Turning Faults Into "Virtues"

Humans are created by God to be dependent creatures. Adam and Eve were created to live their lives in trust and dependence on God. But they didn’t see it that way. They wanted to exert their independence and they did. It was not that they did not love and respect their Creator. They just thought that they could run their own lives and get along with God at the same time.

The descendants of these first parents have followed along in their footsteps having an independent nature. As stated so vividly by Paul in the first chapter of Romans, human beings down through the ages have recognized God, if not consciously then subconsciously. “For the truth about God is known to them instinctively; God has put this knowledge in their hearts. Since earliest times men have seen the earth and sky and all God made, and have known of His existence and great eternal power. So they have no excuse. Yes, they knew about Him all right, but they wouldn‘t admit it or worship Him or even thank Him for all his daily care (accept dependence on Him). And after a while they began to think up silly ideas of what God was like and what He wanted them to do (accept dependence on Him). The result was that their foolish minds became dark and confused. Claiming themselves to be wise (able to be independent), they became utter fools instead” (Romans 1:19-22 Living Bible).

Yes, people have been born with the same independent nature as Adam and Eve acquired by choice. People down through the centuries have also thought that they could run their own lives and get along with God at the same time.

Nothing less than a desperate calling on Jesus Christ as Savior and being born again into the Family of God can provide sufficient motivation to bring self-relying men and women to an honest acknowledgment of their deficiencies. Nothing less than the awareness that we have forever become children of our “Daddy”, God the Father, can lift us totally above ourselves to a plane where we will be anxious to see wherein we lack so that we can take the necessary steps to correct it.

When trying to exert independence, people have a way of rationalizing their thoughts and actions. We can so easily “color” our faults to others, and even to ourselves, so that they appear as virtues!!! - or at the worst, very minor faults.

How do we do this? Let’s look at some examples.

We identify our STUBBORNNESS as determination. We are determined to show that we are right. Being stubborn with others becomes the virtue of determination.

We see our JEALOUSY as watchfulness for another’s welfare. A husband’s smothering interest in other men’s association with his wife is looked on as the virtue of watchfulness.

COVETOUSNESS is seen as “just wanting good things for my family”. Coveting is a product of independent thinking but becomes the virtue of “receiving good things”.

SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS is looked on as just a sincere desire to do right. But only the righteous nature of Christ within the Christian can DO right. Trying to live a life pleasing to God by our own human strength is impossible, but the attempt to do so can be mistakenly seen as a virtue.

DISHONESTY can be seen as “good business”. And, after all, the businessman must provide for his family. And providing for your family is certainly a virtue, isn’t it???

GLUTTONY is seen as not wanting to waste food. You bought the food, and it needs to be eaten. Refusing to waste resources is certainly a virtue, right???

LAZINESS is viewed as taking time to “find yourself”. After all, you don’t want to get into work that is not right for you! God has given you talents and you need the time to find and use those talents, don’t you? Is this not a virtuous thing to do?

You have PRIDE only because that which you accomplished is really good. The world needs really good things so you have the virtue of accomplishment.

You exert RETALIATION only because you “need to teach them a lesson”. What they do to you, you do back at them. The Bible says that person shall reap what he sows and you have the virtuous intention of teaching a Bible truth.

Those who are OVERLY TALKATIVE are virtuously just “trying to be real friendly”.

Those who are OVERLY QUIET are virtuously just “trying to listen to a person in depth”.

The SHOPAHOLIC is just “trying to find the best values”. After all, Proverbs 31 describes a “virtuous woman” who takes care of her household and her husband by understanding values.

The GOSSIPER is only doing so because others need to know to avoid trouble. Knowing how to avoid trouble is certainly a virtue, right?

Yes, a distinguishing feature of a Christian as a child of God is to learn to achieve a quality of self-honesty unparalleled anywhere in the world. Let us beware of the influence of the world, the flesh and the devil toward the illusion of independence. So easily can we deceive ourselves. Only a self-honesty directed by the leading of the Holy Spirit toward dependence on Christ within can bring us face to face with our faults so that we can acknowledge them and correct them by the power of the Life of Christ through us.

God works within us on a daily basis to cause a sincere desire to see ourselves exactly as we are, as God sees us. When we error, we receive correction. God, as the perfect Parent, corrects us when we need it but never rejects us.

And how does God see us as Christians?

1. As children in His Family having received His own spiritual nature.
2. As having Christ living in union within us to guide and control us.
3. As having the Holy Spirit joined to our soul as a Teacher and Corrector of our human weaknesses.

FAULTS ARE NOTHING MORE THAN THE GARBAGE OF INDEPENDENT ILLUSION! YOU CANNOT HONESTLY TURN GARBAGE INTO VIRTUES!

[Back to Home]