Today's vitamin - godliness

What exactly is godliness? Peter says it's the next thing we need to add to our faith.....
Dictionaries tell us some clues:

......a careful observance of the laws of God and performance of religious duties, proceeding from love and reverence for the divine character and commands; Christian obedience.... (courtesy of the av1611.com site)

Ohhhhhh, so if I'm there every time the church doors open, and I scrupulously tithe, and if I ask the preacher to dinner routinely, and I make certain I dress a certain way, and so on, and so on.....then I'm OK? I'm adding godliness? I mean, for Pete's sake, I'm so super (and loudly) careful about it; I'm not like some people I could name, who just don't measure up!

Oy vey. Kinda sounds like the scribes and Pharisees, doesn't it?  Many Pharisees prided themselves on their very strict avoidance of obvious, outward sin. Really looked down their noses, you might say. And they laid on so many extra rules..... we say people are legalistic today sometimes about their faith. Well, the Pharisees wrote the book on that!
But here's where they went wrong: they refused to look inside themselves and agree with God about the presence of sin. They were so interested in their man-made rules that they paid very little attention to the inner person, and God's rules.

 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.27 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. 28 In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness. (Matthew 23:25-28)

Jesus knew that in spite of their seeming obsession with perfection, they resisted looking at their own inward corruption - and their need for grace.

Godliness is very simple: godliness refers to the believer who yields her actions and her attitudes to the Lord. Not just her outward behavior. Not just the words she speaks aloud. But the innermost being; down deep in her soul she reverences her Father.

He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.    And what does the Lord require of you?To act justly and to love mercy    and to walk humbly with your God. (Micah 6:8)

Godliness is when a Christian loves, honors, praises, worships, and serves the Lord. Not just for this life, but for the life to come.

For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. (I Timothy 4:8)

Godliness is seen in a Christian who possesses humility and contentment.

But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. (I Timothy 6:6-7)

Godliness is when we, as believers, see ourselves for what we are and also see God for Who He is!

Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God. (II Corinthians 7:1)

That godly Christian is the one who will strive to please God, and Him alone, not caring what other humans may think. That is an attitude that requires obedience. One of the great evidences of our growth in Christ is obedience.

 Now all has been heard;    here is the conclusion of the matter:Fear God and keep his commandments,    for this is the duty of all mankind. (Ecclesiastes 12:13)

Lord, help us to add to our faith, godliness!

Today's "vitamin" is perseverance

Oy vey!
Perseverance.
Hmmmm.
Patience, in some translations.
Thumbing through my concordance and my study books.

How many times have we asked the Lord for patience, and then wanted to clap our hand over our mouths? Or somehow take back those words?
After all, it's been said that if you pray for patience, the Lord will bring things into your life that try your patience.....that it's the only way to get any better!

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance;  (II Peter 1:5-6a)

I was kinda relieved as I studied, to see that Peter used a word that also means "steadfastness," or "endurance." Oh, OK. That's better! (Grin)
You see, in our Bibles, we see other words also used to explain the concept of perseverance.....diligence, endurance, waiting, etc.

So what do we need to add to our virtue, knowledge, and self control? Perseverance.
Peter is talking about someone who remains faithful even in the midst of fiery trials, negative circumstances, or seemingly insurmountable obstacles.
How many times have you heard someone chirp cheerfully, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going!" Personally, I would sometimes like to just glare at them. Just stare at them and let them think about what they just said to someone who they know nothing about.....they don't know my trials, my sorrows, my joys, nor my hope. BUT I guess it is a true saying, that we can rely on the Spirit and keep keeping on.....so I don't glare at them. (Grin)
David gave us many psalms where he encouraged us to wait hopefully on the Lord:

Wait for the Lord;    be strong and take heart    and wait for the Lord. (Psalm 27:14)

Many believers have given up because things got tough. No matter what the circumstance, we must remain devoted to our Savior -- the devil will tempt us to quit!

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. (Romans 12:12)

We must pray for others and for ourselves to have perseverance:

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, 10 so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, (Colossians 1:9-11)

The devil will use our trials to try and sway us. To make us think, I have prayed and prayed; why doesn't God answer? Why doesn't He do something? Keep on praying and working, believer!

