Many may feel overwhelmed with the times we are living in, walking around in disbelief as behaviors and actions once considered sinful and immoral are now being cheered, touted as one's right, and even made into laws. Many are shocked by the vile behaviors being embraced, pushed, and even celebrated.
In these days, Ephesians 5:15-16 encourages us to “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.”
Evil days aren’t new to the world. Ecclesiastes 1:9-10 points out, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which one can say, ‘Look! This is something new’? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time.”
Since evilness has been around through the ages, we can glean from Scripture ways to live carefully and wisely to make the most of every opportunity.
Below are 10 ways to daily live it out.
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1. Do Good
We can begin making the most of opportunities by putting Romans 12:21 into practice. “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
Jesus is our example of how to overcome evil with good. Acts 10:38 explains how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and power to go around doing good.
Likewise God has good works ready for us to do, too, as Ephesians 2:10, explains, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
One way to do good is found in Luke 6:27: “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you”
Another is, “Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers” (Galatians 6:10).
Good works done by Jesus are too many to count. As John 21:25 describes, “Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written."
Like Jesus, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:9).
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2. Keep Away from Evil
Another way to be careful and live wisely is to stay away from evil behaviors and pursuits. 1 Thessalonians 5:22, urges us to “Reject every kind of evil.”
However in today’s culture, it may seem harder to distinguish between what is good and what is evil. Still Hebrews 5:14 reveals the key to being able to differentiate between the two, encouraging us to partake of the solid food of God’s word because by doing so, we’ll learn how to tell good and evil apart.
God’s word clarifies to us what is good and what is evil.
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3. Pursue Godliness
Cultivating godliness in our lives helps us to be careful, live wisely, and make the most of our days. So how do we pursue it?
1 Timothy 4:7 warns, “Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly."
Also, for us to, “Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly” (2 Timothy 2:16).
Embracing God’s truth leads us to godliness, as 1Timothy 3:16 explains, “Beyond all question, the mystery from which true godliness springs is great: He appeared in the flesh, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory.”
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4. Walk Faithfully with God
Noah knew how to make the most of evil days. As Genesis 6:5 explains, “The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.”
Evil was an all time high during Noah’s lifetime, so much so, “The Lord regretted that He had made human begins on the earth, and His heart was deeply troubled” (Genesis 6:6).
Still even in earth’s darkest of days, Genesis 6:9 explains, “This is the account of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God.”
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5. Tell Others about Jesus
Telling others about Jesus so they might receive His Salvation and know Him, too, is a way of making the most of our days.
Like Romans 10:14 asks, “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?"
As 2 Timothy 4:2 encourages us to do, “Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.”
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6. Set Our Minds on Eternity
It’s easy to get caught up in the world’s definition of success by gathering up earth’s temporal treasures and luxuries. But like Colossians 3:2 instructs, “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.”
As Jesus urges, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19, 20).
Living wisely in dark days involves recognizing, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21).
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7. Intercede for Others
Although each person is accountable to God for their own salvation (Ezekiel 14:14), individuals like Daniel who was highly esteemed by God (Daniel 10:11), interceded for others during evil days.
Living righteously, Daniel interceded for those who were sinning against God, writing, “I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed: ‘Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant of love with those who love Him and keep His commandments, we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws” (Daniel 9:4,5).
It’s easy to wonder why those serving God and trying to do what is right before His eyes, should be the ones interceding for those who are willfully disobeying Him.
Yet as revealed by the prophet Ezra’s example, it can lead others to repentance. “While Ezra was praying and confessing, weeping and throwing himself down before the house of God, a large crowd of Israelites—men, women and children—gathered around him. They too wept bitterly” (Ezra 10:1).
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8. Fast and Pray
In the Bible we see individuals turning to fasting and prayer in response to the evil occurring around them. Moses was one who turned to it when confronted with the sinfulness of the Israelites in the wilderness.
“Then once again I fell prostrate before the Lord for forty days and forty nights; I ate no bread and drank no water, because of all the sin you had committed, doing what was evil in the Lord’s sight and so arousing His anger” (Deuteronomy 9:18).
As well Daniel turned to fasting and prayer, too, writing, “So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with Him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes” (Daniel 9:3).
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9. Negotiate with God
Abraham boldly negotiated with God seeking safety for loved ones living in a wicked situation. We, too, can do the same, “For God does not show favoritism” (Romans 2:11).
As soon as God revealed his plan to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah because of their grievous sins (Genesis 18:20), Abraham started negotiating with Him concerning the fate of his nephew Lot and family, who lived in the area. Boldly approaching God, Abraham asked Him if He was planning on sweeping away the righteous with the wicked (Genesis 18:23).
Seeking safety for his relatives, Abraham continued an ongoing dialogue with God, negotiating how many righteous people needed to be present in the cities for God to spare their lives (Genesis 18:22-32).
Genesis 19:29 describes God’s response to Abraham’s negotiations. “So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, He remembered Abraham, and He brought Lot out of the catastrophe that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived.”
Like Abraham, “Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).
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10. Acknowledge Jesus
Living carefully and wisely includes not being led astray from God’s truth. 1 Timothy 4:1 warns, “The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.”
Sadly we are seeing the following happening all around us, “For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear (2 Timothy 4:3).
Still true believers know, “But every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world” (1 John 4:3).
As Jesus said, “Whoever acknowledges Me before others, I will also acknowledge before My Father in heaven (Matthew 10:32).
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Originally published Monday, 23 November 2020.