The Character of a Christian
The first thing to say about the character of a Christian, is that it reflects the character of God!
We are made in the image of God, like a reflection of His Character, so that a Christian should seek to be more and more like God’s Character.
God’s Character is described in the Bible and cannot be learnt from the world, because the world reflects the character of Satan.
The whole basis of the character of a Christian, is that it expresses God’s love in all they do.
This is why the description of the character of a Christian in Galatians 5 22-23 begins with love from which all the other fruit flow.
In other words the first attitude a Christian should have is the quality of love God expresses towards us.
This is why some of the most famous passages in the Bible are: John 13:34–35, 1 Corinthians 13:1-7 and the expression of love in Galatians 5:22–23.
Love expressed is the opposite of the world attitude Satan tries to put on you found in Galatians 5:19–20.
The earth is God’s training ground to learn and express the character of God. Everything God does for us is designed to develop His character in us to help develop the relationship we have with Him and to prepare us for heaven.
Satan’s objective is to stop you developing God’s character in you and attacks you using your areas of weakness against you.
James 5:16 says we need to know our weaknesses so others can help us overcome that.
A deliverance session may be needed to fight these attacks. This means we need to know how Satan attacks us and how to deal with these attacks.
Maintaining the character of God in us is found in pursuing various activities:
Holiness: it is rejecting everything Satan tries to have you and pursuing everything God desires you to do;
Pursuing correct obedience, service and stewardship which Satan tries to have you do incorrectly so you will not use things or do things that God requires you to do so that The Kingdom of God is affected negatively some way;
Trying to express his love in all you do;
Being guided by The Holy Spirit when God’s advice in The Bible is not clear.
These activities are a result of the love we have for what God has done for us.
God did not need to make as but did so for our benefit. He develops his character in us so we become as close as we can to be prepared to heaven and to correctly relate to him as best we can now and in heaven.
How much of God’s character we learn and reflect depends on how much we desire to be like Him and how much we desire to be conformed to His character.
He is so concerned to help us that he even gives us the part of himself, The Holy Spirit, to help us in the development of our character. This is how much He desires us to be conformed to His character so we will be with him in heaven.
If we desire to be like him He will do all he can to supply all our needs for us to grow and mature in His character.
This is why the presence of the holy spirit in us so important. He teaches and guides us using the Bible, Godly mentors and teachers as well as the experiences in life He puts us through. This is why it is so important not to argue, reason, react, assume or use preconceived habits and attitudes because God is original and does not need to do something the same way twice.
Unless the Bible all the laws of the land to do something that is not godly, which we must follow these, and you need to check everything that The Holy Spirit that is not covered by these laws.
Deliberately disobeying these can send you to hell because you are disobeying what God said about obeying them.
God has given you everything you need to develop His character in you and He would not be a God of love if He did not do this (Matthew 6:33) so you have no excuse for not doing your best to develop the character of God in you.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law,” Galatians 5 22-23.
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another,” John 13:34–35.
“Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.
Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things,” 1 Corinthians 13:1-7.
“Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much,” James 5:16.
“Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies,” Galatians 5:19–20.
“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you,” Matthew 6:33.
~ Through Neville Salvetti
Neville Salvetti is a deliverance minister and can be contacted via The Web Pages of Neville Salvetti and at: salvettina@bigpond.com if you desire deliverance or to know how to do it.
Neville have been told to preach three things:
♥ Deliverance ♥ How to Hear The Holy Spirit ♥ How to fight Satan
This is the need of the hour as it demonstrates The Kingdom of God, which is what attracts people to Jesus.
Amen