Abstain From Evil, pt I

I Thessalonians 5:22
“abstain from every form of evil.”

What is the evil we are to avoid? The Ten Commandments specifically point out what those are. The first ones are in reference to our relationship with God. Only God is to be worshipped, and we are to be respectful to Him and when speaking of Him. To stray from these is evil. Many of the New Testament letters have the purpose of correcting wrong beliefs or practices. They were getting away from orthodoxy. Some of the jewish converts were too law based and needed grace. While the greeks had much too learn about the Lord. They were raised in pagan religions which revolved around human logic, humanism and passions.
Our culture has some segments that are hostile to christianity. It’s seen in movies, on tv, in newspapers, in school curriculum, and numerous other sources. One reason why church attendance is so important is to hear the correction as well as to encourage the members to be confident in their faith.
The remaining Commandments address our relationship with others. Children are to honor their parents. This is one our culture has difficulty with. Many tv shows portray parents as slow and the children as wise. Other commands are about murder and taking another’s wife or goods. We are to honor wedding vows. This can be extended to abstaining from fornication. We aren’t to lie. To practice any of these ten would be evil. These are general things that all of us are to avoid.
Jesus referenced evil in the Lord’s Prayer. He said, “lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” Evil is often something we are tempted to do. There is something alluring about it.
Lord, help us to abstain from evil.