They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm.
Summary: Deciding what is “evil” seems easy to most of us. “Evil” is anything we don’t like or don’t approve of. But what about God’s definition of “evil?”
If the law is a signpost that warns us against evil, what is evil? This is the next BIG question. Did the serpent lie about that, too?
In a word, “Yes.”
When the serpent told Eve, “…you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:5), his second inference was that a human could decide for themselves what is “good and evil.”
This is the very essence of sin: Elevating our Selves to the position of deciding what is good and what is evil.
Deciding what is good and evil is a function of authority. The one with the most authority gets to make that call, and no human has more authority than God.
Ultimately, it is God who decides who lives and who dies. Not just in the physical sense, but more importantly, in the spiritual. Eternal life is being with God for eternity. Hell is what we call living without God for eternity.*
Since God ultimately has all authority, only God can decide what is good and what is evil. We can disagree with God’s decision, but we can’t disagree with his authority. Since God’s purpose is unchanging (Hebrews 6:17), smart people submit to God’s authority.
As we continue with Paul’s letter to Timothy, we will encounter examples of what God has pronounced to be “evil.” Keep in mind what we talked about in Part I. Paul is not telling us to judge people from a moral sense; that is, he is not condemning people for what they do. Instead, he is outlining some of the things God has explained during the Old Testament times.
In effect, God is saying, “This is what is good, and that is what is evil.”
There is no room for debate or discussion here. God has made himself known to us and explained the difference between right and wrong. What is important to remember is that God loves us in spite of our sin. He loves us so much that he has provided a way of restoring broken relationships through the sacrifice of his Son, Jesus Christ.
So, even though we have been stained by evil, God is willing to forgive. As Paul explains many times, this is not a license to sin! (Romans 6:1-2) It is an invitation to be forgiven and begin a new life that leads to good instead of evil.
Application: Getting to know God is partly about learning what is good and what is evil.
Food for Thought: How does knowing how to recognize evil change the way we live?
*The Bible has more detail on this. See Revelation 20:14.
If we recognize evil for what it is, then we can avoid it and not participate in it. If someone’s conscience is seared or somehow don’t recognize slavery or child sex trafficking as evil, they might seek to make profit off the slavery of others. I realize that is an extreme example. But my point is God knows what is evil and tells us. So on issues not as obvious we can use His help to avid evil rather than embrace it.
James 4: 17: If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.
We know the good by knowing God and His word.
I meant to include this earlier.
Thank you, Rich!
This addition to your comment above has more of an everyday context to it. Both comments touch on the core issues: we have to know where the line between good and evil is before we can even think about choosing.
We are given grace to test or prove the substance of actions. This doesn’t mean we get a “mulligan” on sin. We are given discernment through the Holy Spirit to measure them against the Word. As we learn to recognize evil, we abstain from it, every form of it, even the very appearance of it. Even more so, we hold fast to what is good! So abstaining from evil is not just “doing without” it is choosing the righteous path. That changes the way we live.
1 Thessalonians 5:21–22 (ESV)
21 but test everything; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil.
1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 (KJV)
21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.
Thanks, Chris!
This is an important comment:
“So abstaining from evil is not just “doing without” it is choosing the righteous path.”
Nature abhors a vacuum, and so does sin. If, as you point out, we don’t choose Jesus, sin creeps back in.
How does knowing how to recognize evil change the way we live?
As a non believer the crowd I ran with was wild and very committed to life in sin, and looking forward to going to hell because that was where all people like us were going. Everything would be good there.
John 14:17, Even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.
John 16:8, When he comes, he will convict the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment.
1 John 4:13, By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.
Colossians 3:2, Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.
Ephesians 5:11, Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them.
As believers, recognizing evil, turning from evil and to God are two different steps. Both are by the power of God who sends His Holy Spirit to open our eyes to His truths and provides the power required to turn from evil. He opens our eyes to the uglyness of sin and perversion as He directs us to repentance and the beauty and purity of life found only in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Matthew 11:28-30, COME TO ME, ALL YOU WHO ARE WEARY AND BURDENED, AND I WILL GIVE YOU REST. 29, TAKE MY YOKE UPON YOU AND LEARN FROM ME, FOR I AM GENTILE AND HUMBLE IN HEART, AND YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.. 30, FOR MY YOKE IS EASY AND MY BURDEN IS LIGHT.
Thank you, Ron!
Great verses! And yes, we need to choose God because we need his help!