The Sunday Conversation | with Pastor Luke Okoro | 20. 02. 2022
2 Timothy 4:6-8. 1Timothy 4:12.
1 Corinthians 9:24-27.
“For as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink saith he, to thee, but his heart is not with thee’. Proverbs 23:7.
‘Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man but that which cometh out of the mouth, this is what defileth a man. Matthew 15:11.
” Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled’. Matthew 5:6.
6. Build and Maintain Character.
Anybody, no matter how highly placed , highly anointed and privileged , is known by their character. What they think? What they say? What they do? And what they refuse to do or say ?
When it comes to character, nobody can be on the fence because you must necessarily think something, say something and do something — even if you choose to become indifferent — which also defines you, in more ways you cannot imagine.
This is why character represents the sum total of our thoughts, our desires and our actions repeatedly carried out over a long period of time. Many do not usually get conscious of their actions until somebody calls their attention to such actions repeatedly done without them knowing it. Sometimes, these actions stick making it difficult to change. Then a habit is eventually formed. What if it’s a bad habit? A flawed character is formed? And if allowed to take deep root in the life of such a believer, be sure there is danger ahead. For instance: too much sleeping. Too much eating, too much desire for buying NEW THINGS. These habits appear innocuous until you are hooked in love or marriage with somebody who has any of them.
The Bible says that a man cannot separate himself from his thoughts. Therefore your thoughts also form your words and your words your actions which in turn form your habits. These habits define you. And these habits form your character with which you are known or addressed.
Jesus was right when He told the Pharisees that they should not worry about His disciples not washing their hands to eat because what defiles a man is what comes from inside him , including murders, fornications,, hatred,, anger, jealousies, malice and all others
Character is a combination of your moral, intellectual and emotional dispositions or qualities that distinguish you as a person. These determine your values, principles and are the fibre or core of the choices you make. When a man has character, his choices are determined by that disposition. He knows that telling his wife about a detour in his movement coming home from work will not be considered an act of control, but of love, consideration and responsibility. A Christian man or woman of character will put God first in his or her choices because they are fully aware that this Journey in question will end at the feet of the Master one day before WHOM all things shall be accounted for openly and righteously judged. Matthew 25.
Character gives you moral and ethical strength , a unique appearance, or features, or attitudes that add up to your reputation, integrity, honesty and values of self-:worth and significance. When a man lacks character, he passes this mortal earth unconscious that several other DESTINIES are attached to his own. Joseph told his brothers: Though you meant to do me evil, God turned it for good so that many lives would be saved as it is this day. Genesis 50:20. He saw gracious opportunity in an evil plot. He didn’t go about threatening revenge, death and destruction as any man lacking in character and the fear of God would naturally resort to.
Character makes you dependable, transparent and acceptable before others. A person of character has greater dignity, trust and inclined to leadership. This was the undoing of Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, when he foolishly rebuffed his subjects– promising to deal with them in harsher and harder methods than his father Solomon had done. Of course he lost it because he lacked the moral fibre to know that the primary essence of leadership is the well-being of the people. Hear the wisdom of the Ancients to foolish Rehoboam:
” And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men , that stood before Solomon his father…
And they spake unto nim , saying , If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever.
But he forsook the counsel of the old men… 1 Kings 12:6-8.
This singular act of leadership indiscretion led to rebellion against his kingdom and , eventual partition of Israel into Northern and Southern Kingdoms. When a leader including family, business and organisational heads lack character, they unconsciously breed rebels, making their systems ungovernable as we have it in several regions and spheres across the global space.
Whereas Daniel was a captive in Babylon, his character distinguished him for leadership. He became a voice in a strange land. He and his brethren refused to sing the Songs of Zion in a strange land. He maintained a lifestyle of holiness with his friends even in Godless Babylon. Hmmm, This is a huge challenge for us present day journey makers. Does anyone have excuse? Certainly not!
How do you build Character?
