"Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men.
Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away."
Proverbs 4:14-15
I like the general idea here of avoiding temptation. I'm not saying willpower is useless. It can get us out of some tough spots... but I think the main idea is not to get in the tough situations in the first place. I think that is what Christ was saying when he stated "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: / But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart" (Matthew 5:27-28). If God warns us, saying "Don't jump off the cliff" that doesn't mean we should play games with how close we can get without falling over. That's just insanity, right? Same with the other commandments. If we know we have a weakness, then let's stay the heck *away* from situations that involve that weakness, not indulge in thinking about it all the time and filling our minds with whatever it is. That isn't helping.
Joseph understood the principle of avoidance when he was a servant in Potiphar's house. He didn't stay in a compromising situation to talk about it. He ran. And that is *exactly* what we should do with temptation as well. Run. Get the heck out of Dodge. There is no reason for us to feel like we have to walk in the path of the wicked or go in the way of evil men... we don't have anything to prove. We don't need to show how strong we are in the face of danger. We need to survive. And avoidance is a really, really good technique for spiritual survival.
(... Not saying that avoidance is always good either. It's a pretty bad idea in normal social situations and when we need to clean the house, etc... but this is the good side of it. When we are avoiding temptation or evil paths, it is totally okay.) :)
Today, let's dust off our running shoes and use them as needed to stay far, far away from evil and wicked roads and temptations.
Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away."
Proverbs 4:14-15
I like the general idea here of avoiding temptation. I'm not saying willpower is useless. It can get us out of some tough spots... but I think the main idea is not to get in the tough situations in the first place. I think that is what Christ was saying when he stated "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: / But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart" (Matthew 5:27-28). If God warns us, saying "Don't jump off the cliff" that doesn't mean we should play games with how close we can get without falling over. That's just insanity, right? Same with the other commandments. If we know we have a weakness, then let's stay the heck *away* from situations that involve that weakness, not indulge in thinking about it all the time and filling our minds with whatever it is. That isn't helping.
Joseph understood the principle of avoidance when he was a servant in Potiphar's house. He didn't stay in a compromising situation to talk about it. He ran. And that is *exactly* what we should do with temptation as well. Run. Get the heck out of Dodge. There is no reason for us to feel like we have to walk in the path of the wicked or go in the way of evil men... we don't have anything to prove. We don't need to show how strong we are in the face of danger. We need to survive. And avoidance is a really, really good technique for spiritual survival.
(... Not saying that avoidance is always good either. It's a pretty bad idea in normal social situations and when we need to clean the house, etc... but this is the good side of it. When we are avoiding temptation or evil paths, it is totally okay.) :)
Today, let's dust off our running shoes and use them as needed to stay far, far away from evil and wicked roads and temptations.
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