Devotion: Romans 16:19

Romans 16:19 Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I rejoice because of you; but I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil.

I absolutely love the thought that everyone has heard about our obedience. I pray that this is what people think of me. That they would know that I am obedient to Christ’s calling for my life and living for Him. This is what Paul said about the believers in Rome and it is inspiring! It makes me want the same. He rejoiced in the obedience of the church there and recognized it.

As believers we need to be wise about the good things – the Bible. We need to be discerning about what we read and learn from it, and let the Holy Spirit reveal the Truth of the words to us. We need to do our best to surround ourselves with solid Biblical teaching, ensuring that we are understanding His will for our lives and have built a foundation on Truth.

We also need to be innocent about what is evil. But what exactly does that mean? We know what evil is, we can recognize it. But how do we ensure we are innocent of it?

We are to remain pure and avoid participating in sinful practices. The church at that time was easily targeted because they were obedient, but new in their faith and beliefs. They lived in a society that thrived on idol worship and other gods. Prior to this verse, Paul had warned them about false teachers (verses 17-18). The only way we can recognize false teachers is to be firmly rooted and founded in the Truth of the Word of God.

So how do we avoid the evil going on around us when our world is so full of it?

First we should be in the Word frequently. We need to fill our minds with God’s Word (Psalm 1:2). We need to be studying the Word and learning from it. That includes being firmly rooted in a Bible teaching church home where we are being fed spiritually. We need to surround ourselves with other believers and fellowship with them regularly so that we have accountability.

We need to be avoiding evil and practices that would distract us from our faith. We need to learn to discern what is evil and then actively choose not to engage.

How often are you in the Word and studying? I try to make it a daily habit. It consists of more than simply reading the Word. I actively spend time reading devotions, doing Bible studies, as well as writing. What do you do?

Prayer: Lord, Help me to avoid evil practices that might distract me from being obedient to Your call in my life. I want to live for You. Amen

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