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Authors: Jerry Bridges

BOOK: The Practice of Godliness: Godliness has value for all things
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Value for All Things
For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.
1 Timothy 4:8

 

There is no higher compliment that can be paid to a Christian than to call him a godly person. He might be a conscientious parent, a zealous church worker, a dynamic spokesman for Christ, or a talented Christian leader; but none of these things matters if, at the same time, he is not a godly person.
The words
godly
and
godliness
actually appear only a few times in the New Testament; yet the entire Bible is a book on godliness. And when those words do appear they are pregnant with meaning and instruction for us.
When Paul wants to distill the essence of the Christian life into one brief paragraph, he focuses on godliness. He tells us that God’s grace “teaches us to say ‘No’ to
ungodliness
and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and
godly
lives,” as we await the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (Titus 2:11-13). When Paul thinks of his own job description as an apostle of Jesus Christ, he describes it as being called to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to
godliness
(Titus 1:1).
In his first letter to Timothy, Paul emphasizes godliness. We are to pray for those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all
godliness
and holiness. We are to train ourselves to
be godly.
We are to pursue
godliness
—the word
pursue
indicating unrelenting, persevering effort.
Godliness
with contentment is held forth as great gain; and finally,
godliness
has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.
When Peter, in looking forward to the day of the Lord when the earth and everything in it will be destroyed, asks what kind of people we ought to be, he answers that we are to live holy and
godly
lives (2 Peter 3:10-12). Here Peter uses the most momentous event of all history to stir us up to our Christian duty—to live holy and
godly
lives.
Surely, then, godliness is no optional spiritual luxury for a few quaint Christians of a bygone era or for some group of super-saints of today. It is both the privilege and duty of every Christian to pursue godliness, to train himself to be godly, to study diligently the practice of godliness. We don’t need any special talent or equipment. God has given to each one of us “everything we need for life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3). The most ordinary Christian has all that he needs, and the most talented Christian must use those same means in the practice of godliness.
What then is godliness? What are the marks of a godly person? How does a person become godly? I have asked a number of people the question, “What do you think of when you think of godliness?” The answers, though varied, always end up expressing some idea of Christian character, using such expressions as “Godlike,” “Christlike,” or “the fruit of the Spirit.” Godliness certainly includes Christian character, but it is more than that. There is another, even more fundamental aspect of godliness than godly character. It is the foundation, in fact, on which godly character is built.
DEVOTION IN ACTION
The Bible begins to give us some clues about godliness in its earliest pages. Genesis 5:21-24 tells us about Enoch, the father of Methuselah. In a very short three-verse summary of Enoch’s life, Moses twice describes him as one who “walked with God.” The author of Hebrews gives Enoch a place in his great “Faith’s Hall of Fame” in chapter 11, but he sees Enoch from a slightly different perspective. He describes him as “one who pleased God.” Here, then, are two important clues: Enoch walked with God, and Enoch pleased God. It is evident from these two statements that Enoch’s life was centered in God; God was the focal point, the polestar of his very existence.
Enoch walked with God; he enjoyed a relationship with God; and he pleased God. We could accurately say he was devoted to God. This is the meaning of godliness. The New Testament word for godliness, in its original meaning, conveys the idea of a personal attitude toward God that results in actions that are pleasing to God.
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This personal attitude toward God is what we call devotion to God. But it is always
devotion in action.
It is not just a warm, emotional feeling about God, the kind of feeling we may get while singing some grand old hymn of praise or some modern-day chorus of worship. Neither is devotion to God merely a time of private Bible reading and prayer, a practice we sometimes call “devotions.” Although this practice is vitally important to a godly person, we must not think of it as defining devotion for us.
FOCUSED ON GOD
Devotion is not an activity; it is an attitude toward God. This attitude is composed of three essential elements:
the fear of God
the love of God
the desire for God

 

