THE APPEARANCE OF EVIL
“Abstain from all appearance of evil”.– 1 Thess. 5:22
Have you ever noticed that we tend to pick and choose what commands we will obey? We go about it like we’re going through a cafeteria– picking out what we want and ignoring the rest. We call ourselves “Bible believers”, but a more honest description would be “Bits of the Bible believers”. I mention this because I’m convinced that our text is among the most ignored commands. It just doesn’t seem like that big of a deal to most people. Some folks seem to take delight in seeing how close they can get to sin without crossing the line. They don’t realize that is crossing the line! Don’t toy with sin.
We need to be reminded that we are representing Christ and we are responsible for our conduct. The world is watching and, as you’ve heard, “You are the only Bbile some people will ever read”. That being the case, we dare not misrepresent Christ and mislead others. To avoid that we must be on our best behavior at all times. Doing that demands that we “abstain from all appearance of evil”.
This doesn’t refer to what others might assume is evil, but to what is actually evil. God demands both. As someone said, “You must shun and be shy of the very shows and shadows of sin”. Spurgeon said Paul doesn’t mean “from that which other people choose to think evil, but from all real evil whatever it is — even from the very shadow that it casts and the shape which it assumes.” Refusing to abstain from the appearance of evil is dangerous. And it is not just the harm it will do to you, but also the hindrance it might be to others. Our conduct should be such that it’s obvious to others that we love God and hate sin. — HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346
