Living Godly in Christ Jesus Teaching the Faith Once Delivered to the Saints-Bible Study #35 by Nolan McFadden “If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; He is proud, knowing nothing,…” I Timothy 6:3-4a Have you ever stopped to consider what is “the doctrine which is according to godliness” spoken of in I Timothy 6:3? As a Christian, are you aware of your responsibility to live a godly life that will honor our Lord and Savior? Likewise, are you aware of your responsibility to reject ungodly doctrines? It is certain that we are living during a time of apostasy from the faith once delivered to the saints (II Thessalonians 2:3, I Timothy 4:1, II Timothy 4:1-4). Without remorse, many are turning to the worship styles and beliefs of religious syncretism. Syncretists mix pagan beliefs, practices and philosophies with Christian beliefs. This blend of beliefs is also called christopaganism. Christopaganism is an abomination to God and a distorted representation of Christianity (II Corinthians 6:15). Christopaganism is a false theology, but, it is also a false lifestyle. Tragically, many are practicing christopaganism without realizing it. How? Many people profess personal faith in Jesus Christ without genuine repentance from ungodly living and pagan beliefs. Whereas, only some of the many who profess to be Christians are living godly, Christian lives. As a result, the testimony for Jesus Christ is disgraced. While many are living as if their doctrine is a license to sin, genuine Christians must purpose to receive and practice “the doctrine which is according to godliness.” Is “the doctrine which is according to godliness” taught and practiced in your home, church and school? Our Bible study will focus on answering four relevant questions. What is godliness according to the New Testament Scriptures? What is necessary to live godly in Christ Jesus? What are some biblical applications of godliness in the Christian’s life? Why must Christians separate from ungodliness? Let’s seek some answers to these questions and discover what the Holy Bible teaches about godliness. I. What is godliness according to the Scriptures? I A. The words godly and godliness defined: In the New Testament Scriptures, the words godly and godliness refer to genuine devotion, loyalty and reverence toward God. 1. “GODLINESS, GODLY, A.Nouns. “EUSEBEIA (ευσεβεια), from eu, well, and sebomai, to be devout, denotes that piety which, characterized by a Godward attitude, does that which is well-pleasing to Him.” -Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words by W.E. Vine (p. 502) 2. “Godliness, the rendering of Gr. eusebeia, reverence, in Scripture everywhere piety toward God (Acts 13:2, A.V., “holiness;” I Tim. 2:2; 4:7,8 ;6:3,5,6,11).”
2 -Unger’s Bible Dictionary by Merrill Unger (p.411) 3. “ευσεβεια, ασ, η (Pre-Socr., Aeschyl.+; inscr., pap. as “piety, reverence, loyalty, fear of God”) in our lit and in the LXX only of the duty which man owes to God piety, godliness, religion…” -A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature by W.F. Arndt and F.W. Gingrich (p.326) B. Some examples of godliness (loyalty and devotion to God) in the Scriptures: 1. Enoch was an excellent example of godliness because he “walked with God.” Twice, Enoch’s walk with God is mentioned in Genesis 5:22-24. 2. Noah was a God-fearing man (Hebrews 11:7), who “walked with God” (Genesis 6:9), “obeyed” God (Genesis 6:22, Hebrews 11:8) and was “a preacher of righteousness” (II Peter 2:5) who lived in an ungodly, violent, corrupt society (Genesis 6:11-13, II Peter 2:5). 3. Joseph is a witness of godliness. He “fled” Potiphar’s wife when she attempted to lure him into adultery(Genesis 39:7-12). Likewise, Joseph chose to forgive his treacherous brothers (Genesis 45:3-11). 4. Old Testament prophets such as Elijah, Elisha, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Exekiel, Daniel and others demonstrated their supreme loyalty and devotion to God by proclaiming God’s Word to ungodly leaders. They were aware that they were putting their lives at risk to deliver God’s message. 5. Our Lord Jesus is the greatest example of godliness in the Scriptures. He was God in human flesh (John 1:14, Colosians 2:9, Romans 1:4). 6. Stephen is a great example of godliness. He boldly preached Jesus and the gospel to unbelieving Hebrew leaders. They stoned Stephen to death for his witness as he steadfastly looked to Jesus (Acts 7:55-60).