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. (Galatians 6:9)

Are we ready to give up today? Are we facing difficulties that seem insurmountable? Our prayers and our work is not in vain:

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. (I Corinthians 15:58)

Paul's words are some that we need to commit to memory, no?

Lord, help us to persevere; help us to be steadfast, and keep working for your glory!

Today's "vitamin" is self-control

Here's our focus passage again:

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind,forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins. (II Peter 1:5-9)

The third "vitamin," or additive to our faith, is self-control. Some translations call it "temperance." The dictionary reveals a couple of synonyms: moderation and self-restraint.
God's Word tells us that if we don't have self control, we will end up being slaves to the things that do control us. Those can be food, money, lust, popularity (or the desire for it), anger, and more. We can become overwhelmed with the consequences of not having self control in many different areas of our lives. If we can (with the help of the Spirit) be self controlled, we are laying a foundation for living that life of righteousness that we desire.
Do we want to reflect righteousness and selflessness? Do we want to imitate our Savior and bring glory to God? We can tap into His power to bring sins under control.

For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power,love and self-discipline. (II Timothy 1:7)

I can do all this through him who gives me strength. (Philippians 4:13)

Solomon said:

Better a patient person than a warrior,    one with self-control than one who takes a city. (Proverbs 16:32)

As believers, we are to control our flesh, our passions, and our natural desires -- instead of allowing them to control us!

Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.  (Galatians 5:24-25)

Self control is NOT reacting in the heat of the moment, but reacting in the way that Jesus would. Do you remember the bracelets that were so popular for a while? They had on them in one form or another, beads, letters, or engraving, these letters: W W J D? They were intended to remind the wearer to ask himself or herself, "What would Jesus do?"  In this way, they would step back and try to respond as Jesus would, in each situation that they encountered.
Each and every day that we are blessed to be here on earth, enjoying the grace of God and His many blessings, we will encounter people and circumstances that require a response from us. Many times we will be tempted to respond in the heat of the moment, and we'll be tempted to sin. Will we resist that temptation and respond as Jesus would? Or will we give in and disobey God?

We've studied this before.....if someone cuts you off in traffic, or cuts you off in conversation? If someone grabs your promotion at work, or if they grab the produce you wanted at the grocery store? Will we be gracious?
Will we be self controlled?
It's not a bad idea to revive that question: "What would Jesus do?"
Or to rephrase it: "How would Jesus respond?"
We may think to ourselves that it's impossible to react the way that He would. And it's true, if we are relying just on our flesh, we will have epic failures!
But self control is one of the gifts of the Spirit:

So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

God has indeed given us what we need, but we must continue to walk in the Spirit. In order to respond as Jesus would, we must supplement our faith, add a vitamin, so to speak -- add the vitamin of self control and we will see growth in our walk with Jesus Christ!

Lord, help us to respond to this world as you would; help us to rely on Your Spirit as we try to exhibit self control!

Today's "vitamin" -- knowledge

We're finishing up the week still focused on this passage:

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind,forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins. (II Peter 1:5-9)

The next "vitamin" or addition to our faith is knowledge.
How do we supplement our faith with knowledge?
What is knowledge?
A list of facts and figures?
A database of information?

Wellllllll, no. Information is not enough here. Knowledge is a proper understanding of truth. It's the application of information to our lives; it's letting our head knowledge impact how we live. Letting our head knowledge get to our hearts and change the way we look at things, and change the way we act, too.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,    but fools despise wisdom and instruction. (Proverbs 1:7)

Teach me knowledge and good judgment,    for I trust your commands. (Psalm 119:66)

We can see from these verses that knowledge, wisdom, and good judgment are all tied up in the same package.  They all work together:

Wisdom is a shelter    as money is a shelter,but the advantage of knowledge is this:    Wisdom preserves those who have it. (Ecclesiastes 7:12)

Wow. Sure wish that this "vitamin" came in a bottle! But instead, we must work at this one, too. It's something we must learn, and do our "homework" in order to take advantage of it:

let the wise listen and add to their learning,    and let the discerning get guidance— (Proverbs 1:5)

We need to get into the Word, and then let the Word get into us, as I heard a preacher say. It's a quaint saying, but it's also the truth!

Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. (Joshua 1:8, NLT)

I meditate on your precepts    and consider your ways.
 I delight in your decrees;    I will not neglect your word. (Psalm 119:15-16)

As we study the Word, we can pray as well, and ask for wisdom, knowledge, and good judgment:

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. (James 1:5)

We must apply the vitamin, the additive to our faith, of knowledge. We can see that this one works together with our other vitamin, virtue. It's impossible to know where God would want us to go, and what He would want us to do, without studying the Word. We will find the answers to understanding His will for our lives, and we will find the keys to holy living there.

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. (James 1:22-24)

Just like certain foods (and certain vitamins) are essential to our physical health, so the Word of God is vital to our spiritual health. When we feast on His Word, we will grow spiritually.

Lord, bless us with spiritual knowledge, understanding, and wisdom as we study your Word!

Today's "vitamin" -- virtue

The first "vitamin" that we will add to our faith is virtue.
Let's look first at what the word "virtue" means -- the dictionary tells us that virtue is moral excellence and goodness, righteousness, and chastity. In another word: holiness. Pretty powerful word!
Virtue speaks of moral purity and excellence. How are we to add virtue to our faith? It's hard work, don't get me wrong. We do need to strive at it:

Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. (II Timothy 2:22)

In order to flee evil desires, we must recognize them. We need training for that. And we must be trained in righteousness.....it doesn't come naturally. When we study God's Word and follow it, it will transform our lives, and we can live righteous lives.

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,  (II Timothy 3:16)

Living in moral purity encompasses every aspect of our lives. We are expected to be pure physically, mentally, and spiritually. This is righteousness in action! This is holy living.

Those who walk righteously    and speak what is right,
who reject gain from extortion    and keep their hands from accepting bribes,
who stop their ears against plots of murder    and shut their eyes against contemplating evil— they are the ones who will dwell on the heights,    whose refuge will be the mountain fortress.
Their bread will be supplied,    and water will not fail them. Your eyes will see the king in his beauty    and view a land that stretches afar. (Isaiah 33:15-17)

Paul tells us that the righteousness we strive for is from God:

and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. (Philippians 3:9)

And Jesus told us that if we hunger for righteousness, we will be filled:

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,    for they will be filled. (Matthew 5:6)

It's not an impossible assignment, after all! God is pleased when we try and He blesses our efforts to live holy lives. Christians who add virtue to their faith stand out as being morally excellent. They stand out in the crowd!
If Christians act like the world, we do more harm than good for the cause of Christ. Think about it; if the lost man or woman sees no difference between themselves and believers, where is the incentive to listen when we want to tell them about Jesus? If there's no moral purity in our lives, the unbeliever will be quick to point out our hypocrisy.
The world is watching us, and we must work hard to supplement our faith with virtue. It's a much-needed "vitamin" in the lives of believers today.

I read this story on Sermon Central, and thought it was really appropriate for our thoughts today:

 One day as a woman was crossing a street at London station, an old man stopped her. He said to her, "Excuse me, ma'am, but I want to thank you." She looked up and exclaimed, "Thank me?" He replied, "Yes ma’am, I used to be a ticket collector, and whenever you went by you always gave me a cheerful smile and a good morning. I knew that smile must come from inside somewhere. Then one morning I saw a little Bible in your hand. So I bought one, too, and I found out about Jesus from that Bible. Now I too am saved!” That man saw something in that woman that touched his heart. He saw Jesus living in and through her life. Each one of us, who are saved, should so live that the world can see Jesus in our lives.

Jesus told us that we are the light of the world:

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven." (Matthew 5:14-16)

Do others see Jesus in the way we act at work? In the way we act at the grocery store? At the restaurant?  Standing in line to pay our taxes? Driving in heavy traffic?

Everywhere we go, we need to be walking billboards for Jesus!

Lord, help me to add virtue to my faith!

Truly the righteous attain life,
    but whoever pursues evil finds death. (Proverbs 11:19)

Take your "vitamins," continued

We're digging into II Peter 1:5-9 this week, and we have seen that there are spiritual "supplements, or "vitamins," that we need to add to our lives as believers.

