Appearance of Evil

1 Thes. 5:22 (NKJV) Abstain from every form of evil.
The word abstain means to hold oneself off or to refrain from something and the word form means a view (or the way things look) or form (literal or figurative) :- appearance, fashion, shape, sight.
We need to look closely at what this exhortation says. It does not say to just abstain from evil, but to abstain from the very appearance of evil. It also indicates that we should avoid every kind of evil no matter how good or how harmless it might look.
It means that if something even appears evil, we should get away from it. It means that if there is any chance whatsoever that it could be wrong, then we should leave it alone. All too often we think we can handle it but it provides the leaven that grows into full blown problems. It means that if there is even a suggestion that it could be wrong, RUN! A believer must have nothing, absolutely nothing, to do with evil-not even the appearance of it.
Many times we think that just because we are not actually doing something that is “forbidden” by the letter of the law that we are okay. But while the actual act may not be forbidden there is the “appearance” of evil. We need to be careful that things don’t look wrong. There are those times when things just look wrong and they are not. Someone just told me about recently buying a large bottle of IBC Cream Soda. When he walked out with it there were some people who thought he had just walked out with a 44oz. bottle of beer. Those things happen. But to place yourself in a constant situation that resembles evil causes a stumbling of both the world and Christians alike that know you are a follower of Jesus yet you seem be habitually doing something wrong.
David wrote, "Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it" (Psalm 34:14). Sometime we think that peace should automatically find us and we cannot understand the continuing turmoil in our lives. Quite often the reason for the turmoil is because we fail to completely depart from evil. Oh, we depart from the really evil stuff but we allow “little stuff” to remain. Proverbs 14:16 says that, "A wise man fears, and departs from evil: but the fool rages, and is confident.” The fool, simply put, continues in his rebellion and confidence in his own decisions, usually to his destruction.
Paul wrote in his second letter to the Corinthians, “We give no offense in anything, that our ministry may not be blamed. 2 Cor. 6:3 (NKJV). Paul's first consideration in his life, words and actions was what and how they communicated about Jesus Christ. Non- believers are watching us all the time. New believers are listening and learning. We need to be careful that our own selfish or undisciplined actions do not become another person’s excuse for rejecting Jesus or for sinning themselves. Jesus also warned against stumbling “little ones” (children or children in the Lord) in Matthew 18:6-10.
Paul indicates that we should be ready to give up our rights and our freedom (things we deem “okay” to do) to keep from the appearance of evil or from causing someone to stumble, “ It is good neither to eat meat nor drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles or is offended or is made weak. Romans 14:21 (NKJV)
But avoiding evil and the appearance of it is not always easy. It takes surrender on our part into the hand and the will of God and a ever deepening desire to please Him before ourselves.

Will you give God a fresh surrender of your life and find victory, even over the appearance of evil?