“People who shield their kids from reality are overprotective and make them weak.” Some parents allow their children to see, hear and feel everything the world has to offer and convince themselves that they are giving them an education, preparing them for life. I have met many kids who grew up in homes like this who are now adults and suffer a wide range of emotional and social problems. Exposure to evil didn’t make them wiser, it chewed them up and spat them out.
We can’t keep our kids in a bubble. But making them wise about God and the things of God equips them to handle evil when they do see it. They need to remain as innocent as possible to evil and as wise as possible to God and His Kingdom. This way they are immune to the effects of evil and learn how to reject it, while benefitting from the peace and life of God’s presence.
We adults are no different. We need that innocence too, even if we already messed up years of our lives. We can't entertain ourselves with activities that go against the Spirit of God and then pretend that we're pleasing Him. Music, websites and movies that subtly or directly denigrate God and His principles may have funny jokes and cool special effects, but it contaminates our communion with Him. It’s foolish to be impressed with filth while a wealth of real joy is waiting for us — a joy that begins with obedience.
Being wise about what is good opens our eyes to see the world, our problems and ourselves. It gives us a vantage point that no one else has. God appears more desirable than anything, while the evil of this world is seen for what it is – pathetic, rotten and dead. Even evil dressed up in its finest looks ridiculous to those who are wise about what is good. The goodness of God is unmistakable to the wise, and goes unnoticed by the rest of the world. Good church people can blindly walk right by God’s Spirit working inside of someone. They'll judge them by their outward appearance without even recognizing the power of God at work in them. They try hard to pretend they're wise, but it’s all appearance.
Wise people love to crush evil under their feet, and they love peace. It seems like a contradiction, how can peace coexist with violence? That’s a question for those who don't have spiritual eyes. God is a God of war, and a God of peace. Being wise toward God and innocent toward evil makes us strong and undefiled.
The report of your obedience has reached everyone. Therefore I rejoice over you. But I want you to be wise about what is good, yet innocent about what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. (Romans 16:19-20 HCSB)
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