What is Character?
Author: Pat Aman
1998/2009/rev2016rev2024
Proverbs 22: 1
“A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favor rather than silver and gold.”
God has made us to have external characteristic and internal characteristics. The external things are those part of us that everyone can see. They are the outside part of us, how tall we are, what we look like, how good we are at music or sports or art, how well we do in our schoolwork and many other areas that others see about us. Most people place the most importance on these external things. They are very concerned about what they wear and if they have “name brand” clothing or not. They are concerned about the style and cut of their hair, about the style and cut of their hair. Many times even the brand of tennis shoes that they wear is of great importance.
It is not wrong to look sharp and wear stylish things. It is not wrong to do well in school. It is not wrong to want to do our best in football or basketball or make the cheerleading squad. These are good things to desire. But they are not the most important things about us. Part of growing up and becoming a mature man or woman is really knowing what is important and what is not important.
The really important part of you is the internal part called your character. The reason this is important is that sooner or later, what you are really like on the inside will show on the outside. If you are a liar and think you can get away with it, soon you will lie often; and you will be found out, and your character will show you for what you are. If you have much pride in some ability, soon others will notice your pride and will not want to acknowledge the ability God’s has given you.
They will not care how good you are at something, for they will not want to be around you. But if you work on your character, it will show through your life and make those external things even better.
For example, if you are a giving and caring person from your heart, others around will be happy for you when something good happens to you. If you are self-centered and only think of yourself, others will not be happy and glad for you when something good happens.
The reason that people sometimes do not have friends is because their inner character is not pretty or smart. What we are on the inside will sooner or later always show to others.
Just remind yourself of what is really important. Stop and think of ten bad attitudes, and then think of ten good attitudes. After you think about these attitudes it will be obvious which attitudes are of God and which are of the flesh. If we are to grown in our character and “Be conformed to the image of Jesus” by the Holy Spirit working in us, we must remember some very important things.
We must desire to be like Jesus and consciously choose to “walk in the spirit”.
We must recognize that from time to time we will “fall back” and choose to give in to the desires of the flesh. We must not be discouraged by this but use those times to determine that we have an even greater desire to be like Jesus.
When we do give in to the desires of the flesh, we must realize that we have sinned and confess our sin to God. He promises in I John 1: 9 that if we confess our sins to Him, He will “forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness”
After we have received forgiveness, we need to ask God to fill us with His Spirit and Guide us in the way we should go.
If we are conscious of these things, we can be sure that God will be at work making us more and more like Jesus. We will want of live a life that we will be filled with love for others, and with peace and joy in our hearts, longsuffering and patience when things do not go our way, gentleness and goodness in our attitudes toward others and faithfulness when God wants to use us to do something good. When we have these things, we will not have to suffer guilt, anger, rebellion and all those other attitudes and feelings that continually hurt us and others. We will be free to be all God wants us to be.
When we read the story of Noah, we read that the people in Noah’s time were living in the flesh and did not desire to seek after God. It was not long before God destroyed them all, for their hearts were sinful and wicked. Noah and his family were not perfect, but God say in Genesis 6:8 that “Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord”
Noah is a good example for all of us. God does not expect us to be perfect, but He does want us to learn to walk in the Spirit and to desire to become like Jesus. When this is our desire, He promises to bless us in many ways. One of God’s promises to Noah was that He would never again destroy the earth with a flood. But God does tell us many times that if we continue to walk in the flesh which is sin, and have no desire to learn to walk like Jesus, there will be consequences in our lives that are not good. Just as your parents might give you consequences of punishment for misbehavior, so does God warn us of consequences of allowing ungodly character to be a part of our lives. Think now about your character. What is there about your character do you need to change? What are the good things about your character?
Read the verses below and they will help you answer the two questions above.
Proverbs 6:16-19 16 These six things the LORD hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him:
17 A proud look, A lying tongue,
Hands that shed innocent blood,
18 A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil,19 A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren.
Proverbs 10:12 Hatred stirs up strife, But love covers all sins.
Proverbs 11:2 When pride comes, then comes shame; But with the humble is wisdom.
Proverbs 12:A good man obtains favor from the LORD, But a man of wicked intentions He will condemn.
Proverbs 15:29The LORD is far from the wicked, But He hears the prayer of the righteous.
Proverbs 19:23 The fear of the LORD leads to life, And he who has it will abide in satisfaction; He will not be visited with evil.
Proverbs 28:13-14
13 He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy. 14 Happy is the man who is always reverent, But he who hardens his heart will fall into calamity.
Devotion Written By: Pastor Pat Aman Book © 1996/2023 “Coffee With Pat Daily Devotionals” “Coffee With A Little Spice Of Life” and Westbow Press a division of © Thomas Nelson and Library of Congress Control Number: 2018910976
Media – Books