We will look at these elements in detail in chapter 2; but for now, note that all three elements focus upon God.
The practice of godliness is an exercise or discipline that focuses upon God.
From this Godward attitude arises the character and conduct that we usually think of as godliness. So often we try to develop Christian character and conduct without taking the time to develop God-centered devotion. We try to please God without taking the time to walk with Him and develop a relationship with Him. This is impossible to do.
Consider the exacting requirements of a godly lifestyle as expounded by the saintly William Law. Law uses the word
devotion
in a broader sense to mean all that is involved in godliness—actions as well as attitude:
Devotion signifies a life given, or devoted to God. He therefore is the devout [godly] man, who lives no longer to his own will, or the way and spirit of the world, but to the sole will of God, who considers God in everything, who serves God in everything, who makes all the parts of his common life, parts of piety [godliness], by doing everything in the name of God, and under such rules as are conformable to his Glory.
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Note the totality of godliness over one’s entire life in Law’s description of the godly person. Nothing is excluded. God is at the center of his thoughts. His most ordinary duties are done with an eye to God’s glory. In Paul’s words to the Corinthians, whether he eats or drinks or whatever he does, he does it all for the glory of God.
Now it is obvious that such a God-centered lifestyle cannot be developed and maintained apart from a solid foundation of devotion to God. Only a strong personal relationship with the living God can keep such a commitment from becoming oppressive and legalistic. John writes that God’s commands are not burdensome; a godly life is not wearisome, but this is true only because a godly person is first of all devoted to God.
Devotion to God, then, is the mainspring of godly character. And this devotion is the only motivation for Christian behavior that is pleasing to God.
This motivation is what separates the godly person from the moral person, or the benevolent person, or the zealous person. The godly person is moral, benevolent, and zealous because of his devotion to God. And his life takes on a dimension that reflects the very stamp of God.
It is sad that many Christians do not have this aura of godliness about them. They may be very talented and personable, or very busy in the Lord’s work, or even apparently successful in some avenues of Christian service, and still not be godly. Why? Because they are not devoted to God. They may be devoted to a vision, or to a ministry, or to their own reputation as a Christian, but not to God.
Godliness is more than Christian character: It is Christian character that springs from a devotion to God. But it is also true that devotion to God
always
results in godly character. As we study the three essential elements of devotion in the next chapter, we will see that all of them, individually and collectively, must express themselves in a life that is pleasing to God. So the definition of godliness we will use in this book is
devotion to God which results in a life that is pleasing to Him.
In the first few chapters of this book we will concentrate on this devotion, seeking to understand what it is and why it results in Christian character. In the later chapters we will look at individual traits of godly character. But we must never lose sight of the fact that devotion to God is the mainspring of Christian character and the only foundation upon which it can be successfully built.
NOTES
1
Vine’s
Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words
defines godliness as, “to be devout, denotes that piety which, characterized by a Godward attitude, does that which is well-pleasing to Him” (Nashville, Tenn.: Royal Publishers, n.d., page 492). J.C. Connell defines godliness as a personal attitude to God and the actions that spring directly from it
(New Bible Dictionary,
London: Inter-Varsity Fellowship, 1962, page 480).

 

2
William Law,
A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life
(Grand Rapids, Mich.: Sovereign Grace Publishers, 1971), page 1.
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Devotion to God
Who will not fear you, 0 Lord,
and bring glory to your name?
For you alone are holy.
All nations will come and worship before you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.
Revelation 15:4

 

Enoch walked with God, and Enoch pleased God. His walk with God speaks of his relationship with God, or his devotion to God; his pleasing God speaks of the behavior that arose from that relationship. It is impossible to build a Christian behavior pattern without the foundation of a devotion to God. The practice of godliness is first of all the cultivation of a relationship with God, and from this the cultivation of a life that is pleasing to God. Our concept of God and our relationship with Him determine our conduct.
We have already seen that devotion to God consists of three essential elements: the fear of God, the love of God, and the desire for God. Think of a triangle representing devotion to God, with these three elements as each of its three points.
The fear of God and the love of God form the base of the triangle, while the desire for God is at the apex. As we study these elements individually, we will see that the fear of God and the love of God form the foundation of true devotion to God, while the desire for God is the highest expression of that devotion.

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