“For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world by the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and are overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first” (2 Peter 2:20).
Beware of the entanglements of this world. You have not been freed for licentiousness. You have been freed to live into the life of Christ. On the one hand, you may do as you please. On the other, ask what is pleasing to the Lord? Is a man to practice fidelity in love? Yes, he can do things that break fidelity, but in love, one chooses the path that pleases the other and not just the self.
Lord, You know the enticements that lead to death. You know those places where our hearts dwell in the wickedness of the enticements of this age. Guide my heart and mind, O Lord, in the way of everlasting life so that I may, by Your goodness and mercy, do what is good and right. Help me overcome the temptations that would entice me into the defilements of this world in order that I may live in the love relationships to which I have been invited by You.
Lord Jesus, You have already overcome the world. Lead me in Your goodness to live into the life You offer by faith. Guide me in Your goodness to know that in You I have hope and a future even though in this world there is suffering, heartache and death. Guide me, dear Lord, into the future You intend and the eternal life You have made possible through grace. Amen.
