Godly living

As Christians who claim to be committed to serving our living Lord we should not be surprised that people do scrutinise our every move, as unfortunate as this may seem. Do not be discouraged by this though, remember that the Pharisees watched Christ’s every move and tested Him on several occasions in an attempt to charge Him for being in err. When we are set apart from the world, the world will realise this and the adversary will use all his tricks to try and make as stumble or even fall. Worldly people, as you may have experienced, will be quick to point out a fault and they do so with enthusiasm, how do we ensure that this doesn’t occur? Firstly we should make sure that our faith is grounded in Christ and through His church we should make every effort to receive the sacraments established by Christ and His Apostles. Why? Because the closer we draw to God the closer He will draw to us and the closer He draws to us the more Godly we become, James 4:8 and 2nd Peter 1:4. When we become Godly, when we are able to love unconditionally, give generously, forgive abundantly, remain patient, show humility, control our desires and live peacefully, the world will have no reason to point and accuse, neither will the adversary. When we are able to live in a Godly manner the Lord Himself will protect and guide us in our lives. He will teach, warn and rebuke us, constantly refining us so that with each passing day He sees our Lord Jesus increase in us and in order for Christ to increase in us, we (we being ourselves) must decrease, John 3:30. We cannot achieve a Godly life by simply trying to be good, or by living a socially acceptable life, think about what socially acceptable means these days and I am sure you will agree with my sentiments. God wants us to become perfect, holy and righteous (Matthew 5:48) and this is only achievable through faith in Christ and by our deeds that are made manifest through our faith, for faith and works go hand in hand, James 2:14. We must first draw close to God and He will transform us and teach us to live a Godly life, by so doing, we will be the light of the world and the salt of the earth, without blame and as a shining example of Christ rather than a target for others to point their fingers towards.