Godliness

From The White Horse Inn

Godliness

The manner of life that is centered on God, with special reference to devotion, piety, and reverence toward him. It can be defined as the conjunction of an attitude of devotion to God and of the consequent right conduct.

In the Pastoral Epistles eusebeia denotes a particular manner of life and comes close to the OT idea of "the fear of God." However, it does not focus upon the law, but on the individual believer's faith in Christ (1 Tim. 3:16). The secret of the godly life is the revelation of God in Jesus Christ; godliness is basically following him in this life (Titus 2:12). It is thus presented as a Christian goal, to be earnestly sought after (1 Tim. 2:2; 4:7-8), even if it leads to persecution (2 Tim. 3:12). Godliness and sound doctrine are closely related.

True doctrine is described as being "godly teaching" (1 Tim. 6:3) and "truth that leads to godliness" (Titus 1:1), while an appearance of godliness without true Christian content is characteristic of evil men (2 Tim. 3:5). It is important to note that godliness is directly connected to proper respect for the family (1 Tim. 5:4).

Godliness is thus the honoring of God as Creator and Redeemer that is born of faith in Jesus Christ and expresses itself in daily living. As such, it is a criterion ·for soundness of doctrine and should characterize all Christians.

(Adapted from Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, s.v. "Godliness")