By way of review, we talked last Sunday about how to regain hope in life. The three steps were, 1) accept God’s forgiveness through Jesus Christ, 2) build your hopes on your relationship with God and 3) commit to living out the power of God’s Word, the Bible. You can get the message on tape if you are interested.
Hope in life without progress or maturity will eventually wither the hope. The person who is offered help to overcome his alcoholic addiction can have hope, but if he does not make progress toward sobriety, his hope will fade. The woman who is offered help to overcome her financial problem can have hope, but if she does not make sufficient progress toward paying off her debt, she can lose hope. The Christian who is forgiven and loved by God and trying to live according to God Word can have hope, but if he doesn’t grow in godly character, his hope may fizzle, soon.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 tells us, "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."
In other words, God does not give us the hope without giving us the "how’s" to making progress toward realizing the hope. Last week, we addressed the provisions of forgiveness, relationship with God and the power for progress toward godliness. This week, we will address the disciplines for godliness. So if you want a title, write down, "Disciplines for Godliness."
John gives us three disciplines that will enable us to grow in godliness. The text for this morning is 1 John 2:15-17. Let me go ahead and read that for us.
The first discipline for godliness is the discipline of affection. We read this in verse 15. By using the term, "the world," John is contrasting what is from God and what is from sinful humanity.
Most Christians I know are trying very hard to grow in godly character and godly lifestyle, but they are not making much progress. One of the main reasons is that Christians don’t understand how to discipline their affection, those things we love. The discipline of affections allows us to choose what or whom we will love.
When I was in middle school, my best friend and I decided to play a dirty trick on a girl. We decided to make her think I liked her and then dump her. I walked close to her, sat next to her, talked with her and bought her lunch at the cafeteria. Before I knew what was happening, I began to really like her. If that weren’t bad enough, she ended up with a crush on my best friend.
Matthew 6:21 tells us, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
Most people don’t realize we can change our heart’s affection by deciding where we would put our treasures. Our treasures are our time, money, thoughts, energy, and any other resource we value.
Spiritually speaking, if you want to love God more, spend more time talking with God in prayer, listen to God by reading His Word, the Bible and give whatever resources you value to God’s work. Before you know what is happening, you will begin to fall in love with God.
The same is true of your relationship with your spouse. Spend time talking and listening to your spouse. Think about her; serve her with your energy and spend money on her. You will fall in love with your spouse all over again.
The first discipline for godliness is the discipline of affection. The second discipline for godliness is the discipline of adoption. We read this in verse 16.
The discipline of adoption allows us to choose what we would progress toward. John points out three areas where we need to apply the discipline of adoption. They are the areas of our cravings, our vision, and our recognition.
Ephesians 4:22-24 tells us, "You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." We are to adopt new objects of craving, vision and recognition.
To overcome the cravings of our sinfulness, we need to adopt new benefits to crave. By 4 am this morning, I was craving sleep, but I overcame the craving by adopting a new craving, the craving to complete this message. A helpful exercise is to set goals toward which you want to progress and take action on reaching the goals. Goals create cravings. New goals create new cravings. Godly goals create godly cravings.
To overcome the lust of the eyes, which leads to greed or envy, we need to adopt new images for the eyes. Seeing godly models or mentors in action is powerful. They inspire us to grow in godliness through our eyes. A helpful exercise is to take pictures with people you want to become like and keep the pictures where you can see them often.
To overcome boasting about the wrong things, we need to adopt new kinds of recognition we go after. For instance, a person who boasts about her good looks can change by adopting a new characteristic for which to be recognized. She may adopt intelligence or godliness as the new recognition to go after. A helpful exercise is to write down three traits you would most like to describe you. Then work on those three traits until they become so prominent that people can’t keep from recognizing them in you.
The first discipline for godliness is the discipline of affection. The second discipline for godliness is the discipline of adoption. The third discipline for godliness is the discipline of action. We read this in verse 17.
Repeat an action; reap a habit. Repeat a habit; reap a destiny. If our destiny is godliness, we have to take action toward that end. Even though salvation is a gift dependent upon the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross, we still have to take action to believe and receive Jesus Christ into our lives.
Jesus tells his disciples in John 6:27-29, "Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval."
Then the [disciples] asked him, "What must we do to do the works God requires?"
Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent."
The same Apostle Paul who said, "[God] who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus (Philippians 1:6)," also said, "continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose (Philippians 2:12)."
The discipline of affection and the discipline of adoption require action on our part. 1 Timothy 4:8 reads, "For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come."
Those who have watched me play tennis might be surprised if I told you that I was quite good in tennis around the time that Michael Chang was at the peak of his game. I would watch him on television and then call a friend to go play tennis.
On the court, I would try to duplicate what I saw on TV, but my muscles wouldn’t cooperate. I thought I’m Chinese, and Michael Chang is Chinese. What’s the difference? The difference is that he had the discipline to practice his serves, his forehands and backhands many hours each day.
Do you want to grow in godly character and godly lifestyle? If you do, put into action the discipline of affection, the discipline of adoption and the discipline of action.
