Sound in Charity
Titus 2:2 (KJV) That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience.
Sound: to have sound health, be well; to be uncorrupt (true in doctrine); wholesome
Charity: love, affection, good will, brotherly love, benevolence (desire to do good to others)
What is the scriptural meaning of charity? Here are a few examples:
Colossians 3:14 (KJV) And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.
As a "bond" it binds all other virtues together in harmony and unity.
2 Peter 1:5-7 (KJV) And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; 6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; 7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
Charity refers to God's kind of love (agape love). This kind of love reaches beyond the Christian community to anyone, anywhere, seeking good for others without selfish motives.
1 Peter 4:8-9 (KJV) 8 And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. 9 Use hospitality one to another without grudging.
Hold nothing back in your commitment for the good of one another. Charity is showing kindness to others without complaining about it. We should love others as God loves us.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (KJV) 4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, 5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; 6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
Charity is mentioned 9 times in Chapter 13. I finish with verse 13:
1 Corinthians 13:13 (KJV) And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
Wow... the greatest of all virtues is Charity (love).
This study has been such an eye opener for me. God has thumped me on top of the head and said, "Look at yourself in the mirror, and see what you need to change." I hope this has been an eye opener for you too. Don't you agree that we all need to sit back and examine our motives for helping others?
If you're a leader, teacher or mentor, look at yourself in the mirror too. Are you sound in charity? Do you reach out to others because God reached out to you and you want to glorify Him or because you want yourself to look good to fellow Christians which is only glorifying yourself? Think about it and make a change if God thumps you on the head.
Sneak Peek for Next Week: I've always been told that patience is not something you pray for. If we are called to be sound in patience, then how do we accomplish it? What IS patience?