Godliness – the quality, state, or condition of being godly: such as (1) piety – earnest observance of religious duties and virtues; or (2) the state or condition of being divine. (definition provided by Merriam-Webster Dictionary)
What makes someone appear godly?
Some might say church attendance … the more days a week we gather with God’s people, the more godly we might seem.
Some might say biblical knowledge … the more facts we know about theology or the Bible, the more godly we might seem.
Some might say practicing the right rituals …if we participate in certain ceremonies, we appear more godly.
Some might say what or who we avoid … if we do not associate with certain crowds or participate in certain activities, we appear more godly.
But what if we asked Jesus. What if we asked Jesus (the SON OF GOD) what godliness looks like. What would He say? After all, He is God! There really is no better source to ask what godliness looks like!
In the Sermon on the Plain, Jesus begins to answer the question of what godliness looks like among His people … but (just like we saw last week in His description of the blessed life), His description of the godly life is shocking.
In Luke 6:27-36, Jesus says (among other things) that His followers are to
* Love their enemies
* Do good to those who hate them
* Bless those who curse them
* Pray for those who mistreat them
* Be generous to those who are not generous to them
This list that Jesus mentioned is WAY HARDER than merely attending certain events, avoiding others, or memorizing facts. Jesus was saying that the godly life is an alien life. In our fallen nature, what Jesus is asking us to do is both uncommon and impossible.
I mean seriously … who lives like this?!?
Well, there was One who did live this life. And He has invited us and provided for us to follow Him. This Sunday at Wildwood Community Church in our 8:30, 9:45, and 11:00 services in week 3 of our “Speak Plainly” sermon series, we will be looking at Luke 6:27-36 together to see what godliness looks like, and how Jesus has made a way for us to experience it. See you Sunday … and bring friends!