“For David speaketh concerning him, I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved” (Acts 2:25)

“I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved” (Psalms 16:8)

“I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me” (Psalms 101:3)

With purpose in my heart and a desire to please my God, I will fight the good fight of faith. I will stand my ground. I will finish my course. We are encouraged in 1 Corinthians 16:13 “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.”

As the Lord is blessing my love for His Word to grow day by day, He is also showing me how my hatred for the things of this world and its ways is growing as well. Seeing the people who God created, despise Him on a daily basis, makes me despise my own past life. The life that I lived as a lost man was very displeasing to the God that gave it to me. And to think of deliberately going back down that way brings tears to my eyes and sorrow to my heart.

Once upon a time, as a young Christian, I had a vague idea of how I could accomplish this goal. But I still had questions. And as the Lord saw fit, He began to answer the questions clearly, through His Holy Word, and through fellow saints. Psalms 119:9 says, “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word.” And verse 11 says, “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.”

Yes, the grief I feel when I see a fellow believer involved in sin is disgusting. But, the thought of willfully being involved in the practice of sin myself is much worse. I think so anyway. The writer of the Book of Romans writes:

“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? (2) God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” (Romans 6:1-2)

I thank God daily that He has given me the desire to be pleasing in His sight and also to be acceptable in the sight of man, as one who attempts to please God. As a matter of fact, being a man-pleaser instead of a God-pleaser is one of my major problems while on this Christian journey. That is why I have to be reminded as much as possible about what Galatians 2:20 says, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

The best way for me to make known my hatred of the work of them that turn aside is to not let it cleave to me:

“I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me.” (Psalms 101:3)