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“I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, with all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:1-3.)
Introduction
God is making true believers into the people He wants us to be. The sort of people we are is determined by how we desire our daily lives to be. Our text gives us insight into the fact that our Christian life does not
consist in what we do but in who we are. Have you noticed that every aspect of our study so far has been about our attitude rather than our actions? Actions are very important, but they must be rooted in holy attitudes.
Holy Actions and Hypocritical Attitudes
Most Christians think that the proof of their faith consists in what they do. It is possible to have all the outward attributes of Christianity yet fail to have the inward attributes of holiness, godliness, righteousness, forgiveness, and love. “This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me” (Matthew 15:8.) Here are a few areas where this is often seen:
1. Praise and worship. Unless we worship God in “spirit and in truth” our worship is in vain (John 4:24.) The heart and mouth need to be united. “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name” (Hebrews 13:1.)
2. Generosity. It is possible to be the most charitable person who has ever lived and still be rejected by God … “And though I bestow all my
good to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:3.)
3. Good deeds. Whenever we do good works it must be for the right reasons and never have any selfish motive. “That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God” (Colossians 1:10.)
4. Preaching and witnessing. Are there not multitudes of preachers proclaiming the word of God for ungodly purposes?
Someone has said, He who serves God for money, will serve the devil for better
wages."
Spiritual Fruits not Religious Nuts
The church has suffered much from religious nuts who hold to the faith but with the wrong attitude. What we need is a healthy diet of spiritual fruit, that is, “the fruit of the Spirit.” We are told by experts that we ought to consume five pieces of fruit every day. God advises us to manifest the nine portions of His fruit daily to maintain a healthy Christian life … “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit” (Galatians 5:22-25.)
Anyone can live a hypocritical life and outwardly be seen as a pillar of the church and active in Christian work. If there is no inner holiness driving our actions then it proves that our attitudes are unrighteous. We must have the right attitude if we are going to produce the fruit that is anointed by the Holy Spirit.
Not a Question of Do’s and Don’ts
The unsaved think that Christianity is regulated by rules about what we can and cannot do. This idea has crept into our thinking too. By obeying rules we are making external behaviour the foundation of Christian experience. External godliness is obviously valid and desirable, but Christianity begins on the inside first. This is the reason why the Lord Jesus Christ reprimanded the religious leaders of His day. “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity” (Matthew 23:25-28.)
Conclusion
External religion has its place, but not at the cost of inner spiritual virtues. Those who love God will have their heart filled with His nature. They will overflow with spiritual fruit and godliness as they walk worthy. We see then, that walking worthy is not something we do with our feet but with the heart. “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23.)