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Authors: Jerry Bridges
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BOOK: The Practice of Godliness: Godliness has value for all things
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THE SOURCE OF POWER
The second principle of godly character is,
The power or enablement for a godly life comes from the risen Christ.
Paul said in relation to his ministry, “our competence comes from God” (2 Corinthians 3:5), and “I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me” (Colossians 1:29). He said of his ability to be content in any situation, “I can do everything through him who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:13).
The power or enablement for a godly life comes from the risen Christ.
Paul said in relation to his ministry, “our competence comes from God” (2 Corinthians 3:5), and “I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me” (Colossians 1:29). He said of his ability to be content in any situation, “I can do everything through him who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:13).
It is very likely that God, in His sovereign calling and preparation of Paul for his tremendous task, had endowed him with more noble qualities and strength of character than any person since; yet Paul consistently attributes his spiritual strength and accomplishments to the Lord’s power. I once heard someone say, “When I do something wrong, I have to take the blame, but when I do something right, God gets the credit.” This person was complaining, but he was exactly correct. Certainly God cannot be blamed for our sins, but only He can provide the spiritual power to enable us to live godly lives.
As the
source
of power for godliness is Christ, so the
means
of experiencing that power is through our relationship with Him. This truth is Jesus’ essential teaching in His illustration in John 15 of the vine and the branches. It is only by abiding in Him that we can bring forth the fruit of godly character.
1
The most helpful explanation I have found of what it means to abide in Christ comes from the nineteenth-century Swiss theologian Frederic Louis Godet: “‘To abide in me’ expresses the continual act by which the Christian sets aside everything which he might derive from his own wisdom, strength, merit, to draw all from Christ.”
2
source
of power for godliness is Christ, so the
means
of experiencing that power is through our relationship with Him. This truth is Jesus’ essential teaching in His illustration in John 15 of the vine and the branches. It is only by abiding in Him that we can bring forth the fruit of godly character.
1
The most helpful explanation I have found of what it means to abide in Christ comes from the nineteenth-century Swiss theologian Frederic Louis Godet: “‘To abide in me’ expresses the continual act by which the Christian sets aside everything which he might derive from his own wisdom, strength, merit, to draw all from Christ.”
2
Paul expresses this relationship as “living in Christ.” He says in Colossians 2:6-7, “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith.” The context of this statement is that all the wisdom and power for living the Christian life are to be found in Christ rather than in manmade philosophies and moralisms (see verses 2-4 and 8-10).
This is what Godet is saying. We have to set aside any dependence upon our own wisdom and strength of character and draw all that we need from Christ through faith in Him. This faith, of course, is expressed concretely by prayer to Him. Psalm 119:33-37 is a good example of such a prayer of dependence.
This relationship is also maintained by beholding the glory of Christ in His word. In 2 Corinthians 3:18 Paul tells us that as we behold the Lord’s glory, we are transformed more and more into His image. Beholding the Lord’s glory in His word is more than observing His humanity in the gospels. It is observing His character, His attributes, and His will in every page of Scripture. And as we observe Him, as we maintain this relationship with Him through His word, we are transformed more and more into His likeness; we are enabled by the Holy Spirit to progressively manifest the graces of godly character.
So it is this relationship with Christ, expressed by beholding Him in His word and depending upon Him in prayer, that enables us to draw from Him the power essential for a godly life. The Christian is not like an automobile with a self-contained power source; rather, he is like an electric motor that must be constantly connected to an outside current for its power. Our source of power is in the risen Christ, and we stay connected to Him by beholding Him in His word and depending on Him in prayer.
RESPONSIBILITY AND DEPENDENCE
The third principle of godly character is,
Though the power forgodly character comes from Christ, the responsibility for developing and displaying that character is ours.
This principle seems to be one of the most difficult for us to understand and apply One day we sense our personal responsibility and seek to live a godly life by the strength of our own willpower. The next day, realizing the futility of trusting in ourselves, we turn it all over to Christ and abdicate our responsibility which is set forth in the Scriptures. We need to learn that the Bible teaches both total responsibility and total dependence in all aspects of the Christian life.
Though the power forgodly character comes from Christ, the responsibility for developing and displaying that character is ours.
