There are four particular areas of sin – whole worlds in themselves – from which we are advised by the Scriptures to “flee”. For older mature Christians these four areas serve as a mirror to examine oneself. For those looking into Christianity and for the younger Christian, still learning to overcome, they are admonishments to righteousness, advice that can further circumcise the heart and set one on a pathway of victory of soul and spirit.

The true Christian journey is along a narrow and straight path. Divergence from that is inevitable, but one must get back on and stay on it. This path not only leads to eternal life but can bring us to Brideship, a great and perfect relationship with our loving God. But this path must lead us, must take us off the old path, the one of our own desired destination which unbeknownst to us is a dead end leading to nowhere but frustration and finally, death. No matter how much or how great – you can’t take it with you. As the Preacher in Ecclesiastes ends his book our whole duty is to hear God and do what he says. If we do that we will escape from the snake pit in which we have fallen and find the silver cord of eternal life that can bind us unbreakable to fountain and source of life, Jesus Christ and God the Father.

This escape from death into life cannot be accomplished by any magic Houdini act devised by us or any clever man. Still, we must escape death, a departure from the chains of sin must be accomplished by someone, and that someone is Christ who can break the chains of sin that bind us to this World. The young Christian must realize that to begin the journey to the household of the Father requires that we leave our home built by nothing less than our own sin. We should know that there is no shame in retreating from these things, no shame in fleeing just as an honest man would who has fled a den of thieves and disavowed friendship with them. Nothing less than a godly woman would flee a house of prostitution, or a criminal would revel in being released from sentence of life in prison. When we think of winning a battle we usually think of aggressively confronting some foe face to face. Military men set out to destroy their enemy. Football teams go at one another head on head. Politicians assail their opponents without shame. Christians ought regularly to encourage one another to stand in faith and resist the Devil. We exhort one another to seek out opportunities to defeat the enemy “by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony.” And this, my friends, is as it ought to be.

But when it comes to the adversary called sin and stumbling about in Satan’s unlit ballpark of lust and greed, there is no shame in making a hasty retreat. The Scriptures openly demand of us that we “flee from these things.”

The one whom God sent to prepare the way for the coming of the Lord preached sternly about fleeing from sin. When the Pharisees and religious leaders of Israel came out to see John the Baptist in the wilderness, where he was preaching repentance, John scolded them loudly, “0 generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come. Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance.” The pretentious men, who were trying to play both ends against the middle, were hoping to flee God’s wrath without fleeing the sin that brings God’s wrath upon us.

But those who want to please God are beckoned to Christ and thereby immediately and instinctively know that it is Christ’s will that they make a hasty and unashamed withdrawal from sin, so they can escape from the wrath that is to come and thereby make their “election and calling sure.” Those who are ready and willing to make a retreat from sin’s seductive arms are the ones John sought to baptize.

God’s word makes no secret saying: “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God”. 1 Cor. 6:9-10

Flee These Four ‘Worlds’ of Flesh
It is no mistake that these four Biblical exhortations to flee are made to young Christians. Two are to the church of Corinth (an immature church in Christ) and two are to Timothy, Paul’s young protégé. These worlds of the Flesh are Fornication 1 Cor. 6:18 Idolatry 1 Cor. 10:14 Love of Money (Mammon); 1 Tim. 6:11 and Youthful Lusts 2 Tim 2.22

1. Fornication

In his letter to the Corinthians, that greatly zealous but immature church, Paul warns them to
“flee fornication”.

“What, know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh.
   But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.
   Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.
   What, know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own.
   For ye are bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” 1 Cor. 6:16-20

Christians must be careful of any form of fornication as revealed to them by the Spirit of God, pornography, adultery and the carnal sins that would cause them to be joined to anything unholy. Like drugs, fornication is risky business for it can take hold of us by habitual use, something which becomes stronger than our own Will.

    2. Idolatry
Later, in the same letter, Paul warns the Corinthians to flee a second destructive sin.
“Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry.”

He reminds the Corinthians that all those who fell in the wilderness after being delivered out of Egypt had eaten the same manna and had drunk from the same Rock. They had all been baptized by their passage thru the waters of the Red Sea. They had eaten the same spiritual food. But they were not all pleasing to God because they eventually fell prey to the sin that was nestled within their rebellious hearts. They had fled from Egypt, but not sin. They had fled from the wrath of Pharaoh, but not the wrath of God. They had fled bondage and servitude but not slavery to fornication, idolatry, evil lusts and the desire for worldly comforts and riches. They had not fled sin.

Idolatry takes on forms subtle as well as blatant. Telling Christians not to be idolaters, Paul quotes a curious Scripture from Exodus. “The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.” The people had shed God completely. They had decided to do their own thing and have fun doing it. Idolatry is coveting anything but not caring about God and His Will.

Flee not only covetousness but flee anything that is put ahead of Jesus Christ in your life – because brothers and sisters – that is where idolatry begins when we love anything or person above God. This is the genesis and nest where idolatry begins to live and take form.

    3. The Love of Money – Riches
To Timothy, Paul wrote of two things from which the wise Christian will flee. The first was the pursuit of riches.

“But they that be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
  For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
   But thou, 0 man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.
   Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.” 1 Tim. 6:11.

As the proverb says, let me not be poor so I have to steal and sin against God, and let me not be too rich so I forget about God. Flee the love of money and the pursuit of worldly riches. Such simple advice must be taken on faith. We must let the experience of God’s love and care prove to us that He knows how to take care of His own. God wants to usher us into a world of faith where we can truly know that man does not live by bread alone. Money cannot buy happiness, only Jesus Christ and His personal presence in our daily lives can purchase for us an abundant life.

      4. Youthful Lusts
The last instance of fleeing sin comes when Paul, in his second letter to Timothy, exhorts his young follower to “flee youthful lusts”, and “follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.”

Youthful lusts encompass a huge world of pride, ambitions, addictions, self intoxication, indulgence, avarice, and on and on. Flee like you were fleeing from a swarm of killer bees, these spiritual cancers. All of these things are motivational drives lodged deep within our nature that are by their nature, uncontrollable. The advice to follow after God’s ways with those of a pure heart not only advises us to do the right thing, but it warns us to stay out of Satan’s ballpark, a ballpark that was once our home field and though we were the constant loser we always felt we were doing very well. The reader should not only be aware of fleeing these “fleshly worlds” of sin, but the Christian should take note of the Scriptures in the epistles and gospels that tell us to “follow after” something. Let us flee the flesh and sin and follow after God and His ways, moving toward the destination of our vigorous adventure, leading to intimacy with God. So, flee – unashamed. All Christians should be scared of being tainted in any way by these four fleshly devourers of the soul. Flee fornication, flee idolatry, flee the love of money with its pursuit of riches, and flee every youthful lust and self indulgent addiction. Then we can be free to follow after good things, healthy and strong in life, separating ourselves from worlds of Flesh that can so easily take hold on us.

Let us run the race and follow after godliness, charity, hope, faith and those things that edify the Church of Christ. Let us follow after God “with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.“