Standing Strong

2 CORINTHIANS 6:14 - 7:7

(September 3)

"Leave it to Beaver" was a favorite show of mine when I was growing up. The Beav was just so adorable, and Wally was such a stickler for the rules. But there was one person who could get him to bend a little, to make a bad choice, or to compromise himself ... Eddie Haskell.

Eddie was a sly dude. He made himself seem so polite and mannerly in front of Mr. and Mrs. Cleaver (though I am sure they saw right through him), but when he was alone with Wally and Beaver, he was a different person. He seemed to be always trying to steer Wally in the wrong direction to do things that would force Wally to go against what he had been taught.

My son had an "Eddie Haskell" in his life. I remember how I would chuckle after he came into the house and put on his "polite show" for me. I thought to myself, "Young man, you are not fooling me!"

What Paul was trying to tell the Corinthians is that they should not be "mismatched with unbelievers." He felt that forming binding relationships with unbelievers would cause them to weaken in their commitment to Christ, and in their integrity.

While saying this, Paul still wanted the believers to be purposeful in being a good example to the unbelievers. He just urged them not to lock themselves into personal or business relationships that could cause them to compromise their faith or divide their loyalties.

In saying this, Paul also stated that if a Christian was married to an unbelieving spouse, they were to stay in that relationship and try to be the example that led their spouse to Christ.

Think about it for a moment. Are there people in your life who lead you away from Christ? People who tempt you to compromise your beliefs? I'm sure we have all met someone like this in our lives. There are "Eddie Haskell's" waiting around every corner, so we need to keep our guard up and stay true to who we are in Christ.