Ahem ... bad company ruins good people!

Listen here to>>>  Psalm 101

Yesterday I was meditating on Psalm 101.  It is about evil and how to deal with it.

That's a pretty heavy topic, but since horrible things are in the news every day now, it is definitely timely.

The Psalmist makes his attitude very clear:

“The deeds of faithless men I hate;

They will not cling to me.

Men of perverse heart shall be far from me;

I will have nothing to do with evil.”   [Ps 101: 3b, 4]

Why?

I think that the whole poem reveals this reason:

Because the Lord is just 

as well as loving,

I will choose my companions with care.

 So, here is what to avoid and what to embrace when it comes to friends and associates.

What to avoid	What to embrace
Vile (vs. 8)	Sing praise (vs. 1)
Faithless (3)	Love and justice (1)
Perverse (4)	Blameless life (2)
Evil (4)	Blameless heart (2)
Slander (5)	Faithful (6)
Haughty (5)	Blameless walk (6)
Proud (5)
Deceit (7)
Speaks falsely (7)
Wicked (8)
Evil doer (8)

This psalm teaches us how to deal with evil actions and treat evil people.  We need to avoid where we can, reject where we must, and keep our own hearts and actions pure in the process.  Here's a further list of tips:

At home – make sure what I do is pure

At home – make sure what I see is pure

Hate – actions of the faithless

Shake off – actions of the faithless

Keep far away from  -- men of perverse heart (who think evil is good)

Have no dealings – with evil

Put to silence – person who slanders neighbor

Don’t put up with – person with haughty eyes and proud heart

Don’t live with – person who practices deceit

Don’t hang around – person who lies

Silence at every chance – the wicked

Reject and cast out   – every evil doer

Why do we need to have these boundaries?  Because if we don't exclude from our inner circle those who are bent on doing wrong, we will be victimized by them, and ultimately become like them.

"Bad company corrupts good morals."   1Cor. 15:33