Virtues are the guideposts that show the path to follow when life’s trials and tribulations obscure the way forward, clouding opinion and reason. Our thoughts get hijacked by the loudest voice in the room. Our words are out of our mouths short circuiting our usual thoughtful brains. Our actions storm out of us as if someone or something else is controlling them.
How could we have gone so far off-track?
Of our own volition we all have it with ourselves to make good and/or bad decisions. The problem is when we talk ourselves into believing good is bad and bad is good. It is not the other guy, or the other group that needs review. It is within ourselves to choose good over evil, or evil over good. We are all accountable for ourselves. Rather than point fingers at other people, which also points the other four fingers back at us, let us take a closer look at ourselves, and our influences.
Reclaiming our sensibilities requires finding the calm in the middle of the storm, that quiet spot where we can still our minds. Step off the merry-go-round of chaos. We need to take stock of how far we have come from our normal sense of self, and our own moral code.
What pushes our buttons, driving us forward into places we do not want to be?
Practicing the virtues are sure signposts to keep in view, in order that we do not get swept away in the dream, life and cause of someone else. Let’s keep our own dreams and our own goals. Sometimes another person, or group, seems to have the same ideals we have. Yet, if we watch them, they go to extremes we would never go to on our own. On one hand, they seem mostly fine. On the other hand, we would never make the decisions we do without their bad influence.
How do we handle this?
Remember the theological virtues: faith, hope and love.
“Three things will last forever – faith, hope, and love – and the greatest of these is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:13*
* “Paul, who wrote both First and Second Corinthians, wrote that love endures forever. In morally corrupt Corinth, love had become a mixed-up term with little meaning. Today, people are still confused about love. Love is the greatest of all human qualities and is the very essence of God himself (1 John 4:8). Love involves unselfish service to others. Faith is the foundation and content of God’s message; hope is the attitude and focus; love is the action. When faith and hope are in line, we are free to love completely because we understand how God loves. Does your faith fully express itself in loving others?” footnote on 1 Corinthians 13:13 from the Life Application Bible, New Living Translation, Tyndale House Publishers
Remember the cardinal virtues: prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance.
Prudence can be found in Psalm 22:3-6, “The rich and poor both have this in common: The Lord made them both. A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions. The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences. True humility and fear of the Lord lead to riches, honor, and long life. Corrupt people walk a thorny, treacherous road; whoever values life will avoid it. Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it.”
Justice can be found in Romans 1:18, “But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness.” (Romans 1:25**)
**“Why is God angry at sinful people? Because starting with Adam and Eve, God gave all people a choice to follow him or to go their own way. But they have arrogantly substituted the truth about him with a lie.** (Romans 1:25**) People have stifled the truth God naturally reveals to everyone in order to support their own self-centered way of thinking. This is sin, and God cannot tolerate sin because of his holy, perfect nature. He has designed the best way for people to live in harmony with him and with each other. He cannot ignore or condone willful rebellion. God wants to remove sin and restore sinners, which he will do if sinners do not continue to stubbornly distort or reject the truth but instead turn to him for salvation. God’s justified anger turns on those who persist in going their own way. Are you pursuing the lie that sin is not serious, and you don’t need God? Don’t deceive yourself about him merely to protect your current way of life. Devote yourself to searching for the truth, and you will find him.” footnote on Romans 1:18 from the Life Application Bible, New Living Translation, Tyndale House Publishers
Romans 1:25** says, “They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshipped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen.”
“People tend to believe lies that reinforce their own selfish, personal beliefs. Today, more then ever, we need to be careful about the input we allow to form our beliefs. With the internet, music, movies, and shows often glorify sinful lifestyles and unwholesome values, we find ourselves constantly bombarded by attitudes and beliefs that are totally opposed to the Bible. Be careful about what you look at and what influences you allow to form your opinions. God gave us the Bible as the standard of truth. Evaluate all other opinions in light of it.” footnote on Romans 1:25 from the Life Application Bible, New Living Translation, Tyndale House Publishers
Examples of fortitude are shown in John 15:18-19, when Jesus says, “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first, the world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world.”
It takes fortitude to go against the popular grains of public opinion that seemingly make human sense, given the human spin pride places upon human opinions. Standing up for truth, honor, and integrity with faith, hope and love, in the face of mob mentality takes fortitude.
Temperance is reflected in the fruits of the Holy Spirit when we avoid following our sinful desires, as seen in Galatians 5:22-23***: “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!”
***“Newly transformed people produce something special with their lives. Paul calls the new work of the Spirit fruit. The Holy Spirit spontaneously and creatively produces this kind of fruit in us. The Spirit generates these character traits in us because we are becoming more like Jesus, who perfectly modeled them. When Christ controls us, they grow and flow from us naturally. We can’t obtain them by trying to get them without his help. If we want the fruit of the Spirit to grow in us, we must live in close union with Jesus (see John 15:4-5). We must submit to him, know him, love him, remember him, and imitate him. As a result, we will fulfill the intended purpose of the law – to love God and our neighbors. Which of these qualities do you most want the Spirit to produce in you?” footnote on Galatians 5:22-23 from the Life Application Bible, New Living Translation, Tyndale House Publishers
In John 15:4-5,**** Jesus says, “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.”
****“Remaining in Christ requires us to be fully connected to Jesus moment by moment. It means (1) believing that he is God’s Son (1 John 4:15), (2) following him as Savior and Lord (John 1:12), (3) doing what God says (1 John 3:24), (4) continuing the believe the Good News (1 John 2:24), and (5) relating in love to the community of believers, Christ’s body (John 5:12).
Remember, there are other influences at work, not all of which are human. We need to listen to the better angels among us.
God Bless Everyone Everywhere