II. What is necessary to live godly in Christ Jesus? A. Recognize that godly living is God’s will for you (Titus 2:12, II Peter 1:5-7). Godliness is a New Testament command for all Christians. You must add godliness to your faith. This involves developing godly habits in your daily living. It means yielding your thoughts, words and actions to God (Romans 6:12-13). In II Peter 1:5-6 believers are instructed, “..giving all diligence, add to your faith v______________; and to v______________ k____________________; And to k_____________________ t______________________;
3 and to t______________________ p__________________; and to p__________________ g_____________________;” B. How is the believer who lacks godliness described in II Peter 1:9? Explain. __________ _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ C. According to Titus 2:11-12, the grace of God teaches us, “that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live s_________________, r________________________, and g_____________, in this present world;” D. In Titus 2:12 which two practices does God’s grace teach us to deny? 1. ________________________________ 2. ________________________________ E. Which three words describe how Christians are to live as set forth in Titus 2:12? 1. ________________________________ 2. ________________________________ 3. ________________________________ F. Which six characteristics should believers follow after according to I Timothy 6:11? List them. 1. ________________________________ 2. ________________________________ 4. ________________________________ 5. ________________________________ 6. ________________________________ G. Christians must teach, “the d________________ which is a___________________ to g_____________________” as set forth in I Timothy 6:3. H. In Titus 1:1 the apostle Paul mentions, “..the acknowledging of the t_________________ which is after g___________________________;” I. According to II Timothy 3:12, “all that will live g__________________ in Christ Jesus shall suffer p___________________________.” J. Why will the followers of Jesus be persecuted as revealed in John 15:18-20? Explain. ____________________________________________ ________________________________________ K. What did God do for Paul in regard to his persecutions and afflictions as recorded in II Timothy 3:11? ____________________________ ____________________________________________ God never promises that we will not have afflictions and persecutions. Rather, God promises that He will go with us through them (Hebrews 13:5-6). A Christian is in God’s hand (John 10:29). III. What are some biblical applications of godliness in the Christian’s life? A. “..that we may lead a q_____________ and p__________________ life in all g___________________ and h__________________.” I Timothy 2:2 B. What important character quality is coupled with godliness in I Timothy 2:2? __________
4 C. “Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all h_________ c____________________ and g__________________,” II Peter 3:11 D. What is joined with godliness in II Peter 3:11? __________________________________ E. According to I Timothy 6:6, “g___________________ with c_____________________ is great gain.” Contentment is being satisfied with what you have (Hebrews 13:5). It means learning to live with what God has provided without financial bondage. F. In I Timothy 2:9-10 God’s command that Christian women, “adorn themselves in m________________ a____________________,…” is consistent with godliness. T / F G. Likewise, the character quality of godliness is identified with “g_____________ w____________” in I Timothy 2:10. H. From the Scriptures listed, write some practical applications of godliness which God desires for your life. _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ IV. Why must Christians separate from ungodliness (Titus 2:12, II Peter 2:5-9)? A. What is regarded as ungodliness in the Scriptures? Ungodliness is the opposite of godliness. Therefore, ungodliness refers to actions, thoughts and communications which are unholy, disrespectful and disloyal toward God. All sin is disloyalty toward God. Likewise, unholiness is not choosing to separate from sin. Irreverence toward God is not choosing to honor God in your communications. This includes using God’s name in vain and living with little or no concern of offending God (no fear of God-Romans 3:13-18). Ungodliness is not only doing what is wrong, it is refusing to do what God wants you to do.
B. Some examples of ungodliness in God’s Word: 1. The people of Noah’s day are regarded as an example of ungodliness in the Scriptures (II Peter 2:5). They were ungodly, violent and corrupt (Genesis 6:11-13). Their ungodliness resulted in God’s judgement by means of the universal flood (Genesis 6:5-7). 2. The people of Sodom and Gomorrha are an example in God’s Word of “living ungodly,” (II Peter 2:6). They practiced, tolerated and propagated sodomy. Genesis 13:13 declares, “But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly.” Their perverted living resulted in God’s judgement of fire and brimstone raining down on them and their cities.