As in any construction, to build character requires some degree of personal sacrifice and commitment to rigor and discipline as well as resolve to do it with the fear of God There must be eternity in view, otherwise, there will be little or no serious challenge to insist on success. Yes, the first thing to address in character building and development is the knowledge of the Most Holy and the FEAR of GOD. When there is no fear of God, and where there is no knowledge of God as the Supreme authority to seek after:, to trust in and to depend upon for direction, for purpose and for speed in life and destiny, there will be no reason or incentive to build, to develop and to maintain character. Why?
The reality is that nobody wants to suffer personal pain. And to build character or to maintain character, one MUST suffer pain , bear sacrifice, or be ridiculed or made to suffer some disdain, even before people of inferior status. This is why most people opt for mere reputation rather than character..
Reputation allows you to creat a make- belief human being of who you are. .Reputstion chooses to play up the tangible aspects of personality, while character combines all to produce a complete personality devoid of deceit, inconsistency and vanity .
Paul tells us that he buffets his body and punishes it to be submissive to him . According to him, he makes sure that all his desires, all his actions and all his emotional demands are checkmated and made to pass through the crucibles of righteousness. He didn’t want to undertake the Journey in vain like Demas who loved the world and Annanias and Sapphira who conspired to lie to the Holy Ghost with greed in mind. No wonder he could bodily affirm to have ran a good race and fought a good fight, hence awaiting his reward before God. 1 Corinthians 9:24-27. 2 Timothy 4:6-8.
When a man is building character, he is less concerned about what others think about him, say against him or believe about him. Consciously aware that he is moving in the right track, yes in line with God’s word and will, with principled understanding and wisdom, he takes the challenges of self discipline and personal management and VICTORY one step at a time. In building Character , you are actually being who you want to be in line with Christian principles and valuee– within acceptable social values and rules.
Why should we build Character as Journey we Journey?
Given that character is every thing; Given that as a man thinks , so is he; and Given that God requires that those who seek Him must do so DILIGENTLY, it is only reasonable that the man or woman on the Journey must have character. Indeed not having character is carelessness. And no careless person can undertake a trip to the kingdom of God. And only those who DILIGENTLY seek God can find Him. We must be character to be acceptable before God in our Journey.
God told Abraham to walk before Him in perfection. God is perfect. Those who come Him must do so in Spirit and in truth.. signifying perfection.
Apostle Paul challenges young Timothy to be an example of those who are in the Journey. He names six critical areas of our physical and spiritual existence: 1, In Word. 2, In Conversation. 3, In Charity.4, In Faith. 5, In Spirit. 6, In Purity.
A man on the Journey who cannot purge himself of lust and vanity, who cannot bear his vessels in honor and sanctification and who cannot control what he eats:, sees and meddles with in the inner recesses of his heart must reassure himself of the conviction he has about the Journey in the first place.
As believers on a Journey, we must live by example. We must walk the talk. We must not behave as the hypocrites, the Pharisees and Saducees who ONLY mouthed the moral codes without putting their fingers to them.
A man who cannot resist the beauty of strange legs, the enticement of alcohol and the splendour and allurement of wealth and Mammonism has no business in the Journey , and can hardly meet divine mandate and destiny.
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Besides, you need character to prepare ahead of the Journey. Without character you can’t have the Holy Ghost to partner with you, pray effectively and receive answers. ‘ No duobt, the weapons of our warfare as earlier conversed cannot be sustainable or potent with POWER and PERFORMANCE in the hand of a believer who lacks character. Gehazi, for instance. Samson too. He was careless. He was compromising and his anointing vanished with his death. What about brother Judas Iscariot. His love for money made him a slave to THINGS ethereal. He died for it. You must have character to righteously and holily operate with the weapons of our warfare. And to WIN and to FINISH STRONG as Paul and Prophet Samuel did.
Concluded.
Happy Sunday. God bless you.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
•Pastor Okoro, a revivalist and marriage counselor, can be reached on:
08051000462.
