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2 Timothy 2:22 - Run from Temptation to Living Right with Faithfulness, Love

2 Timothy 2:22 - Run from Temptation to Living Right with 
Faithfulness, Love and Peace.  

2 Timothy 2:22 (NKJV) Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue 
righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure 
heart.   

2 Timothy 2:22 (NLT) Run from anything that stimulates youthful 
lusts. Instead, pursue righteous living, faithfulness, love, and peace. 
Enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure 
hearts.   

2 Timothy 2:22 (CWB) Run from youthful passions; look for what's 
right and focus on faith, love and peace.  Help those who are doing 
the same, serving the Lord with pure hearts.  

RESIST TEMPTATION; BUT SOMETIMES THAT MEANS RUN:

   "Keep yourself pure," said Paul. Why? Because purity matters. 
Even though it might be difficult to remain pure in a sin-stained 
world, God requires it. He wants to use you to further his kingdom, but 
you need to remain pure if you are to be useful to him.   
   One of the keys to remaining pure is to keep your 
relationship with God a priority so that you will desire to stay within his 
parameters for life. You will be hit with temptation from all sides, but 
believers are not hopelessly enslaved to sin and impurity. You can RESIST 
temptation. You can avoid falling into impurity. Another key to remaining 
pure is to be practical. Paul gives Timothy some valuable practical 
advice: RUN from anything that stimulates youthful lusts. Some 
temptations are too strong to confront head-on. You will need to avoid those 
situations that put you face-to-face with difficult temptations. Paul did 
not stop at mere avoidance. He gave Timothy further practical advice 
for pursuing righteous living. One such way is to choose friends who 
will be a positive, purifying influence on you. [The One Year Bible 
for New Believers re 2Ti. 2:21-22]  

Running away from temptation is often the best solution. Running 
away is sometimes considered cowardly. But wise people realize that 
removing themselves physically from temptation often can be the most 
courageous action to take. Timothy, a young man, was warned to flee 
anything that produced evil thoughts. Do you have a recurring temptation 
that is difficult to resist? Remove yourself physically from any 
situation that stimulates your desire to sin. Knowing when to run is as 
important in spiritual battle as knowing when and how to fight. (See also 
1 Tim. 6:11.) [Life Application SB]  

   Paul urged Timothy to run away from anything that tempted him 
to do wrong (2 Timothy 2:22). Some may consider this to be 
cowardly, but wise people run from dangers and from enemies they cannot 
fight. They know their limits and respect their weak spots. When the 
danger involves temptation, they avoid it altogether. Running from a 
strong temptation makes more sense than trying to resist it.   
   What recurring temptation do you have difficulty resisting? 
Avoid any situation that tempts you in that area. Know when to run and 
don't be ashamed to do so. There's no point in trying to be tough and 
falling into sin as a result (see 1 Timothy 6:11). [The One Year Through 
the Bible Devotional by Dave Veerman]  

DON'T LOOK BACK

Lot and his family were told to flee from Sodom without looking 
back.  We who are recovering from alcohol and substance addictions 
especially know the danger of "looking back" to our old ways, our old 
friends, our former hangouts, and the all-too-familiar euphoria of our 
drug of choice.  The pull will probably always be there.  When we 
keep our gaze fixed ahead of us, on God, his will, and our recovery, 
however, we will find ourselves on the path toward wholeness. [Life 
Recovery Devotional SB]  

When you flee from temptation, be sure you do not leave a 
forwarding address behind. [unknown]  

WHERE TO RUN

The command to FLEE what is wrong is combined with the command 
to PURSUE what is right. [ESV SB 2008]   

Pursuing righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those 
who call on the Lord out of a pure heart: Paul continues his 
instructions by listing four virtues Timothy should continue to "pursue" (the 
use of the present imperative implies the need for Timothy to 
continue in the pursuit). He must "pursue righteousness, faith, love and 
peace." Paul has already counseled Timothy to develop the first three 
virtues in 1 Tim 6:11. Now he adds "peace," something lacking in those 
who are involved in "foolish and stupid arguments" and "quarrels" 
(vv. 23-24). All "those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart" 
seek to develop these characteristics.. [College Press NIV 
Commentary]  

Temptation is to be avoided by fleeing what hinders, by 
FOLLOWING what helps, and by SEEKING the company of spiritual people. 
[Ryrie SB]  

The more we follow that which is good, the faster and the 
further we shall flee from that which is evil. [Matthew Henry 
Commentary]  

CLOSING THOUGHT

Those Who Follow God Must Flee Evil
   The practice of godliness involves the pursuit of holiness 
because God has said, "Be holy, because I am holy" (1 Peter 1:16). Paul 
tells us that we have been called to a holy life; we have been 
redeemed for that purpose. Any Christian who is not earnestly pursuing 
holiness in every aspect of his life is flying in the face of God's 
purpose in saving him.  
   What is holiness? The best practical definition that I have 
heard is simply "without sin.".....  
   John said he wrote his first letter so that his readers would 
not sin (1 John 2:1). Most Christians seem content not to sin very 
much, but John's goal was that we not sin at all. Every sin, no matter 
how small it may seem to us, is an affront to God's authority, a 
disregard for his law, a spurning of his love. Because of this, sin cannot 
be tolerated in any form, to any degree....  
   Holiness is not an option but a must for every 
Christian....Jerry Bridges [Time With God SB]  

SUPPLEMENTAL THOUGHT

Long before there was any TV or radio, John Wesley's mother told 
her children that if they wanted to know whether a pleasure was good 
or bad, they were to take this rule: Whatever weakens your reason, 
impairs the tenderness of your conscience, obscures your sense of God, 
or takes away your relish for spiritual things; whatever increases 
the authority of your body over your mind, that thing is sin. 
[source unknown]  

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