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"... And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity." (2 Peter 1:6-7)

The next three character qualities Peter exhorts us to add to our faith are godliness, brotherly kindness, and charity. These three are so closely interwoven, you can hardly disconnect them.

Let's look at godliness first. Notice that the "g" in godliness is a small "g." It's not a capital "G." Developing godliness is something we have to do; God is not going to do it for us. God doesn't need to develop godliness; He already has it.

Godliness simply means possessing God-like attributes. We're the ones who have to develop godliness in our lives. Before we're saved, we don't have any godliness in us. As spiritual babes, we don't walk in a lot of godliness, but as we grow up spiritually, godliness should also grow in us. We don't stay spiritual babies.

At RHEMA Bible Church, baby dedications are a regular occurrence. It's funny to listen to parents' comments about their babies. The baby may only be a month old, but the parents have already decided he looks just like Grandpa. Or you'll hear them say, "Oh, look! He has John's nose, Mary's eyes, Bob's smile, and Ann's chin."

It's true! Children take on the attributes of their family members. The characteristics of parents can be seen in their children. If a child doesn't look like either of his parents, people joke, "I wonder where he came from?" We automatically expect a child to look something like his parents.

Certain traits are just part of your family heritage. One trait that runs in the "Hagin" family is that we're all strong-willed and strong-headed. We don't know what the word "quit" means. Every one of us Hagins is like that.

It's characteristic of our family heritage. And you have certain characteristics that everyone else in your family also has. Maybe your family members have big ears, or a small chin, or something else like that. But it's something that everyone who is part of your family seems to have. You just expect it. Whenever a new baby is born into the family, you look for those certain characteristics.

As children of God, we should also have the characteristics of our Heavenly Father. We should be just like our Father since we're part of His family. Godliness is simply being like God. His divine nature becomes a part of us because we're His children, and the attributes God has should also be active in our lives.

I think all Christians desire deep in their heart to be godly. We want to do those things that are pleasing in God's sight. When we follow His ways, there's joy and peace. When we allow godliness to possess us, when we are yielded to God's will, following His paths, we can live a godly life with a clear conscience.

Godliness is conforming our mind and will to God's mind and will. True faith and a godly life cannot be separated from one another any more than a foundation can be separated from a building; a root can be separated from a tree trunk; or heat can be separated from a fire. They are inseparable. Faith and godliness are inseparable, or at least they should be. Someone with true faith will be godly; that's all there is to it.

We call ourselves Christians. That means we are to be like Christ. Sometimes we'd be wise to take an inventory and see just how much like Christ we really are. Carrying His Name is not a light thing. If we carry His Name, we should also carry His characteristics, His attributes, His traits, and be like Him. It should show; it should be obvious to those around us.

Godly Influence
There are plenty of examples in the Bible of people who lived truly godly lives. Godly lives enrich and influence everyone around them. For example, the king of Babylon couldn't stand Daniel's religion, but he couldn't rule his many provinces without Daniel's help either. So he let Daniel keep his God. Daniel was a living testimony in Babylon, a land of gross darkness, to the true and living God. Many others came to know the truth about God through Daniel. He lived a truly godly life and his impact was felt by all.

The king of Egypt wasn't thrilled with Joseph's religion either, but he knew he couldn't get Joseph's expert financial help and management skills without getting Joseph's godliness too. The two were inseparable. The king put up with Joseph's godliness to get his skills and abilities. As a result, Joseph saved his entire race.

The Bible says that Herod feared John the Baptist and protected him, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man. When Herod heard John, he was greatly puzzled; yet he liked to listen to him (Mark 6:20). John's godliness was a mystery to Herod yet it also was attractive to him. It impressed him so much that he didn't want to have John executed at all. The only reason John was beheaded was that Herod was tricked by his devious wife into having it done.

What did these three men - Daniel, Joseph, and John - all have in common? There was something about them that others could see. There was something about them that made them stand out in a crowd. They were different from everyone else. What was the difference? The difference was godliness.

People can walk around saying they're Christians, but if their lives don't measure up, everyone knows it. Where the rubber meets the road is this: Are you truly living a godly life?

A godly life only comes one way. It only comes from a close relationship with God. Plenty of people claim to know God but they don't act anything like Him. It makes you wonder at times just how well they really know Him.

How much you really walk in godliness shows when the pressure is on. Remember the testimony of the seven sons of Sceva? They were going out trying to do things in the Name of the Lord. One day they tried to cast an evil spirit out of someone, and the evil spirit said, "... Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye?" (Acts 19:15).

They had no relationship with Jesus. They weren't godly at all. There was no godliness in them. And it showed! The sons of Sceva didn't have any authority to be doing what they were doing.

This is exactly why things don't seem to work out for some people. They go around with the appearance of godliness, making all the right faith confessions, but they're living ungodly lives. Then they wonder why things aren't working for them.

Doing His Will
Jesus Himself said:

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity (Matt. 7:21-23).

This passage sounds like Jesus was being harsh, but He was really being honest. He definitely called things like they were. Godliness is either a part of us or it's not. We may be able to fool people, but there's no way we can fool God! You just can't deceive Him!

It's time we made godliness a priority in our lives. As we live godly lives, others around us will be affected and changed by our example. Jesus set the standard for godliness when He said He could only do what he saw his Father doing (John 5:19).

If that becomes our attitude, our faith will work. Our faith will be strong because our motives will be right, and we'll be living a godly life to prove it.

You see, the life of Jesus must be lived and demonstrated in our lives. We read the verses that say Christ in us is the hope of glory; Christ in us is greater than he who is in the world; Christ in us knows no defeat! But if Christ truly lives in us, our lives will be godly. Godliness will be an outstanding trait of our lives.

You may have heard the story about the little boy who was in the street with a bag full of fruit. He dropped the fruit, and it rolled in every direction. No one stopped to help him as he scurried about on the sidewalk picking it all up. Everyone was much too busy rushing to and from work to take notice of him or to lend a hand.

So he just ran around dodging between their feet trying to pick up all of his fruit. Some of the people hurrying by got angry at him and told him to get out of the way. Others shoved right past him, knocking him over. Then suddenly one man bent down to the little boy's level, gently touched him on the shoulder, looked him in the eye, and said, "Sonny, how can I help?" The boy's face lit up and they both bent down together and picked up the rest of the fruit. As the man was turning to go on his way, the boy tugged at his coat and looking up at him, asked, "Mister, are you God?"

That little boy saw something of God in that man. When people look at us, do they see God? Do we reflect Him to this world? Godliness is a daily thing! It's usually not very dramatic. It often goes unnoticed - unnoticed by others, that is, but it never goes unnoticed by God.

Godliness shows when no one else is around. What are you like when no one else is looking? Are you godly when you're alone? That's true godliness!

We need to develop godliness in our lives whether we ever get recognition for it or not. Godliness is being like God in the good times and in the hard times.

Source: The Art of Prayer by Kenneth E. Hagin
Excerpt permission granted by Faith Library Publications

Author Biography

Kenneth E. Hagin
Web site: RHEMA
 
Rev. Hagin served in Christian ministry for nearly 70 years and was known as the "father of the modern faith movement." His teachings and books are filled with vivid stories that show God's power and truth working in his life and the lives of others.
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