Before we start our vitamins, though, we need a foundation: faith. Peter tells us to add to our faith. Lest we treat this too casually, and jump into the next part of the text, I'd like to camp here today.....
Certainly we must start with faith.

As believers, we say often that our faith is in the Lord. Perhaps we feel quite comfortable. Perhaps we think our faith is strong. Perhaps we look at our leaders in church, and in the faith community, and we think they are very strong. This is our perception, but perhaps it is not they who are the bedrocks of the church. Maybe it's not the preacher or the elders or the oldest members of the church. Maybe it's the ones we think are unlikely -- God sees the hearts of people, and we don't.
We can see this when a long-time pastor falls and is unfaithful to his wife....his faith and his strength weakened to the point that he sinned. We can see this when a long-time Christian faces cancer and is trembling with fear over past sins and wrong-doings.....in the face of death, her faith is weaker than even she thought.
Let's look back at a familiar passage -- I won't paste it here for the sake of keeping this post from becoming too lengthy. Please re-read Mark 9:14-29 and then come back to our study.....

We know this story well; it's the story of a loving dad and a son possessed by an evil spirit. He brings his son to Jesus. Some people look down on the faith of the father, but I believe Jesus is pleased with the father, and displeased with the leaders of the religious community. The father shows the right attitude -- he has faith "right."
The first few verses highlight the inability of the disciples to heal the boy. There's an argument between the disciples of Jesus and the scribes.... I can just bet that they are giving the disciples a hard time because they can't effect a healing of the boy.  (It's kinda like trying to hit a golf putt when the whole world is watching, don'tcha think? Everyone has eyes on the disciples as they try to help the boy.) The scribes are mocking them, and then Jesus gets involved. Jesus is dismayed at the lack of faith in the disciples, too. These are people who have been in training with Him! (Later on, many of them will be spiritual giants, but right now their faith is mouse-sized!)
Many people in the body of Christ today are searching for leaders; they want someone to lead the charge against Satan. But sometimes the church leaders lack faith. They lack vision and courage. Many times it's the common people in the pew, and the new converts, that have the most faith. Sometimes these are the folks that are most eager to try something new -- to go out and witness about their faith.
I remember the story told one day in chapel service about a missionary named J. C. Bailey.  God laid it on his heart, through a letter from another man, to travel to India as a missionary. Bailey traveled many miles and visited many congregations, looking for support to go to India and reach people for Christ. Finally he sold everything he had and went to India -- he established churches there, and now because of his work, and others like him, there are over a million Christians in the country of India. Bailey had faith to go "out on a limb" and do what God wanted him to do.

The church leaders failed the boy and his dad.
The disciples failed the boy and his dad.
There is One Who won't fail.....the dad brings his son to Jesus. Did you notice Jesus repeats a portion of what the dad says? "If you can!" The dad meant "Jesus, if you can, please heal him." I think if Jesus had been indignant, His response might have been "If I can! Of course I can!" Instead, He places part of the responsibility on the dad...... He's saying that if the dad can believe, the boy can be healed. Jesus performs the miracle because of the dad and the boy -- He doesn't do it to try to impress the scribes with their incompetence, nor is it to teach the disciples a lesson (although He DOES use it as a teaching moment!). He performs the miracle because of the faith of the father. Simple, true faith.

Real faith always responds that way. But how can we have this kind of faith? A strong faith, coupled with the self-knowledge that says, "My faith itself is a gift of God. I must work to make it stronger." And Jesus gave us the key: when the disciples asked why they were unable to cast out the demon, He replied, "This kind cannot come out by anything but prayer." The power of prayer is the solution. Prayer will keep us strong in the faith.

This week, let's journal about a difficulty in our lives. I'm not asking you to commit to journaling for a year, or even a month. Let's just write down something this week that is on our hearts; write down something that is bothering us. Then write a prayer to God over this problem or obstacle. Pray specifically about this difficulty. And search in your Bible for verses that speak to the problem, or to God's ability (and His promises) to solve the problem.
I think that by the end of the week, our problems will seem smaller.
And our faith will be stronger.