A SERIES OF THOUGHTS | 13 | On Godliness
Godliness is a popular word in Christianity. It’s so popular that one may be surprised by how scarce it is to find in the entire Bible. Unlike other words like righteousness, holiness or purity, godliness occurs 16 times in the Bible. All the appearances are in the New Testament and can be found mostly between 1 Timothy and 2 Peter.
What Does It Mean?
Due to its scarcity, Godliness does not have a popular description or definition in popular Christian culture. Oftentimes, one would find that various authors describe Godliness based on the context it is used in scripture.
From my studies, I will describe Godliness as:
‘a state of being defined by the presence of God’.
If I am to apply this description to a person, it would mean that a Godly person is someone whose perspective and experiences in life is defined by the presence of God.
This has to be a person that has been able to build a relationship with God over time through Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit.
Essentially, Godliness is not something that can be faked. It has nothing to do with the number of times you go to church. It cannot be affirmed by your Christian activities. It cannot be attached to the number of times you speak about Jesus Christ.
Please note that I am not condemning the above actions. I am an advocate of every example I have given. Yet, they do not prove Godliness in the life of a person. Godliness is something that is produced in someone through their experiences with God.
One passage that demonstrates this beautifully is Matthew 5:13–16.
“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. — Matthew 5:13–16 (English Standard Version)
Salt does not need to perform to prove that it is salt when it is in a meal. Light does not need to host a party to prove that it is light when it is a dark room. They simply are what they are by their identity.
The presence of God is supposed to flow from a believer’s life in the same way.
Godliness Is Born from Perseverance
If we can agree that Godliness is produced from experiences with God, then we need to put these experiences in proper context. The Bible teaches us in various passages how the ways of God are very different from the ways of the world.
The world’s systems, cultures and ideologies are set against the precepts of God through Jesus Christ (see Romans 8:7; 2 Corinthians 4:4).
This means that a person whose perspective and experiences are defined by the presence of God is someone who has been able to endure the consequences of living a life that goes against the cultures and systems of the world.
Perseverance is a key component of the Christian life and it is produced by our faith in God and our knowledge of Him.
Note: In many versions of the Bible, endurance, perseverance, patience and steadfastness are used interchangeably.
But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. — 2 Peter 1:5–8 (New King James Version)
It is no coincidence that in the above scripture, godliness comes after perseverance.
Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted — 2 Timothy 3:12 (English Standard Version)
Paul makes this statement after listing some of the things that he had to go through in life.
Let’s also look at the verses that precede the passage with read in Matthew earlier.
“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. — Matthew 5:11–12 (English Standard Version)
From all of the above, it is clear to see that the Bible is very consistent about this subject.
A Form of Godliness
Like I said earlier, Godliness cannot be faked. But that does not mean that people will not try. In Paul’s letter to Timothy, he warned him of something that would begin to crop up in the church.
The primary attribute that enables a person to endure for Christ is the faith that God loves the person more than they could ever love themselves. It is the knowledge that the Lord knows what’s best for us and will never let us down, irrespective of the current circumstances.
However, Paul warned Timothy of a time when the church would be full of people whose primary allegiance is themselves.
But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! — 2 Timothy 3:1–5 (New King James Version)
As a young Christian, I used to think that this passage applied only to people who had no knowledge of Christ and had no experience of salvation. But as I got older, through the help of the Holy Spirit, I realized that this passage could also apply to someone who has come to Christ but is not living for Him.
This passage applies to those who would rather create an image of godliness through external attributes and actions. They might know all the latest Christian songs and speak ‘Christian-lingo’. They may identify themselves with Him on social media and wear Tee-shirts with passages of the Bible on them.
Yet, they love themselves too much to endure anything for the sake of Christ. When their faith is put to test, they would rather compromise with earthly pleasures than suffer any loss or rejection for Christ’s sake.
Paul admonishes Timothy to avoid these people. I would take it a step further and ask that we are careful not to become these people. We need to take the word of God literally on these issues and not try to slap on our interpretations.
On a final note, Paul speaks about ‘denying the power’. There is tremendous power available to a Godly person. Just like the light that cannot be hidden and the salt that adds flavour to a meal; God wants to use us to create change in the world around us.
He wants us to be conduits of His great power.
If only we can stand for Him through the trials of life.
