of our Heavenly Father, that He would never give up on any one of His children when it comes to drawing them away from evil and to His righteous side forever.

3. Evil will destroy the evildoer.

The violence of the wicked will drag them away, for they refuse to do what is right. Proverbs 21:7

Those who select evil over righteousness will be drug away into judgment by the God they are disrespecting and disobeying. That judgment only results in death and destruction for the unrepentant sinner who refuses to turn from his or her wickedness as their name will not be found in the book of life and instead of moving onto eternal life with Christ, they will be cast into the lake of fire and consumed by the flames(Revelation 20:15).

Why anyone in their right mind would pick this over righteousness and a loving life eternal with God the Father and His Son Jesus is beyond me.

4. Those who opt for evil will suffer in place of the righteous.

The wicked become a ransom for the righteous, and the unfaithful for the upright. Proverbs 21:18

What God’s word is telling us here is that when the righteous move from a place of judgment and consequence by opting to be obedient to God and His will and way, the evil will move into their place to receive God’s correction. In other words, the righteous and upright are ransomed and pardoned by the evil and unfaithful.

Think about a world where everyone strives for righteousness and turns from sin. There would be no one to be ransomed. Won’t you join me in continuing to pray for our world coming to this place?

5. God hates evil.

This is the summation of all the prior proverbs and it really is as simple as that. We should turn from evil simply because God said to. Period.

We don’t need to try and reason it out. There is no need to sit back and reflect on whether we should do good or evil. God hates sin and the wicked evil it produces and we should never be in a position where God hates what we’ve done. He loves us but He will hate our behavior, our actions, and our very thoughts that are unrighteous. And as we have seen in our scriptures, He hates it so much that He will do whatever it takes to purge it from us.

Friends, God sent His only Son Jesus to earth to live and dwell with mankind and show them the way to live right, the way to live free from evil, the way to walk in the light vice the darkness. When we choose to believe, trust, and follow Jesus, we commit to live like Him and when we do that we can be assured we will live in a way that is pleasing to God, the God who loved us so much that He sent His Son to pay the price for the evils we commit on Calvary’s cross, the God who we will see face-to-face someday through our commitment to the One who is the Way and the Truth and the Life, the only way to God the Father (John 14:6).

If you haven’t already, won’t you turn from evil and instead opt for Jesus today?

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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