Ever since I have been part of the Church of God, I have noticed that the Church has a set of standards for various aspects of our behavior. But don't we have enough character and spiritual insight to decide our standards of behavior for ourselves? Why should we expect or even permit others to impose standards of conduct on us? The apostle Paul talked to Timothy about the issue of conduct in the Church of God. "Although I hope to come to you soon, I am writing these instructions so that, if I am delayed, you [Timothy] will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God's household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth" (1 Timothy 3:14). Obviously, Timothy himself was to be an example to the Church about how to conduct themselves. Godly Conduct How can you define "godly conduct"? One person may have a different definition of godly conduct than another person would. Ephesians 4:21-23 tells us: "If indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind." As we leave our former way of life and come into the knowledge of the truth, we change our old standard of conduct and come under a new standard—a new way of life. Our standard bearer is none other than Jesus Christ Himself! He is the One who sets our standards of conduct today! We believe that Jesus Christ is the literal head of this Church. He tells us what to do and we do it. Why? Because we are submissive to His rule in our lives. We have yielded our lives in full surrender to Him. How do we submit and yield to Him as the Head of the Church? Ephesians 4:11-12 says: "And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ." We believe Jesus Christ works through inspiring and guiding a human ministry, who themselves are all subject to the rule and government of Jesus Christ in their lives. The ministry of the Church of God acts on the authority of Jesus Christ to establish standards and guidelines in the Church. Why are they necessary? "Because you are children who obey God, don't live the kind of lives you once lived. Once you lived to satisfy your desires because you didn't know any better. But because the God who called you is holy, you must be holy in every aspect of your life. Scripture says, ