Focal Passage: 1 Timothy 4:7-10; Titus 3:1-9
I love setting New Year’s resolutions. This year I tried something new. Someone once said, “You know how to achieve your goals – by setting them low enough.” One of my New Year’s resolutions this year was to take a multivitamin each day. My wife told me she was proud of me for setting that goal. She went on to say that I normally set goals like run an Ironman or race in Baja 1000 – goals that unless God intervened I would never achieve. Besides, getting in shape is overrated. It is like shuffling the chairs on the Titanic – no matter where you put them on the ship it’s still going to go down. Seriously, I think staying physically healthy is extremely important, but I don’t think it is as important as staying spiritually healthy – not that they are mutually exclusive. A person should strive for both, physical fitness and godliness. However, when you examine the scriptures, the Apostle Paul puts the greater value on training in godliness. He writes, “… Rather train yourself for godliness, for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come” (1 Timothy 4:7-8, ESV).
What are some of the benefits of a godly life? Some of the benefits include a deeper love relationship with God, a life that produces more spiritual fruit (John 15:5), greater rewards in heaven (1 Corinthians 3:10-15), and a life that is filled with contentment (Philippians 4:10-13).
Practicing godliness means you invest your time in eternal matters. Years ago I read a book by Christopher Adsit called, Personal Disciple-making.
In the first part of the book he shared a quote that has significantly impacted my life.
He writes, “God, the Word of God, and the souls of men … According to the Bible, these are the only things that will last eternally. To the extent that you are involved in these three things, you are involved in eternity.”
If you want to make a difference for eternity, make practicing godliness your first priority.