The Virtuous Life....Part 1 - Right Motivation

In theory the virtuous life is a life that strives to uphold God’s standard in every instance. Not out of fear, duty, or religiousity, but out of love. In practice, I have found this pure existence to be impossible, but God wants me to keep trying. Its in the trying that I lean closer to God and start to hear Him speaking to me. The goal is not to stop messing up, because I always will, but to reduce the time I spend away from God. This 3 part post  will investigate the core issues involved with leading a virtuous life and how leading such a life can make a difference in the local church.

Right Motivation

Motivation is the key driver in leading the virtuous life. The task is just too difficult and I give up if I don't have the right motivation. Gregory of Nyssa phrased the only motivation that can sustain such a pursuit perfectly when he said: “we regard falling from God’s friendship as the only thing dreadful and we consider becoming God’s friend the only thing worthy of honor and desire. This … is the perfection of life.” What this means in practice is that I must search out God’s heart and His word to determine what pleases Him, who does He call friend, and what guidelines does He give us.

I seek out these things because God loves me and my spirit yearns to love Him back. This love motivation puts the relationship above the rewards –both earthly and heavenly. Earthly rewards call out to me, distracting me from my true pursuit and purpose. They are temporary things that provide pleasure in the moment but keep drawing me off course. I view heavenly rewards as bonuses to the relationship I gain and the perfect love I get to experience in Jesus.

In the next 2 posts we will look at beneficial temptations, self-denial, and the impact the virtuous life has on the local church. I'd love to hear from you if this got you thinking or challenged you in an area of your life right now. Thanks for reading!