Seeking Righteous Attitudes

“I . . . entreat you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing forbearance to one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3).

God is most concerned about who we are, because who we are determines what we do.

Now that we’ve looked in depth at Ephesians 4:1-3, let’s take a step back. These verses reveal a basic truth: the Christian life is not primarily about what we do but who we are. When Paul teaches about the worthy walk, about how we live each day, he never discusses actions, only attitudes.

It is possible to have what I call “action fruit”—such as praise (Heb. 13:15), giving (Phil. 4:17), evangelism (Rom. 1:13), and other good works (Col. 1:10)—without “attitude fruit,” which is the fruit of the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Gal. 5:22-23). Plenty of people can do good deeds without inner righteousness. But that’s legalism; that’s the hypocrisy that the Bible speaks so much about. The right path to true spirituality is to have proper attitudes first. The Holy Spirit works through our attitudes to produce right actions.

Unfortunately, many Christians miss this point. To them, being a Christian is primarily a list of do’s—going to church, putting money in the offering, carrying a Bible—and don’ts—not cursing, not drinking, not murdering. They see external behavior as the fact of Christianity instead of the manifestation of it. They don’t cultivate the inner graces.

Of course, God wants us to live righteous lives. But to those with merely external actions, Jesus said, “Woe to you . . . hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. . . . First clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also” (Matt. 23:25-26).

Don’t let yourself become a slave to external religion. Make sure you do your good works out of love for God and others, as part of the overflow of the spiritual fruit in your life.

Suggestions for Prayer

If you see hypocrisy in yourself, ask God to purge it. Pray for and diligently seek attitude fruit.

For Further Study

Jesus warned about internal sinfulness in Matthew 5:21-22, 27-30 and external righteousness in 6:1-18 and 7:1-5. How is Proverbs 4:23 an antidote to those?