This principle seems to be one of the most difficult for us to understand and apply One day we sense our personal responsibility and seek to live a godly life by the strength of our own willpower. The next day, realizing the futility of trusting in ourselves, we turn it all over to Christ and abdicate our responsibility which is set forth in the Scriptures. We need to learn that the Bible teaches both total responsibility and total dependence in all aspects of the Christian life.
I once read a statement to the effect that there is nothing a Christian can do to develop the fruit of the Spirit in his life; it is all the work of the Holy Spirit. Sensing that at best, such a statement failed to present a balance of scriptural truth, I took out my concordance and looked up various passages that referred to one or more of the nine character traits listed as fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5. For every one of those traits I found one or more passages in which we are commanded to exhibit them. We are enjoined to love, to rejoice, to live in peace with each other, and so forth. These commands address our responsibility
We have already seen that Timothy was responsible to train himself in godliness; he was to pursue godliness. When Paul describes his own pursuit of a Godlike life, he uses strong verbs such as “press on” and “straining toward” (Philippians 3:12-14). These words convey the idea of intense effort on his part and communicate forcefully his own sense of personal responsibility.
The solution to the seemingly incompatible statements that we are both totally responsible and totally dependent is found in Philippians 2:12-13: “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.”
Commenting on this passage, Professor Jac J. Muller says, “The believer is called to self-activity, to the active pursuit of the will of God, to the promotion of the spiritual life in himself, to the realization of the virtues of the Christian life, and to a personal application of salvation.”
3
If we stopped at this point, it would appear that we are left to our own devices, to our own strength of character and our own willpower. But Paul does not stop with our responsibility. He says, “for it is God who works in you.” The spiritual power that enables us to apply ourselves to the cultivation of Christian graces is of God, who works in us to will and to act.
3
If we stopped at this point, it would appear that we are left to our own devices, to our own strength of character and our own willpower. But Paul does not stop with our responsibility. He says, “for it is God who works in you.” The spiritual power that enables us to apply ourselves to the cultivation of Christian graces is of God, who works in us to will and to act.
Nineteenth-century Dutch Reformed pastor George W Bethune put it this way:
While, therefore, we grow in the Christian life by divine grace, it is
our duty
to grow in grace. Besides, the quality of grace is such that, though it is strength from God, we must use it. Grace gives no new faculty, but strengthens the faculties which we have.... Hence the fruits of the Spirit are the qualities and actions of the renewed man, not produced without him, but wrought through him.... Let us then be ever mindful of our entire dependence upon the Spirit of God ... [but] let us be ever mindful of our duty “to maintain good works.”
4
PUT OFF AND PUT ON
The fourth principle of godly character is,
The development of godly character entails both putting off and putting on character traits.
Paul says, “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to
put off your old self,
which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and
to put on the new self,
created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:22-24).
The development of godly character entails both putting off and putting on character traits.
Paul says, “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to
put off your old self,
which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and
to put on the new self,
created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:22-24).
In the succeeding verses (4:28-5:4) Paul makes some very specific applications of this principle. We are to put off falsehood and put on truthfulness. We are to put off stealing and put on generosity. Unwholesome talk must be put off and replaced with speech which is helpful for building others up. Bitterness, rage, anger, and slander are to be replaced with kindness, compassion, and forgiveness. Obscene or suggestive speech is to be replaced with thanksgiving. Even Paul’s list of gracious qualities in Galatians 5, called the fruit of the Spirit, is set in contrast to a lengthy catalog of vices of the sinful nature which must be put off by the godly person.
It was said of the Lord Jesus that He has both loved righteousness and hated wickedness (Hebrews 1:9). And we are to follow His example, for Paul instructs us to “hate what is evil; cling to what is good” (Romans 12:9). Surely we must put to death, by the aid of the Holy Spirit, the misdeeds of the body. But we must also, again with His enablement, clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.
Just as we need to learn Scripture’s teaching for the dual principle of personal responsibility and total dependence, here also we need to seek the balance of Scripture in putting off and putting on. Some Christians have a tendency to emphasize only putting off traits of the sinful nature. They are usually very morally upright, but lacking in those gracious qualities of love, joy, and compassion. When a fellow Christian falls into sin, they do not seek to restore him gently, but rather ostracize him from their fellowship. A repentant Christian once wrote me that his church knew how to reach out to lost sinners but did not know how to restore one of its own errant members. This is the attitude we tend to develop when we put our entire emphasis in Christian character growth on putting off sinful habits.
