“And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue;
and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance;
and to temperance patience, and to patience godliness;
And to godliness brotherly kindness;
and to brotherly kindness charity.” II Peter 1:5-7a
Charity is one of the last attributes we are instructed to diligently add to our faith. It’s the icing on the cake or another rose for our vase of faith so to speak. It pulls everything together. I think “charity” is such a beautiful word. It sounds soft, warm and welcoming in a world that can seem hard, cold and unwelcoming at times. However, it isn’t just a pretty word that brings comfort. It should actually stir us to action. Let’s look further at what adding charity to our faith really means.
What Charity Is
Charity according to the Greek definition means love and, more specifically, affection and benevolence (in a social or moral sense). In the Merriam Webster’s 2021 (Online) Dictionary, we see affection and benevolence defined as:
Affection – noun
1 : a feeling of liking and caring for someone or something
2 : tender attachment
Benevolence – noun
1 : disposition to do good
2 a: an act of kindness
b: a generous gift
Showing charity means we express a love that brings out our affection and makes us benevolent to others. It causes us to like, care and show attachment while doing good deeds and showing acts of kindness and generosity.
“Let all your things be done with charity.” I Corinthians 16:14
What Charity Isn’t
I love how God gets specific when He instructs. He doesn’t just tell us what is good. He shows us what is bad. As we see in 1 Corinthians 13, there are things charity doesn’t do:
- envieth not
- vaunteth not itself (doesn’t boast)
- not puffed up
- doth not behave itself unseemly
- seeketh not her own
- is not easily provoked
- thinketh no evil
- rejoiceth not in iniquity
Ouch! These hit home! Sadly, I’m not always as charitable as I think I am. I could use some soul-searching in this area and wonder, “Am I truly sincere and Biblically sound in my message, mission, motives, and methods of charity?”
What Charity Does
Charity exhibits good behaviors. The 1 Corinthians 13 passage also lists what the good behaviors are:
- suffereth long
- is kind
- rejoiceth in the truth
- beareth all things
- believeth all things
- hopeth all things
- endureth all things
“Charity never faileth…” 1 Corinthians 13:8a
Though we can fail, true charity doesn’t fail. It shows love that includes affection and benevolence. It helps us do right when we’re weak, worried, or done wrong, and can make us love when we feel unloved.
What Charity Requires
“Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart,
and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.” I Timothy 1:5
God doesn’t want us to be charitable for charity’s sake. He requires that we do it with a:
- pure heart
- good conscience
- faith unfeigned (without hypocrisy)
As Christian women, our faith should be a pure reflection of what we believe. How we care for others shows others how God cares for them. Diligently adding charity to our faith exhibits growth in our walk with Christ, our Creator and Savior.
“And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three;
but the greatest of these is charity.” 1 Corinthians 13:13
Bring It Home
Is charity a part of your faith?
Do you find it hard or easy to show charity to others?
Praying for you as we grow together,
Smiles, BRC
Beautifully stated!! Thank you for sharing!
Thanks for reading Susan.
?Smiles, BRC