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| ©Lightwritingmatters 2015 |
Additional Theme Scriptures: Examples of virtue
“And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray
you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold
into Egypt. 5 Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves,
that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life. 6 For
these two years hath the famine been in the land: and yet there are five years,
in the which there shall neither be earing nor harvest. 7 And God sent me
before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by
a great deliverance. 8 So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God…”
[Gen 45:4-8] – KJV
- Joseph, the son of Jacob, great grandson of Abraham, second to the youngest of Jacob’s children, seemed to be naturally bent towards virtue. If you take the time to read his entire story you will see the true modesty/virtue shown by Joseph to his brothers in providing for them despite their hateful past with Joseph.
“And they stoned Stephen, calling upon
God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. 60 And
he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their
charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.” [Acts 7:59-60] – KJV
- Stephen was so wholly transformed into the Christian he became that he was on fire with his Christian commission. He drew the ire of the non Christian leadership of the Jews and wound up making the ultimate sacrifice. Yet, as he submitted to his sentence of death he was recorded as speaking the words of charity, love and modesty/virtue above.
Thus, two examples of very different extremes of virtue but
both equally revealing. If we are confused as to living a life of virtue we can
always look to the true superheroes of the Bible. Of course, it goes without
saying the ultimate in virtue is Jesus. How many of us after reading the
account of his last days the beatings, the mockery, the wrongful charges, the
disrespect, the humiliation and eventually his death feel they could not live
through all of that and then say ‘Father, forgive them for they know not what
they are do.’?
Remarks on Verses
A few remarks about the foregoing
scripture references. This post is about “VIRTUE”. Over eons of time the
perception of ‘virtue’ has changed. From the basic definition of ‘moral
excellence’ ‘moral goodness’ our American culture has grown so far from the
unanimous understanding of ‘virtuous’ it must be defined by example.
Today, in our culture, people who
exhibit virtue are mocked and denigrated by the different platforms of
philosophy. Some politicians campaign on virtue but their actions fall far short
of proving their words accurate. This past election the two-party system
nominated two individuals whose personal, political and business
history/reputation were rife with scandal. However, the electorate bears much
responsibility for voting in numbers high enough to nominate them. So, virtue
apparently lacks a clear definition within the American culture, at least at
the political leadership level.
Additionally, Christian churches have
moved away from some of the foundational principles of Christianity ranging
from absolute acceptance of lifestyles not approved for Christians to tacit
approval by no longer preaching the Bible’s words on those topics for fear it
will offend or insult people.
Are
our Christian principles skewed toward GOD?
Nowadays, it seems an acceptable
practice to conflate facts to present them in a deceptive way. Some justify
their lifestyles by rationalizing that Jesus ‘hung out with sinners’. Or, Jesus
did not condemn the woman who stood accused of adultery -- charged of sin by
her accusers. Yet, conflating Jesus’s willingness to use the accused as a
teaching moment as acceptance of the practice of sin is ludicrous. Jesus
acknowledged the charges of sin against the adultress when HE challenged her
accusers to live according to the LAW they were trying to enforce. Jesus simply
offered whoever among them were without sin to participate in her execution. No
stone was cast, she was not executed, they understood they had sin. But Jesus’
final words to her were to ‘go, and sin no more.’ [John 8:11]
He did not ‘hang
out’ with sinners and encourage them to continue
in their sin. Jesus was the only person on earth without sin. HIS entire
entourage was comprised of sinners. However, HIS message was consistent. HE did
not disavow the ‘Law’ HE taught the Law the way it was written and meant to be
understood. HE came to fulfill the LAW. HE taught the disciples and those
following HIM what the LAW meant, what HIS gospel would mean and healed those
who were bereft with maladies from blindness to demon infestation. One can
interpret much into this instance but that Jesus’ approves of the commission of
sin is not one. HE clearly showed mercy by not harshly demanding the letter of
the law and we too should show mercy when it is necessary.
The object lesson
with the adultress however showed the ones who were trying to trip up Jesus
were themselves guilty of sin, perhaps even the one of adultery, and when put
on the spot to conduct honest self-analysis of their own lives they could not
cast the first stone. Then, since no one remained to condemn her HE said ‘neither
do I condemn thee.’ Nowhere in this account of what happens is there a
condoning of the practice
of sin.
Long after the Church began to expand
beyond Israel and the ‘Jewish’ people, Jesus did continue teaching HIS
disciples what is acceptable ‘virtue’. In Revelation chapters 2 and 3, Jesus
reveals to John what to write to the 7 congregations in Asia Minor. Some of
them were censured by Jesus for their ‘sinful’ activities despite the fact they
knew better. HE told them what they were doing wrong, gave them a prescription
on how to stop and a prognosis contingent on their choice. If they chose not to
cease and desist in their sin they would not fare well. This was decades AFTER
HE was resurrected. [Example: Rev 2:12-17]
We owe it to our commitment to GOD to
honor the shed blood of HIS SON on our behalf by accepting the grace of GOD ---
but NOT missing its purpose. [2 Cor 6:1] We should check to make sure are
Christian principles exhibit our being skewed towards GOD --- not society.
Back to Joseph and Stephen:
This post is about ‘virtue’ and how
to become a person with virtue. Again, not from the shifting social standards
of our culture but from GOD’s perspective. The two persons who were the subject
of the two scriptures above, Joseph, son of Jacob and Stephen, first Christian
martyr, are two Biblical examples of ‘virtue’.
Continuing
¯
Part Seven:
ü If there be any VIRTUE
From Vine’s Expository Dictionary:
Greek word: arete
Definitions: Virtue:
" properly denotes whatever procures pre-eminent
estimation for a person or thing; hence, "intrinsic eminence, moral goodness,
virtue,"
(b) of any particular moral excellence, Phl 4:8; 2Pe 1:5 (twice),
where virtue is enjoined as an essential quality in the excercise of faith, RV,
"(in your faith supply) virtue."
[Strong’s Definitions G703]
From Thayer’s Greek Lexicon: “any particular moral
excellence, as modesty, purity…”
To expound a little more on the definition:
From Strong’s Definitions”
ἀρέτη arétē, ar-et'-ay;
from the same as G730; properly, manliness (valor), i.e. excellence
(intrinsic or attributed):—praise, virtue.
Conclusion
As
you may deduce, there are many ways to live a virtuous life. We have been
building Christian character attributes through the consideration of each of
the character traits listed in Phil 4:8. Each of them serves as a compound
example of virtue. This post has given the reader viable examples of virtue in
situations many of us would not ‘naturally’ act. It could be said Joseph and
Stephen acted in a ‘supernatural’ way to show virtue. We do not need for a
circumstance in our lives to be inspired to behave in a virtuous way. We can
take heart knowing the series of posts highlighting the different character
qualities is a great opportunity to pray, study, and practice these qualities.
When we begin to see our character, temperament, personality reflecting these
qualities we know we are behaving in a virtuous way.
If there be any VIRTUE…continue considering these things.
Draw close to God, and he will draw close to you
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| ©Lightwritingmatters 2015 |
©Lightwritingmatters 2015
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