Spirit of Virtue

Spirit of Virtue

2 Peter 1:5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge. (KJV)

            Virtue has been defined as behavior that displays high moral standards, goodness, and righteousness. Unfortunately, it seems to be on the endangered species’ list in today’s times due to the world considering a virtue as being what’s popular with the majority. Things that were once considered as virtuous such as males being men, females being women, two-parent families, females being fully clothed, prayer before meals, and profanity being frowned upon on, are only just some of the examples where society has lost its virtue compass. To stand up for righteousness gets you labeled as a deplorable, homophobe, xenophobe, and other names ending in “phobe.” Nevertheless, God warned His people that there would be a day when right would be called wrong and vice versa. Isaiah 5:20-21 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight. (NIV)

            The Holy Spirit, however, is present with the believer to lead and guide us in the ways of God, that are strictly of righteousness. The Lord is a Holy God and the Holy Spirit instructs us of the path that we should take to ensure that we as the bride of Christ are ready for His soon return. Ephesians 5:25-27 ⁽²⁵⁾Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her ⁽²⁶⁾to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, ⁽²⁷⁾and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. (NIV) The Holy Spirit doesn’t base His virtues on what is popular, seasonal, or considered as politically correct. He places the virtue of God within the believer to convict of right and wrong, moral and immoral, Godly and ungodly.

            How else would a person know right from wrong other than the Holy Spirit convicting their hearts? The world wants to deny the existence of God, but the things that they once considered as moral behavior came from the very Ten Commandments that were handed down to Moses from God himself. Even children are aware of behavior that is either right or wrong.  Proverbs 20:11 Even small children are known by their actions, so is their conduct really pure and upright? (NIV)

 The Holy Spirit is the believer’s guide to holiness. It is through the Sprit that we as believers have a desire to live upright lives because we are unable to do it within our own strength. This is why it is important not to entertain everything into our ear and eye gates, for the Spirit is not able to live in a place full of worldly filth and unwholesome garbage brought through many of today’s airwaves, movies, games and more. Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things. (NIV) We are to allow the Holy Spirit to do a work in and through us, which can only be done by total submission to His will and being in obedience with the standards that God has for us.