Morality Distinguished from Godliness


Morality is something society needs in order to survive. We should encourage each other to be moral, ethical, honest, honorable, just, generous, kind, compassionate, all of which should be efforts to love our neighbors as ourselves. But we must never confuse morality and godliness. A person can be moral in all the areas, not perfectly but to the best of his/her abilities, and still not be godly according to God’s definition of godliness.
Godliness in the Scripture has to do with a believer, a justified sinner, one who is in Christ, washed in His blood and clothed in His righteousness. Godliness describes only those who have been born again by the Spirit and who have spiritual life as evidenced by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and repentance of sin. Godliness, then, in the Scriptures refers to the motives and efforts of a believer’s seeking to obey God, to love God and to love his neighbor, acceptably.
The motives for the morality and obedience of a truly godly person are the sovereign grace, mercy, and love of God in Christ and gratitude for all salvation freely given him in and by the Lord Jesus Christ. A godly person knows that his efforts at morality do not make him righteous before God. His claim of righteousness is the Lord Jesus Christ and what Christ accomplished on the cross to save him from sin (JEREMIAH 23:5-6; 33:15-16; ROMANS 10:1-4).

-Gospel report by preacher Bill Parker
Eager Avenue Grace church of Albany, Georgia USA
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