One Trait at a Time: Getting Serious About Genuine Change
Wisdom Scripture
1 Kings 4:29–30 (NIV)
“God gave Solomon wisdom and very great insight, and a breadth of understanding as measureless as the sand on the seashore. 30 Solomon’s wisdom was greater than the wisdom of all the people of the East, and greater than all the wisdom of Egypt.”
Wisdom Quote
Second, wisdom is understood as discipline—that is, both a curriculum of study and a structured form of behavior designed to lead to the formation of character. Character was shaped through study, reflection and the actualization of virtue in both discourse and action.[1]
[1] Perdue, L. G. “Cult, Worship: Wisdom.” Ed. Tremper Longman III and Peter Enns. Dictionary of the Old Testament: Wisdom, Poetry & Writings. 2008: 79–80. Print.
Jesus Got Serious—Really Serious
Align your clear vision with serious determination, and you will be on your way to genuine change. Jesus used vivid, shocking images to illustrate the seriousness of the matter. He said, “And if your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off” (Mark 9:43). And, “If your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out” (Mark 9:47). He was not advocating self-mutilation but using a figure of speech to show his listeners how serious and determined they must be about dealing with sin.
Building on Jesus’s point, William Law wrote a spiritual classic in the early 1700s that challenged the churchgoers of his day:
It would be as foolish as if you claimed to want to be a world-class marathon runner though you never ran, you were a glutton and a drunk, you ate junk food all the time, and you stayed in bed all day. Just as you must have the intention to train in all aspects of life to be a world-class marathon runner if you are to be believed and taken seriously, so you must intend to live for God in all things if you are to be believed and taken seriously to be a Christian.
William Law and Paul Miller, A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life [Updated, Annotated], Location 604.
You must be intensely intentional. You can’t be half-hearted. Genuine change requires passionate determination.
The Power Source—Grace and the Spirit
All this talk about determination might sound to you like self-effort or mere moralism—as simplistic as “try harder” or “just exercise your willpower.” But you and I need more than willpower alone to truly become like Christ. We need God’s power.
Like many, you can swing the pendulum the other way and falsely assume that God’s grace implies effort is not needed. This is a dangerous misreading of God’s Word. It shocks some people to discover that God’s grace teaches us to exercise effort to grow in godliness.
