15 Feb 2021
Willem wrote that true Christian faith is knowledge that leads to godliness. Unfortunately, he added, many are found who glory in the Christian faith but do not have even the barest knowledge of the truth. Additionally, many are found who have some knowledge of the truth but not enough t o produce godliness. They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him.The hope is that those who possess some knowledge of the truth may use such knowledge to practice true godliness, which brings with it, in every way, great gain with contentment, since this godliness contains promises from almighty God for this life and the life to come.
True Godliness shows itself in three ways:
The first way: A sincere resolve to live a godly life, according to God’s Word from henceforth
(a) This means always making God’s good, acceptable, and perfect will a rule of life, and making God’s glory the chief end of all one does.
It includes the firm resolve to cease from all evil, which we clearly know to be displeasing to God; the Lord our God commands us to forsake, avoid and shun all evil (Psalm 15).
When we read in the Word that God detests such things, we must sincerely resolve, if we wish to show that we are godly people, to avoid and shun these things – yes, all of them.
We should cut ourselves loose from the evil deeds and practices of our bodily members: among them are fornication, idle talk, backbiting, deceit.
Concerning other sins such as anger, envy, evil lusts, and all other sins of the inner man that are not committed with our bodily members but burn deep in our heart and cling to us as spots to a leopard – these we should forsake with a most heartfelt determination.
(b) We are sincere in performing all the good works that we already know are pleasing to God.
These include praying to Him, reading Hs Word diligently, meditating on the Word and keeping it in our heart.
We are to love our neighbours, to be humble,modest, chaste, discrete, diligent, prudent and upright, exercising self-control in all our ways, including seasoning our words with salt, to defend the innocent and to shame the evil tongue and to oppose it.
To that end, we should also endeavour to fill our hearts with many holy desires, to hunger and thirst after righteousness, and indeed, to desire the Spirit’s gifts. Above all, we should seek to experience the power of Christ’s death in order to put to death our members, which are upon the earth, and all evil desires and to feel the power of HIs resurrection in order to rise again in newness of life and so express the life of Christ in our life.
We shall consider the second way and third way in subsequent sharings. Thus far, we probably would realise how far short we are in even implementing godliness in the first way