“DEFENSE!”

19 “For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil.”

Romans 16:19

Dealing with sin and the evil one is more of a defense than an offense. We are told to guard ourselves against Satan's lies as well as the world's unhealthy enticements. I know that this is easier said than done. So, how do we go about it?

Our previous blog reminded us that God wants us to guard ourselves against unhealthy, unbiblical teachings. Here’s another thought you might want to consider:

Christians are to seek wisdom and make biblically sound decisions.

The passage from which today’s verse is taken shows Paul’s warning against false teachers spewing lies and causing confusion among the believers in Rome. That said, he expresses his confidence that the Roman Christians will do the right thing.

It is clear that the Romans were living a life of obedience and Paul praises them for doing so. In fact, in all of Paul’s letters, he commends his audiences for their obedience except for the Galatians, who traded the gospel for unbiblical teachings.

Paul implies that the church in Rome is known for their obedience to God, and it is highly unlikely for them to fail in this matter. So, he rejoices as he thinks about this church’s faithfulness; but at the same time, he challenges them to exercise discernment and avoid evil.

To successfully live the Christian life, we should be wise enough to avoid harm and gentle enough to avoid causing it.

The Lord Jesus demonstrated these traits in the way He taught. He knew how to discern the differences in His audiences, used parables to both feed and weed, and refused to be caught in the many traps that His enemies laid for Him. Before sending the disciples on a mission, He gave them these words:

16 “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.”

Matthew 10:16

Using two similes in one statement, Jesus instructed His disciples on how to behave in the midst of unbelievers. Some intentionally caused them harm, but he told them not to fight fire with fire. Instead, Jesus commanded them to be wise by avoiding the snares set for them and be gentle by having a blameless heart.

Likewise, we are instructed by Scripture to be wise in dealing with others. We should exercise good judgment and keep away from things that can damage our testimony. Our lives are under the scrutiny of a judgmental world. But if we apply biblical principles to our daily lives, it will not be that easy for our haters to justify their distaste of us. Therefore, let’s not give the enemy any grounds to convict us of wrongdoing.

Pursue the Savior today!

Photo by Julia Fiander on Unsplash