5 “Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to f_____________________, and going after s_______________ flesh, are set forth for an e____________________, suffering the v_________________ of e___________________ f___________.” Jude 7 3. King Ahab and Queen Jezebel are examples of ungodly leaders in the Bible (I Kings 16:30, II Kings 9:22). Guilty of murders, witchcraft and whoredoms, both died in acts of God’s judgement (II Kings 9:35-36, II Chronicles 18:34). 4. False teachers\preachers who “turn the grace of God into lasciviousness,” are regarded as an example of ungodliness in Jude 4. 5. Balaam is an example of an ungodly prophet who disobeyed God and compromised with the wicked king Balak (Numbers 22-23). 6. Satan, also known as the devil and Lucifer, is a fallen angel of light (II Corinthians 11:14). He is the ultimate example of ungodliness (Isaiah 14:12-15, John 8:43-44). C. With what is ungodliness joined in Titus 2:12? “u______________________ and w_________________ l_______________” D. What are worldly lusts? Worldly means of this world. The word lust refers to evil desires. Thus, in Titus 2:12 the aposle Paul is speaking of the evil desires of this world. To desire is not always wrong. For example, it is not wrong to desire that which God wants for you. However, evil desires are desires that are in disobedience to the Scriptures. They are desires that are the opposite of God’s will (covetousness, malice, immoral sexual thoughts). E. Lust always begins in a person’s thought life (Matthew 5:19-20, Mark 7:20-23). In your thought life, lust is fueled by ungodly movies, pornography, ungodly books, immodest clothing, worldly music, ungodly communications and worldly dancing. As a Christian, your thought life and spiritual walk will be defiled by participation in these worldly activities (Romans 12:9, I Corinthians 15:33, Ephesians 5:11, I John 2:15-17). Therefore, it is essential that Christians separate from these ungodly activities as a testimony for Jesus Christ (Romans 12:1-2, Ephesians 5:11). F. “Blessed is the man that w_________________ not in the c__________________ of the u______________________,…” Psalm 1:1 G. How is a man blessed according to Psalm 1:1? _________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________
H. What is the result of the way of the ungodly according to Psalm 1:6? ________________ I. In Jude 4 false teachers are described as, “u_______________ men, turning the g______________ of our God into l__________________________,..” Thus, false teachers turn the grace of God into a license to sin.
6
J. Moreover, false teachers reject the doctrine which is according to godliness (I Timothy 6:3). In I Timothy 6:5 false teachers are described as having, “..c__________________ minds, and destitute of the t__________________, supposing that g______________ is godliness: from such w____________________ thyself.” Consequently, we should note that the “gain is godliness” doctrine sounds very similar to the false “health and wealth gospel” proclaimed in many churches. “It is always God’s will for you to be healthy and wealthy. You must claim unexpected money, inheritances, real estate and extra cash by faith. It’s not God’s will for you to suffer illness, pain or injury. You just need more faith. More faith will give you more money, better health and help you do what you want. If you want something, it can’t be wrong. Whatever makes you feel good can’t be wrong. Now, for a limited time only, we can help you get what you want through our personal empowerment program for a discounted price of only $99.95.” K. It is a great error to rationalize ungodliness in your own life or the lives of others. Ungodliness is always wrong. It is never God’s will for you or others. We must not rationalize sin because of difficult circumstances. Just because you love someone or want something doesn’t mean that you should look the other way regarding sin. Ungodliness is a sin against God (Romans 1:18, Jude 15-18). The only remedy for ungodliness is repentance and personal faith in Jesus Christ and His shed blood for the forgiveness of sins (Proverbs 28:13, Romans 5:6-9). After completing this study, which path will you choose? Check one decision below.
O
I have repented and received Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. By God’s grace, I am making the commitment to live a godly Christian life that will honor my Lord Jesus each day. name _______________________________________________ date ____________________
O
I think Christians can do anything they want after they make a profession of faith. I intend to live as I please and continue practicing ungodly doctrines. 2001 Nolan McFadden
copies permitted