Doctrine and Devotion, Truth and Godliness
Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect and the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness.
Titus 1.1
How often have we heard that Christians are hypocrites? This is usually stated by those looking for an excuse to justify either their rejection of Christianity, the church, or the study of doctrine.
But Paul begins his letter to Titus by binding truth together with godliness. In the Apostle’s mind, doctrine and devotion are not rivals, but companions. They are two sides of the same coin of authentic Christian living.
True Doctrine Is the Root of Godliness
Scripture consistently teaches us that sound doctrine is practical. Right knowledge of God is never a cold intellectual exercise, but always leads to heartfelt worship and obedience.
Any knowledge of God that doesn’t result in holiness of life is fruitless and barren. And any practice of religion divorced from truth is blind zeal, not true godliness.
Right doctrine naturally leads to doxology. When the mind beholds the majesty of God as revealed in Scripture, the heart can’t help but bow in worship and adoration.
Paul says that the very essence of faith is a knowledge of the truth. Christians don’t have faith in a probability that God exists, or loves us, or might reward us with everlasting life.
Rather we have faith in the truth of God. This truth is the right knowledge of God as He has revealed Himself in the person and work of Christ. Our faith is in the concrete reality of Jesus the Savior, who is the truth of God in bodily form.
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” [John 14.6]
It is the truth of Christ that sets us free from sin, but also frees us from error, falsehood, and man-made legalism.
Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. [John 8.36]
It is this freedom, freedom from sin, from falsehood, from legalism, freedom in the truth of Christ that is the root and source of our godliness in behavior.
Godliness as the Fruit of True Doctrine
Scripture insists that orthodoxy (right belief) is incomplete without orthopraxy (right practice).
A confession of faith is only as credible as the life it produces.
And a godly life is only the fruit of faith, rooted in the truth of Christ.
So-called “good works” without the foundation of truth are nothing more than self-righteousness or idolatry. Godliness is not a natural human virtue. It’s the fruit of the Spirit at work in the believer, sanctifying us in the truth of Scripture. True godliness is the outworking of faith that rests in Christ alone, expressed in love for God and neighbor.
Right doctrine is only right if it instructs us to fear God and to bow before him with reverence. The greater our knowledge of God, the deeper our love, devotion, and obedience should be.
We are all subject to the remaining sinfulness of our old nature, so I’m not saying believers will be sinless in this life. But we should be growing in grace and godliness. And the more we know of God through meditating on the truths of Scripture applying them in our lives, the more progress we will make in godliness of conduct, words, and thought.
The Interdependence of Belief and Practice
The false dichotomy between theology and practice should be rejected by all thinking Christians. You can’t truly love someone you don’t know. If you said you loved your wife, but knew nothing true about her, only what you imagined your wife ought to be like according your own reconning, one could rightly say that you neither know nor love the woman.
The same is true of our relationship with God. If you love God only as you imagine Him to be, you are worshipping, you’re committing idolatry. You must know God as He is, as He has revealed Himself to be in the Scripture.
The Scripture is His word about Himself. If you decline to study His word, to deeply meditate upon it to discern the nature of the God who has spoken, how can you rightly claim to love and obey Him? You won’t even know Him!
Faithful living flows out of faithful belief. The more one knows God, the more one will love Him. This love, in turn, animates the believer toward worship, service, and perseverance in trials. If you would love God, you must know Him.
In a world that prizes pragmatic spirituality over doctrinal clarity, the believer must remember that true comfort and strength come from the unshakable truths of God’s Word. Our hope is not in visible displays of religiosity, or in cultural approval, but in the immutable promises of the gospel, which cultivate in us reverent obedience and lasting joy.
Conclusion
The life of faith is a harmony of head and heart, of doctrine and devotion. The Word of God calls believers to embrace both with equal zeal, for to know God truly is to love Him deeply, and to love Him is to walk in His ways. In the words of the Puritans, “Theology is for living,” and the truest student of Christ is the one whose doctrine blossoms into godliness.
Discussion
[1] If sound doctrine produces godly living, how does a lack of sound doctrine lead to ungodliness?
- if we don’t follow the truth of God’s Word, we will follow the inclinations of our sinful hearts, and/or the shifting values of the world, our understanding of right/wrong will be distorted and selfish
- if we neglect to study sound doctrine, we won’t know sound doctrine, and we’ll be vulnerable to false teaching and the traditions of men that only play to our pride and selfishness
- godliness is internal as well as external, without sound doctrine, outward religion may be there, but the heart will remain unchanged, and therefore no true godliness
- outward devotion that is not directed by knowledge of God’s Word will invariably result in disobedient and even idolatrous worship, we are to worship in spirit and in truth, without the truth of sound doctrine, worship will be false
[2] There is a tendency in modern evangelicalism to prioritize feeling spiritual, over deep theological study. Reformed believers are often accused of caring more about doctrine than they do about loving people. Paul’s comment to Titus challenges that, indicating the two are inseparably bound together. How should we respond to the accusation, and how can we get people excited about learning doctrine?
- it’s easy to not be a hypocrite when you don’t hold to the truth
- silence their accusations by living with joy as we love God and our neighbors, while delighting in His Word and doctrine
- speak with passion about God as those who truly love Him, sound doctrine shouldn’t be boring
- Christ-exalting, God-honoring doctrine will always stir the heart of a true believer, so when people encounter the beauty of God’s character in Scripture, they will be excited to learn of Him
Coffee Talk: Brance and Lauren talk about bean density
Defining Theology: Brance and Lauren define and discuss the theological term The Sufficiency of Scripture.
Resources Mentioned: