How to live life as a Christian; Hate Evil & Cling to Good

Just because you’re a Christian, it doesn’t mean you automatically have all the answers on how to live life. But we try our best by reading, praying, studying God’s word, and relying on the Holy Spirit. Even when we are doing all of that, we sometimes struggle to know what the right thing to do is. When we read Romans 12:9 we learn something very important. This is a basic concept, and is key in order to live life as a Christian, Hate Evil & Cling to Good.

*Every Monday I will post another important aspect from scripture, on how God wants us to live life like a Christian. I will do this until we have covered the whole chapter.*

SCRIPTURE:

Romans 12:9

9Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.

BEHAVIOUR:

Abhor evil. Cling to what is good. Abhor is a stronger version of hate, and as scripture tells us, we can not welcome evil and good in our life at the same time. (1 John 1:5-10)

WHAT AND HOW:

• What does it mean to abhor evil and cling to good?
• How does it help us to live life as a Christian when we abhor evil and cling to good?

In order to understand what it means, we have to realize that we have to choose between evil and good. We can’t be a part of both of these, because one is from Satan and the other is from God!  

The first part, abhor evil, means that we need to hate evil. I think we can agree that there is a lot of evil in this world. It can be as small as a lie, to drugs, or as bad as physically or mentally hurting someone, and lastly evil is Satan himself. (There is so many more examples!)  We need to hate the evil, because it is contrary to God and His good for us. Remember, hate the evil, but love the person.

That brings us to the second part, cling to good. Cling means to hold tight to something. In this case we are to hold tight to what is good! What is good you ask? It’s anything that brings us close to God, helps us to do His will, keeps us inline with scripture, and keeps us keeping on. Some examples of clinging to good can be praying, fellowshipping with God and other believers, listening to encouraging music, consistently helping others in need, and doing God’s will for you if you know what that is. Remember, God can use evil to bring about good, but that doesn’t make the evil good.

CONCLUSION:

How does it help us live life as a Christian when we abhor evil and cling to good? It keeps us looking to God for discernment, and this keeps us focused on the path that we are walking. Also, it keeps us in His word. In order to know what is evil we need to study what is good, and this is done by studying His word on a regular basis, and fellowshipping with God Himself.

COMING UP: Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love

References:
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

We hope you search our Free Bible Studies from Christian Fellowshipping for more encouraging ways to fellowship with God and other believes.