Simple Concerning Evil
Romans 16:19 For your obedience is come abroad unto all men. I am glad therefore on your behalf: but yet I would have you wise unto that which is good, and simple concerning evil.
The Bible is crystal clear – there are things God never wanted us to know about.
SIMPLE: unmixed, pure as in wines or metals; of the mind, without a mixture of evil, free from guile, innocent, simple
EVIL: of a bad nature; not such as it ought to be; of a mode of thinking, feeling, acting; base, wrong, wicked, troublesome, injurious, pernicious, destructive, baneful
ILLUSTRATION: The Garden of Eden was a time of great innocence.
Satan lured Even into sin by promising her that her eyes would be opened.
It was. To many things God never intended it to be opened to.
Genesis 3
· 4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
· 5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
Over and over again, God strongly addresses this matter of staying ignorant of sin.
I am 51 years old, and I have no idea what beer tastes like.
I have no idea what smoking a cigarette feels like.
I have never seen drugs in any way, shape or form as far as I know.
I have never been to a party where there was loud music and drinking.
There are many things that I have no idea about because I simply don’t want to know.
This mentality of, “I just want to see what it’s like” has ruined many young people.
We have elementary children in this school that know things that I didn’t know when I got married.
We’ve got junior high and high school kids that talk about things amongst themselves that are shocking.
Thanks to cell phones and social media, kids today are losing their innocence at younger and younger ages.
They are exposed to language, lewdness and lasciviousness unlike any other generation at their age.
They are constantly being bombarded with images and conversations of sexuality, sensuality, immorality.
You can be SIMPLE CONCERNING EVIL:
I. By Being Concerned about all the Temptations in your Path
Ephesians 6
· 13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
· 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
I preached a series of messages last year on The Rules of Engagement.
We are constantly under satanic attack.
If you forget that, you will find yourself being overwhelmed with temptations and sinful desires.
Learn to recognize a fiery dart when it is being thrown at you.
Learn to use the shield of faith.
Don’t leave yourself open to temptation.
Don’t put yourself in places and situations that will create perfect opportunities for the devil to entice you.
II. By Being Careful about who you Turn to among your Peers
Proverbs 4
· 14 Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men.
· 15 Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.
III. By Being Clean in what you Talk About in Private
Ephesians 5
· 11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.
· 12 For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.
· Ephesians 4:29 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.
· Colossians 3:8 But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.
· 1 Peter 1:15 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;
IV. Being Cautious about what you Touch in your Passion
ILLUSTRATION: Eve had no business standing under that forbidden tree looking at that fruit!!
The longer she looked at it, the better it looked.
Get away from it! Don’t go near it!
Eve eventually ate of that forbidden fruit, but first she looked at it, and then she touched it.
· 2 Corinthians 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
Colossians 2
· 20 Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances,
· 21 (Touch not; taste not; handle not;
· Proverbs 6:29 So he that goeth in to his neighbour’s wife; whosoever toucheth her shall not be innocent.
· 1 Corinthians 7:1 Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman.
Job realized as a man that you won’t think about things that you don’t look at!
· Job 31:1 I made a covenant with mine eyes; why then should I think upon a maid?
Praise God
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