A Daily Purpose

Bible Study & Devotional (Day 168)

Read Today’s Passages (June 17, 2022)

Guiding Scripture: Proverbs 17:13, “Evil will never leave the house of one who pays back evil for good.”

🔴 Giving the Wrong Rewards

Contributing Writer: Lindsey Capron

Turn on the TV or scroll through the news on your phone, and you’ll be surprised more and more how morally bankrupt this world is becoming. Evil is widely rewarded and celebrated while doing good and being righteous is despised and hated.

In Proverbs, we’re given countless warnings and the dangers of doing evil. In our focus scripture, we get a serious warning for those thinking about participating in sin and celebrating it.

Proverbs 17:13 “Whoever rewards evil for good, Evil will not depart from his house.”

Whoever rewards evil for good…

That is where the popular question comes to mind:

Why do bad things happen to good people?
Or why would anyone want to reward evil for good anyway?

The fact that this proverb had to be written highlights and reveals how severe and catastrophic sin is and its effects on humanity.

Ruin, destruction, and evil will only come and remain with us if we continue to personally reward evil for good or participate with others in giving these wrong rewards. This kind of evil doesn’t have to be murder or violence. It can be judging, slandering, or gossiping about someone doing the righteous or unpopular thing.

It’s deliberately trying to kill God’s truth while living in worldly lies.

It doesn’t take much to do evil because of our sinful nature. But when we have the Holy Spirit operating in us, we’ll be able to better reward and give what is good because we will have the mind of Christ and rightly divide the difference between good and evil, no matter how much it’s in the “grey area.”

My prayers are that we ask for God to come into our lives, fill our minds and spirits with His, live through us, and discern to know the difference between good and evil so it can be well with us and our house.

We need Christ more than ever to navigate and discern in this dark and evil day. Maybe you haven’t accepted Christ into your life, or maybe you’ve heard about Jesus, but you’re on the fence about this whole “Jesus thing.”

That’s okay.

Today can be the day to turn your life around for the better in this life and eternity. Would you consider praying for Jesus to come into your heart, mind, and spirit? It’s simple, and it doesn’t cost a dime.

Pray this prayer:

Dear Lord,

I come to you now admitting that I am a sinner in need of a Savior. I believe that Jesus Christ died for my sins and that He rose again on the third day with all power in His hands. Come into my heart and save me. Teach me, Lord, how to walk like you. Please teach me how to talk, live, and lead others to love You. I want to walk in your righteousness as I have been taught today in Jesus Name. Amen.

Connect with Lindsey Capron at www.lovegraceandlight.com

Lindsey is a speaker and blogger of her Christian lifestyle blog Love Grace and Light. Passionate about writing and studying God’s word, Lindsey blogs about the lesson and blessings God gives in the extraordinary and every day with truth and a twist of humor. Lindsey has been featured in both national and international magazine such as VoyageMIA, Shout Out Miami, and Beauty and the Gospel. Lindsey currently resides in Fort Lauderdale, FL with her wonderful husband, Donovan.

This devotional was submitted by Lindsey Capron, a loving contributor to Our Given Purpose. Edited by Torrie Slaughter the founder of Our Given Purpose® in the Commonwealth of Virginia.