Alistair Begg on Godliness
11 But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. 12 Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
- From “A Charge to A Man of God, Part 2, A” based on 1 Timothy 6:11-12
- Godliness or spiritual fitness is expressive of an old word which has fallen into disrepute – piety
- Piety is usually taken as a negative or derogatory term even when it is used among believing people
- We are dismissing what Paul says to Timothy we are to pursue
- One of the reasons we have so little impact on our culture is we have distanced ourselves from the very things that would make us distinctive
- Church doesn’t make us distinctive in of itself
- Religious interest doesn’t make us distinctive
- A concern for spiritual things only puts on par with millions of people across this nation
- It is going to have to be something else and it is
- There is no question that there is a legalism and a self-deceit that is wrapped up in false kinds of piety – Jesus abhorred that stuff in the Pharisees
- Don’t draw attention to yourself be pious, be Godly
- Alistair reads from Lewis Bailey “The Practice of Piety”
- Preaching
- We actually believe the mouth of God is heard through the mouth of a man
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