All Things Under His Feet

“This aspect of holiness has two dimensions: the shaping of our character to be set apart in godliness and the shaping of our calling so that our lives will be set apart for God’s purposes. In short, to be holy is to dedicate all that we are and all that we do to God.” (Mark Galli, Jesus Mean and Wild)

The Foundation

In his thought-provoking book, Galli lists the two dimensions of the holy life: character and calling. Always remember at our salvation does not DEPEND on our works. The grace of Jesus Christ saves us. “He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.” (Gal. 3:14)

But if we do not grow in Christian character or actions, at best we don’t realize the blessings we could have; at worst we lose our salvation because we slide into uncaring and disbelief. The foundation of Christian character and calling is Jesus and our repentance. Remember that “repentance” doesn’t just mean feeling sorry about something. We can feel sorry about something until the cows come home. Repentance is metanoia, meaning “turning.” We actively and deliberately turn back to God when we repent, and we follow Him. So once we have accomplished the repentance that leads to salvation – once we acknowledge Jesus as Lord – the Bible makes it very, very clear that we are to grow more like Christ in our character, and we are to act by following and obeying His will.

Character – All that we are

Character comes first because our calling and activities rise out of a godly character. If we are doing amazing actions but do not love then we are doing nothing at all. “If I speak in the tonguesof men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. ² If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. ³ If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.” (1 Cor. 13:1-3).

The directions for Christian character are right there in Galatians 5:22-23: “²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” We can’t produce these things on our own! Some of them come easier to us than others because of our natural personalities. Kindness may be innately easier for one Christian than another one, who has struggled all her life with a critical spirit. But Ms. Critical may be more faithful than the kinder person, who doesn’t always take God’s will very seriously. It is the Holy Spirit who produces all of these characteristics in our lives! We must be open to His guidance and when we are, He will grow this beautiful fruit in our lives.

Calling – All that we do

As character grows, it produces discernment and action around the will of God. And this is serious stuff. “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.” (2 Cor. 5:10) If you are saved your are saved, but will you hear “Well done, good and faithful servant?” I want to hear it! “For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.” (Mt. 16:27)

What we do in obedience to God is our purpose and calling.

Read Part 2: Building Character in Christ