GODLY CHARACTER

As leaders with Raven Ministries, we here in Florida have been going through a Leadership Discipleship. We are purging and burning off the old sinful fleshy self in order to put on the new man, the mind of Christ, to walk in His will, His righteousness, His holiness. To walk in the Spirit of a Godly Character. For us and our children.

In our last chapter we were given a list of 102 attitudes that cause progress or setbacks in our spiritual life. Our challenge was to choose the 10 most important. Well, it is apparent that all of us will choose based upon our own observation and experiences. The list is huge, and each aspect of it can cause progress or setbacks...so to pick ten only was a daunting task.

But one stands our among the rest. One stands out as encapsulating all the others. i chose to go with blameless character as number one. Godly character. i believe this encompasses all the attitudes listed because each one, by the grace and mercy of God, when overcome as a setback or integrated as a progression into our character, will produce Godly character.

Let me give the definition of character we learned in Leadership Discipleship.

Character is the seat of one's moral being.
Character is the inner life of a man. It will reflect either the traits of the sinful nature (being influenced by the world) or the traits of the divine nature (being influenced by the Word of God).
Character is a combination of qualities distinguishing any persons or class of persons.
Character is displayed in the action of and individual under pressure.
Character is the sum total of all the negative and positive qualities in a persons life, exemplified by ones thoughts, values, motivations, attitudes, feelings and actions.

In the Greek, charakter, is translated as "image", a noun derived from the word charasso, which means notch, indentation, sharpening or scratching or writing on stone, wood or metal. It came to mean the embossed stamp made on a coin. Christ is the very character of God, the very stamp of God's nature and the one in whom God stamped or imprinted his being. Consequently we derive the meaning of our English word "character" as a distinctive mark impressed or otherwise formed by an outside force, or internal force upon the individual.

In the New Testament this Greek word appears only once.

"Who being the brightness of his glory and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sin, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high." Hebrews 1:3

Godly character is so desperately needed in the body of believers, the church, today. Wickedness and perversity is increasing in these last days as the standards in the world become more corrupt. Nowhere is this more obvious than in the family, the children of today.

Here is where i have experienced and observed a breakdown in the godly character of man in the body. In an urgent effort to bring as many souls to glory as possible in the shortest amount of time, there is a neglect of the development of godly character in our own children. If we believe God is in control, and God's timing is perfect, then we must use our time wisely, rightly discerning the season for everything, especially raising our children. We have our children for a short time before they go into the world either prepared or unprepared to be the Light of Christ.

Eight major areas of life need to be developed by each individual Christian Leader in order to grow in the character of God and to achieve God's goals in their lives. In turn, we teach our children these these things and build their godly character in these areas.

Spiritual life-depth in God's word and prayer
Personal life
Home life-this includes the raising of godly children
Social life
Educational life-in and out of the classroom
Ministerial life-1 Timothy 3 and Titus 3
Marital life-this includes meeting the needs of a spouse
Financial life-demonstrated on how one uses money

There is a balance to be stuck here. A family with children will need more attention in some areas than a single person. Father and mother must make sacrificing and difficult decisions in raising their children. God is clear about having our house in order, and i believe this means the discipline to raise our children in the Lord as well as providing for their needs, spiritual, physical and emotional.

In Paul's second letter to the Thessalonians he said this to the "brethren". This would be to the church, the believers. I believe this is a key verse about godly character.

"Now we command you, brethren, in the name or our lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received from us. For yourselves know how ye ought to follow us, for we behaved not ourselves disorderly among you. Neither did we eat any man's bread for nought, but wrought with labour and travail night and day, that we might not be chargeable to any of you. Not because we have not power but to make ourselves and ensample unto you to follow us. For even when we were with you this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat. For we hear that there are some which walk among you disorderly working not at all but are busybodies. Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread. But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing." 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13

i believe it is clear here that God would have us set an irreproachable example in the world, one that is worthy of the holiness and righteousness of God. An example of orderly families, lives and work ethics. One that believers and unbelievers would want to follow. There is faith in God for all our needs which includes his blessing of all our efforts in this life we live for him. Blind faith is thinking that because we are believers, God will do everything for us without any effort on our own. Or that He will provide everything for us if we blindly focus on winning souls to the neglect of our families. That is foolishness. God gave us the mind of Christ to think and to be all we can be, in Him and like Him. To teach and raise our children, to work and provide for them and ourselves. Being a follower of Jesus does not mean we neglect our responsibilities to our children and families, it means we must prioritize them. Ministry is service to God, and what greater ministry is there for a family than for godly parents to raise godly children and to see as God sees, the importance of this task. Ministry is first realized in the home before it is taken out to the world for all to see. A praying, word reading, God fearing family is a true example to the lost and dying world. Having children is a gift from God and the decision to have them should be mad like any other, with prayer and God's will for our lives as the first consideration. Because ultimately, these children we are bringing into the world are God's children not our own, and we will be judged on how we raised them.

A family growing in the will and grace of God together is a beautiful gift, and will ultimately be placed in situations of God's choosing to win souls for the kingdom. Because that is why we are here. A defective character made up of impatience, double-mindedness, non-discerning, undisciplined, inconsistent, disorganized, non-visionary, neglectful, inattentive, compromising, will cause digression in a person or a family and cause the death of it, spiritually and in extreme situations even physically.

i urge us all to know God. Know him in his word, in prayer and fasting. Know without a doubt that each step you take is in his will, through the strait gate and on the narrow way. In this way, he will also know us and the will of God will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.