May 10th
14Do not enter the path of the wicked, and do not walk in the way of evil. 15Avoid it, do not travel on it; Turn away from it and pass on. 16For they do not sleep unless they have done evil; and their sleep is taken away unless they make someone fall. 17For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence. 19The way of the wicked is like darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble. Proverbs 4:14-17,19 NKJV
The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day. Proverbs 4:18 NIV
Do not turn to the right or the left; Remove your foot from evil. Proverbs 4:27 NKJV
Solomon discussed two paths we can follow in life: wickedness and righteousness. The path of wickedness has many entry points. Pornography is one of them, and it opens the door to a world of evil that is set on consuming our lives with sin. We can apply Solomon’s warnings to pornography and other forms of sexually addictive material:
- Do not enter the path of the wicked – avoid it
- Do not walk in the path of the wicked and do not travel on it
- Turn away from it and pass on
Those who walk the path of wickedness become slaves to evil (Romans 6:16). They can’t even sleep unless they do evil. They eat and drink evil. They are spiritually blind and have lost discernment of good and evil. For example, those who pursue pornography discover that it enslaves them to their own carnal desires (i.e. lust). They discover that lust is never satisfied. It keeps them awake a night, looking for ways to indulge in more sin. It dominates their thoughts at day, leading them to sin repeatedly in sexual fantasy. In the end, they start believing that lust is not sin and that they are harming no one.
The path of righteousness is much different from the path of wickedness. It is filled with light and actually shines like the sun. As we walk it, it shines brighter and brighter, because we are drawing nearer to God each step of the way.
To get on the path of righteousness, we must stop setting foot in the path of evil and start pursuing righteousness in all that we do. Through the Holy Spirit, God will guide us on the path of righteousness. He will help us avoid the pitfalls of sin along the way, provided we heed his instructions. Additionally, we can start developing good habits that will bolster our relationship with God and strengthen our ability to resist temptations. Proverbs 4:20-27 mentions some of the actions we can take:
20 My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings.
21 Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart;
22 For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh.
23 Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life.
24 Put away from you a [a]deceitful mouth, And put perverse lips far from you.
25 Let your eyes look straight ahead, And your eyelids look right before you.
26 Ponder the path of your feet, And let all your ways be established.
27 Do not turn to the right or the left; Remove your foot from evil.
Summarizing, we can:
- Incline our ears to God’s Word
- Read and study the Bible daily
- Load God’s Word into our heart (scripture meditation & memorization)
- Guard our heart with all diligence, protecting it from sinful distractions
- Guard our mouth from speaking evil; stop speaking lies, perversity and deceit
- Keep our eyes looking straight ahead and not allowing them to lust after or idolize anything
The benefits of walking the path of righteousness will be life and health to our flesh. We will walk with certainty and discernment. We will not stumble on hidden obstacles because we will be walking in light. Our steps will not be hindered by evil.
Questions for further thought:
What are some of the ways that you have been setting your foot on the path of evil?
Why do you think Solomon warned his son to not even go near the path of evil? (1 Kings 11)
Why are those who walk the path of the wicked never satisfied? (Proverbs 27:20)
Prayer:
“Heavenly Father, thank you for revealing your wisdom to me through the Bible. Thank you for making it possible for me to walk the path of wisdom through Jesus Christ and the gift of the Holy Spirit. Please forgive me for all the ways that I have been walking in the path of evil. Please help me to not even go near the path of evil. I commit to developing good daily habits that will help me draw near to you each day and walk in purity. Please guide me in truth and discretion, and help me clearly see the path of righteousness. Please impart to me your perfect wisdom for life. Thank you, Father! In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.”