Does Character Count?

How would you define character?

According the dictionary character is defined as such:

the set of qualities that make somebody or something distinctive, especially somebody’s qualities of mind and feeling…

Now does God care about character? Of course He does…

Let’s take a look at prayer and character and how they interact…

Colossians 3:1-17 reads…

1Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. 2Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

5Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.

12Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

15Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. 17And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Paul echoes this same type language throughout the New Testament. So the thought becomes...how does prayer play into these verses...

Prayer governs character, and character makes conduct…

Conduct is what we do; character is what we are. Conduct is the outward life. Character is the life unseen, hidden within, yet evidenced by what is seen…Character is the state of the heart, conduct its outward expression…

In Christ teaching we see Christ more concern with the inward character, than with outward conduct…

Paul’s Epistles…He is insistent on the holiness of the heart…the righteousness of life…we read one of many tonight…it is the condition of the heart…

The Christian faith is in the business of taking people devoid of spiritual character, an unholy life…and changes them…changes their hearts and their life. It is through prayer this is done…

The office of prayer is to change the character and conduct of men…it has to work from the inside out…

We struggle in life with conduct…many times we treat the symptoms by not the disease…see the disease is a sick heart…ravaged by sin…

Prayer produces cleanliness of heart and purity of life…Unrighteous conduct is born out of praylessness; the two go hand and hand. Prayer and sinning cannot keep company with each other.

If you want to understand how to live the life God has called us to…it starts and ends with prayer…prayer reflects our conduct thus reflects our character…bad living means bad praying and in the end no praying at all.

Here it is plainly stated, unholy conduct is a bar to successful praying, in order to have full access to God in prayer, there must be total abandonment of conscious and premeditated sin.

We are enjoined to pray, “lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting…we have a privilege of calling upon God…our conduct has to reflect this privilege…we cannot divorce praying from conduct.

How are we going to have full access to God if we are living in sin…this is why it’s so important to be in prayer…it is vital to our lives as Christians…

Why is character so important…The most effective preaching, is not that which is heard from the pulpit, but that which is proclaimed quietly, humbly, and consistently; which exhibits its excellence in the home, and in the community.

Don’t get me wrong we are going to sin and fall short…and God loves the repent heart…but repentance means turning away from our sin…old things must pass away, all things must become new…

While life condition by prayer, prayer is also condition of righteous living…Prayer is what sets us on the path of living fruitful lives, prayer set our minds and hearts on things above, it puts to death the old nature…it is the new self, the heart is renewed. From this position we can live as God’s chosen people holy, clothed with compassion, gentle and patient, forgiving…loving

We can have peace of Christ; live in unity….and always…

17And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

So again does character count….yes! Godly character starts and ends with prayer!

-ps

*Taken from E.M. Bounds "The Necessity of Prayer"