3 John 11  Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. He that doeth good is of God: but he that doeth evil hath not seen God.

In the beginning Adam and Eve partook of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.  Ever since, man has had to make a choice in every area of his life between what is good, which means:

That which is agreeable, pleasant, excellent, rich, valuable, appropriate, becoming, the best, kind, right, for my welfare and the welfare of others, honorable, beautiful, blessed, beneficial, moral (and the list continues indefinitely.)

and what is evil which means:

That which is wrong, wicked, mischievous, hurtful, bad, troublesome, sore, afflicting, ill, adverse, unfavourable, harmful, naughty, noisome, grievous, sad, disagreeable, malignant, unpleasant, giving pain, unhappy, displeasing, unkind, (and the list continues indefinitely.)

The question that arises when we come to any choice in life is, how do I know what is good and what is evil.

The answer is not as simple as we think. On the contrary, it is greatly complicated (as we’ve seen in the good and evil definitions above.)  Only God knows what is truly good and what is truly evil, therefore we must know the mind of God in order to know how to follow that which is good and to do that which is good.

Philippians 2:5 states “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus…”

Matthew 11:29  gives us the answer as to how to have the mind of Christ in us: “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me;”

Professing Christian, are you following that which is good (which comes from learning of God and trusting Him) or are you following that which is evil (which comes from leaning upon your own understanding?)

He that doeth good is of God: but he that doeth evil hath not seen God.