The Appearance of Godliness

Pause:

Before you start reading this devotional, take a moment to stop what you’re doing, slow down and focus on Jesus. 

Pray and ask him to open your eyes to see as you read the Scriptures, and to open your ears to hear as you wait on the leading of the Spirit.

Read:

2 Timothy 3:1-5: “But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self … having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power…”

Going Deeper:

If I may be so bold in asking: What brings you back to reading these daily devotionals? 

This will probably be the shortest devotional posted, but I hope it serves the same purpose that all of the daily devotions over the past month have aimed for. 

When it comes to “checking the boxes,” or to use a more biblical phrase, “having the appearance of godliness,” I will admit that I am pretty capable. If someone asks me to do something that I deem good, important or necessary, I generally get it done without questions asked. But therein lies the problem – I don’t ask questions. It is difficult for me to stop and ask, “Why am I doing this?” or “Should I be doing this?”  or “Where is Jesus in this?”. So let me ask you one more time in case you skipped the essential question above: What brings you back to reading these daily devotionals?

The goal of these daily devotionals is to increase your intimacy, obedience and joy in Jesus, which means that merely checking the box of “I read my daily devotional” is a cheap substitute for what Jesus actually desires for you. It is easy to read a devotional and think we have connected with Christ, yet sometimes we substitute intimacy with Jesus for the appearance of godliness. Even in quarantine we desire the “feeling” of being spiritual, but Jesus wants us to actually experience His power and Spirit. 

Let’s sit with Him and humbly repent of any appearance of godliness we may be walking in without His true power and love in us and through us. Let us sit with Him and joyfully accept His unending love toward us even when we settle for cheap substitutes.

Pray:

Respond to God in prayer by speaking to Him about what stood out to you from this passage this morning.

Listen:

What is the Holy Spirit saying to you this morning?

Apply:

What are you going to do in response to what God is saying to you from the text and by the Spirit?