2 Timothy 2:22 Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart. Bishop Ryle, in his "Young Men Exhorted," makes some pungent remarks on this duty of self-control. "Resolve at once," he writes, "by God's help, to shun everything that may prove an occasion of sin. It is an excellent saying of good old Bishop Hall: 'He that would be safe from the acts of evil must wisely avoid the occasions.' Never hold a candle to the devil. He that would be safe must not come near the brink of danger. He must look upon his heart as a magazine of gunpowder, and be cautious not to handle one spark of temptation more than he can help. Where is the use of your praying, 'Lead us not into temptation,' unless you are yourselves careful not to run into it?" "Flee": — Prayer is not enough. Many have prayed, and have not found it sufficient. Therefore the advice in the Bible is rational — Flee. The usual receipt for resisting sin is, Fight; but I venture to say the Bible and common sense recommend flight rather. There are many sins we must not even look at; to turn away and run is the only resource. The Bible says, "Flee youthful lusts," and "Look not on the wine." The brave thing, although it looks the cowardly, is to flee. But it is not into space we are to flee. We are to fly upward, to get into a higher mood, and breathe another atmosphere. (Prof. H. Drummond.) Parallel Verses KJV: Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart. |
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