A Father’s Instruction

Proverbs 4:15 

I die daily devotional.

¹⁴ Do not enter the path of the wicked
And do not proceed in the way of evil men.
¹⁵ Avoid it, do not pass by it;
Turn away from it and pass on.
¹⁶ For they cannot sleep unless they do evil;
And they are robbed of sleep unless they make someone stumble.

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I just burned myself… yep… with coffee. Never a good idea! I could’ve avoided that from happening had I not prepared any coffee whatsoever, should’ve passed on from that coffee maker, but it looked at me; or … I could’ve just paid more attention to what I was doing.

Okay, so…

This is no weak discipline that I can attest to experiencing when heeding the instruction of this wisdom. To believe in Jesus Christ as the Son of God in a world that resists the Holy Spirit is ever challenging to the soul because of what the flesh craves by way of reminder, what we’ve been saved from through repentance of old sins.

2 Peter 1:9 For whoever lacks these qualities is blind—shortsighted [closing his spiritual eyes to the truth], having become oblivious to the fact that he was cleansed from his old sins.

The world that resists the Holy Spirit is regressing further into the delusion of sin, and much of that activity can appear very… enchanting, to the flesh, not the spirit—if the Spirit of Christ is in us.

So how do we avoid it, the enticing behavior of regressing sinful activity? How do we go forth from our church, or home, into the world and not pass by it; sin?

Or how do we go to work, turn away from it and pass on without becoming homeless?

Better yet… at what point is the line drawn for unrepentant people, and we remove ourselves from that environment?

Well…

You got me! We’re all gonna die!

No, but here is what I really think…

Jesus is that line drawn in every person’s life whether they’ve accepted or resisted the judgement of that line. There is a lot to say about that concept, but the idea was inspired by the verses where Jesus is writing on the ground:

John 8:1 But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2 Early in the morning He came back into the temple [court], and all the people were coming to Him. He sat down and began teaching them. 3 Now the scribes and Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery. They made her stand in the center of the court, 4 and they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the very act of adultery. 5 Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women [to death]. So what do You say [to do with her—what is Your sentence]?” 6 They said this to test Him, hoping that they would have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and began writing on the ground with His finger. 7 However, when they persisted in questioning Him, He straightened up and said, “He who is without [any] sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 Then He stooped down again and started writing on the ground. 9 They listened [to His reply], and they began to go out one by one, starting with the oldest ones, until He was left alone, with the woman [standing there before Him] in the center of the court. 10 Straightening up, Jesus said to her, “Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?” 11 She answered, “No one, Lord!” And Jesus said, “I do not condemn you either. Go. From now on sin no more.”]

More to say on this tomorrow.

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RESOURCE

Proverbs 4 (NASB)—blueletterbible.org | biblegateway.com

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COMMENTARY

Chapter 4

Matthew Henry (P4-V15) Commentary
I. The caution itself, v. 14, 15.

1. We must take heed of falling in with sin and sinners: Enter not into the paths of the wicked. Our teacher, having like a faithful guide shown us the right paths (v. 11), here warns us of the by-paths into which we are in danger of being drawn aside. Those that have been well educated, and trained up in the way they should go, let them never turn aside into the way they should not go; let them not so much as enter into it, no, not to make trial of it, lest it prove a dangerous experiment and difficult to retreat with safety. “Venture not into the company of those that are infected with the plague, no, not though thou think thyself guarded with an antidote.”

2. If at any time we are inveigled into an evil way, we must hasten out of it. “If, ere thou wast aware, thou didst enter in at the gate, because it was wide, go not on in the way of evil men. As soon as thou art made sensible of thy mistake, retire immediately, take not a step more, stay not a minute longer, in the way that certainly leads to destruction.”

3. We must dread and detest the ways of sin and sinners, and decline them with the utmost care imaginable. “The way of evil men may seem a pleasant way and sociable, and the nearest way to the compassing of some secular end we may have in view; but it is an evil way, and will end ill, and therefore if thou love thy God and thy soul avoid it, pass not by it, that thou mayest not be tempted to enter into it; and, if thou find thyself near it, turn from it and pass away, and get as far off it as thou canst.” The manner of expression intimates the imminent danger we are in, the need we have of this caution, and the great importance of it, and that our watchmen are, or should be, in good earnest, in giving us warning. It intimates likewise at what a distance we should keep from sin and sinners; he does not say, Keep at a due distance, but at a great distance, the further the better; never think you can get far enough from it. Escape for thy life: look not behind thee.