Recently, I posted a blogpost about what the Holy Spirit teaches the godly. I hope it helps you with self-examination.

Now, what does Jesus say about the godly?  We can examine ourselves by this also. 

The Beatitudes

Jesus gives us the characteristics of the godly in His Sermon on the Mount.

He begins with the Beatitudes, which is another way of saying that these are “Blessed people”.

Jesus begins with “poverty of spirit”.  The godly are so spiritually poor that they beg day by day for spiritual food.  They pray each day for spiritual food and meditate on the Bible, the Word of God, day and night Ps 1:1-2 for this food. Their spiritual life depends upon such food.  Jesus answered him saying, “It is written that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word of God” Lk 4:4.

The following Beatitudes in Jesus’ sermon are in the same spiritual mold – those who mourn spiritually, those who are spiritually meek (not weak), and those who hunger and thirst after righteousness.

What is this hunger and thirst? The godly are already declared righteous for Jesus’ sake Rom 5:1. Their legal status is righteous in the sight of the law of God because they have been freely justified by God’s grace. However, in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus describes something different. Hunger and thirst are regular, healthy, bodily appetites and here Jesus uses them to describe the spiritual hunger for personal righteousness by the godly.  Jesus says such are blessed. Does it describe you? The body gets hungry and thirsty so that we will eat and drink to keep our body healthy.  Similarly, the spirit of the godly becomes hungry and thirsty for righteousness, especially when the godly experience the weakness of their sinful flesh, so that our spirit needs regular repentance and hungers for righteousness by daily prayer for grace Heb 4:16.

Jesus continues His Beatitudes, describing the nature of true godliness.  “Blessed are the merciful,” He says, and adds to these the peacemakers and the pure in heart.  Is this your idea of the godly?  It ought to be.  Nor are these either/or characteristics but both/and or rather all/and.  The godly are all like this, wholly.  Do you know them?  This is why so many people will concede that the world would be a better place if people were like Jesus.  It will come, but we may not live long enough to see it in this world.  However, we can make a difference during our own lifetime, and it will make all the difference for us in eternity.

This is how Jesus describes a godly person, those people who are following Him along the narrow way that leads to the Father’s house and eternal life.

Is this how you would describe the godly?  Does it describe you?

Jesus continued: “Let your light shine in such a way before men” Mat 5:16. The Christian character of the Beatitudes Mat 5:3-12 shines like a light for others to see.  You may meet them in your life, but you will not find them portrayed on film and documentaries, which falsely claim to tell us about “real life”, “life as it is”. Really? Well, show us some godly people and their lives.

The apostle Paul picked up the theme: “That you may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom you shine as lights in the world” Php 2:15. In Php 2:12-15 Paul gives us a plan for Christian action to shine as lights in this world.

Jesus finished the Sermon on the Mount with a warning about those who think that they are okay but are not, and the middle of the Sermon is just as interesting, although people selectivity quote parts of it as it suits them, and overlook other parts of it.  It is better to read the whole sermon and, for that matter, the whole Bible.

Next time, God willing, we can look at what the apostle Paul has to say on the same subject.

Meanwhile, it should be enough that we have the opinion of the Holy Spirit and of Jesus Christ about the godly.  I hope it helps you.

Links:

17 Aug 2024: what the Holy Spirit teaches the godly.

5 Oct 2024: Jesus’ teaching about the godly.

28 Oct 2024: the apostle Paul’s teaching about the behaviour of the godly.

18 Nov 2024: God the Father’s teaching His children.