For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it. – I Peter 3:10-11
I LOVE recipes! I love finding new recipes and making them for my family. I love reading the list of ingredients and imagining how they all will fit together to make a (hopefully) delicious meal, dessert, etc. Every so often, I will try a new recipe and let my family decide if it is a “keeper.”
Not long ago, I came across this verse which gives us a “recipe” for loving life and seeing good days. I enjoy good days much more than I enjoy bad ones, and I would much rather have a happy life than a sad one. Therefore, this passage got my attention. It contains a list of “ingredients” for having a happy life and seeing good days. Let us look at this list.
…let him refrain his tongue from evil,…
In other words, we should keep our tongues from speaking evil. Evil is that which is intended to hurt someone else. This evil speaking could include such things as gossip, slander, or idle talk. Our tongues can do much damage, even though we do not realize it many times. Jesus said in Luke 6:45, …for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh. Let us guard our hearts so our mouths will be refrained from evil as a result.
…and his lips that they speak no guile:
In Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language, guile is defined as “Craft; cunning; artifice, duplicity; deceit; usually in a bad sense.” We should not use our tongues for deceit (lying), craftiness (trickery), or duplicity (double-tongued speaking).
Let him eschew evil, and do good;…
According to Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language, eschew means “To flee from; to shun; to avoid.” In other words, evil is something we are to avoid. There are so many ways to see evil these days and even more ways to participate in evil. Instead of seeking evil, whether through television, the Internet, or social media, we should ensure that we FLEE from evil. The psalmist wrote in Psalm 101:3, I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes:… If we avoid seeing evil, we are more likely to flee from evil.
…let him seek peace, and ensue it.
Lastly, we should seek peace and ensue (follow after) it. We have much turmoil in our world today. Many people are seeking for peace; but they are looking in the wrong places. May those of us who have true peace not only seek for it but also follow after it. Then, we can share Jesus, the Source of all peace, with others. It definitely will allow us to love the life that God has given us and to see good days!
by Erin Montgomery
