October 22, 2017 (Proverbs 1:10,15)

“My son, if sinners entice you, consent you not…walk not you in the way with them; refrain your foot from their path” (Prov 1:10,15). The warning given here is basically the same as that in the first verse of Psalm 1: “Blessed is the man that walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful.” It is imperative that believers in Jesus Christ are circumspect when it comes to the companions they keep. Now in my ninth decade of life, it has been a repeated observation that a failure to observe these OT warnings of the same God who is Sovereign in the NT is all too often the cause for a life in Christ which does not endure to the end. Indeed, the apostle Paul is used by the Holy Spirit to pen an identical caution: “Be you not unequally yoked together with unbelievers; for what fellowship has righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion has light with darkness? Wherefore come out from among them, and be you separate, says the Lord” (2 Corinthians 6:14,17). This is to be seen as referring to close fellowship or communion, NOT to contact which is starkly different. Indeed, Jesus tells us, “Let your light so hine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). Jesus came as the “light of the world” to those who were sinners, including both you and me, and now commands us to be the light of the world as His representatives (5:14). But living a life of “righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” is not implied to having close communion with unbelievers. One must always be mindful of the warning, “Do not be deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits” (1 Corinthians 15:33). It is to the downfall of many that these scriptures are often ignored.