By Steven J. Hogan
~ A Saturday Morning Post #108 ~
God the Father looks down on this world and, in particular, sees His church, His chosen ones, His children. He is focused on us for He loves us, and because He is training us so we can be useful to Him by doing His work on earth. Do you realize that He has been building your character, and will continue to do so until that time when He takes you home to heaven, and glorifies you? As Paul said, “I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it on the day of Christ.” Philippians 1:6
As Christians, we often forget that God is working in our lives, that He is using our relationships, jobs and trials, to help us be godly and more like Jesus. We often don’t see that God, by His Spirit, word and grace, is helping us to grow up. We have all gone to earthly schools for academic reasons. But now we are in a heavenly school for spiritual reasons, and God is our teacher, helping us to grow in truth and character.
That God develops character in the lives of believers is a major theme in the Bible. From Genesis to Revelation we read about His perfect working in imperfect people. The Old Testament is filled with stories about God wisely and wonderfully building the lives of believers. There is Abraham with faith, Moses with humility, David with love, Jeremiah with perseverance, Esther with courage, etc. In the New Testament, we read about Christ patiently discipling His men. Then there are the epistles, filled with instructions about how we are to become godly children by growing in godly character. Might you “work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” Philippians 2:12-13
What is this character? Suffice to say, in this short blog post, I can only summarize this Christ-like character that God desires for each of His children.
* There is humility, seeing God as our awesome and loving Lord and ourselves as His children, His servants, and worshiping, trusting, and obeying Him. James 4:10
* There is holiness, seeing God as perfectly holy and pure, and then being holy, hating evil, and wholeheartedly doing what is good, right and true. 1 Peter 1:14-16
* There is love for God, where we see Him as our first and true love, and are loving Him, adoring Him, committed to Him, and giving our lives entirely to Him. Mark 12:30
* There is love for people, which results from knowing God’s love for us, and is seen as we are humble, kind, forgiving, gentle, compassionate and loyal. Colossians 3:12-14
* There is truthfulness, living a life in line with God’s truth, having integrity, being honest with others in words and actions, and just doing what’s right. 1 Timothy 1:5
* There is rejoicing, not being sad or down, but having a grateful and glad-hearted spirit, resulting from knowing that you are greatly loved by a sovereign God. Philippians 4:4
* There is faith, a sincere reliance and dependence, not on yourself or others, but on God Himself, for life, strength, joy, purpose, wisdom, and the future. Proverbs 3:5-6
* There is forgiveness, not holding a person’s sin against him, but letting it go and not remembering it, being able to be forgiving and kind to him. Genesis 41:50-52
* There is perseverance, seen in a life that doesn’t give up and quit, that is determined, that continues on for God, in spite of trials, troubles and sinful people. Acts 14:19-22
* There is wisdom, a heart that is not naïve or foolish, but understands God’s word and applies it to life, making good decisions, and knowing what to say and do. Proverbs 1:1-7
* There is zeal, a fervent, wholehearted love for God, people and His work, a life energized by the Spirit, a life excited and driven to live all out for Him. Romans 12:11
* There is faithfulness, the year after year continued devotion to God’s work, seen in that you keep trusting God and keep doing all He has planned for you. Jeremiah 25:3
* There is diligence, not procrastinating, being lazy or distracted, but continually using your time to work hard so you can fully carry out the work of Christ. Ephesians 5:15-17
* There is hope, a looking forward to the future, a confident expectation of the perfect plans God has for you, in heaven, and in the kingdom ages to come. Romans 15:13
I cannot stress enough the importance of having godly character, for this is what God wants for you, and is building into your life. “We are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus, for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10). Might you want to be like Christ, and possess His godly character. Might you be a beautiful shining light to those who live in this very dark world. Stand out and speak up for God, and let the world know that you are His child, and that you are heading to heaven; and hold out to them the good news of forgiveness in Christ.
I cannot overstate how difficult life will be for the Christian in the years leading up to Christ’s return and the rapture of the church. Having godly character is essential if you are to be a good soldier, one of God’s special forces, one who is courageously fighting for Him. You need to be in excellent shape, “at the top of your game,” trained and ready to carry out God’s assignments, united with the church in making disciples, until the very end of this age. “Discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness… since it holds promise for the present life and the life to come.” 1 Timothy 4:7-8, 1 Corinthians 9:24-27
P.S. Here are two other articles about the character of the Christian: Being Thankful – The Character of a Christian, and Your Spiritual Service: A Member of the Special Forces.