Holding On To The Good

In 1 Thessalonians 5:20-22, Paul warns, "Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil."  In other words, don't reject out of hand what preachers, teachers and leaders tell you, but don't accept it as gospel in a wholesale manner either. 

Put to test what you hear against the light of biblical study, test it against common sense and test it against real world experience. Then, accept what is good or proved to be true and reject what is false.  

Paul includes both the positive (accept) and the negative (reject) because combining the two gives us the best opportunity for success. For instance, holding on to the proven faithfulness in marriage is bolstered by rejecting adultery in any of its forms (ie. an affair, pornography, cyber-sex, etc.).

It helps to increase family ties, which are good, by pushing back against selfishness, greed, personal ambition, workaholism, etc.  Promoting good health is easier when we embrace the ideas of exercise and eating right, while rejecting couch potato snack-feasting marathons.

You can and should apply this principle to every part of life. Test what is taught, accept what is proven good and then, draw a line in the sand against what is false. 

Every time we move toward one thing, we must move away from another. It is not possible to move toward opposites at the same time. And, therefore, it is good to clearly define what is at both poles, determining to move toward one while moving away from the other. 

Jus' Sayn.