But there is equal danger if we focus all our attention on such qualities as love and compassion while neglecting to deal with the vices of the sinful nature. Today, there is a good deal of emphasis on affirming and encouraging one another. We are to help one another “feel good about ourselves.” We undoubtedly need such encouragement in the body of Christ, but we must not neglect the equally scriptural emphasis of putting to death the deeds of the sinful nature.
We are to put off the traits of the old self and put on the traits of the new. If we desire to be godly we must not neglect either of these biblical emphases.
BALANCED GROWTH
The fifth principle of godly character is,
We are to pursue growth in all of the graces that are considered the fruit of the Spirit.
This would include traits such as compassion, forbearance, and humility that are not included in the nine-trait list of Galatians 5 but are obviously a result of His ministry in our lives. Godly character is balanced. It displays with equal emphasis the entire spectrum of graces that are set forth in the Scriptures as characteristic of the godly person.
We are to pursue growth in all of the graces that are considered the fruit of the Spirit.
This would include traits such as compassion, forbearance, and humility that are not included in the nine-trait list of Galatians 5 but are obviously a result of His ministry in our lives. Godly character is balanced. It displays with equal emphasis the entire spectrum of graces that are set forth in the Scriptures as characteristic of the godly person.
We tend to emphasize in our lives those traits that seem most natural to our particular temperaments. But the fruit of the Spirit is not a matter of temperament; it is the result of the individual Christian seeking to grow, under the direction and aid of the Spirit, in every area of Christian character.
Author Tim LaHaye tells us that it was Hippocrates, the Greek physician and philosopher, who gave us the fourfold classification of temperaments so widely used today He identified the jovial sanguine, the strong-willed choleric, the sensitive melancholic, and the dependable phlegmatic.
The sanguine person easily responds to the admonition to rejoice in the Lord or to be compassionate and tender-hearted. At the same time, he finds it difficult to exercise self-control or to be faithful with responsibilities. He must pray more earnestly and strive more diligently for these latter graces. Above all, he must be convinced of the necessity in his life of those graces that are most difficult to display. He must not excuse himself for his lack of faithfulness on the basis of, “That’s just the way I am.”
Similarly, the even-tempered, often unemotional phlegmatic person easily responds to the need for faithfulness but may have difficulty with the fruit of joy. I personally identify with this type of person. Faithfulness is very high in my value system; when given a responsibility, I am usually conscientious about fulfilling it. But I have to give special attention to joy. A number of years ago, God brought to my attention that “the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Romans 14:1
7
). I realized that joy in the Lord was just as important as any other trait of godly character.
7
). I realized that joy in the Lord was just as important as any other trait of godly character.
Furthermore, even those traits to which we most naturally respond need to be developed under the ministry of the Spirit. God has a way of putting us in situations that exercise our character in those areas in which we feel we are strong, in order that the fruit might be of the Spirit, not of ourselves. For example, the naturally faithful person might stop short of dependability if it becomes inconvenient. But the godly person keeps his word even when it is costly.
The choleric individual can’t understand why anyone else has difficulty with self control. He is usually so self disciplined that this trait of godly character seems to come naturally to him. But as a godly person seeking to display all the fruit of the Spirit, he may weep over his lack of patience and gentleness in his relationships with others.
The melancholic person is usually sensitive to the needs of others and is often self-sacrificing in his relationships. At the same time, he has a tendency to be critical and unforgiving, so he needs to especially look to the Holy Spirit for his ministry in those areas of need.
I do not intend this section to be an amateur psychological analysis of various temperament types. Rather, I am seeking to demonstrate the varying needs each of us will have in displaying the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. The principle to learn and apply is,
We are responsible to exhibit all of the traits of godly character in a balanced fashion.
Some traits are more difficult to grow in than others. These will require extra prayer and attention on our part, but that is simply the price we must pay to grow in Godlikeness.
We are responsible to exhibit all of the traits of godly character in a balanced fashion.
Some traits are more difficult to grow in than others. These will require extra prayer and attention on our part, but that is simply the price we must pay to grow in Godlikeness.
BOOK: The Practice of Godliness: Godliness has value for all things
4.75Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
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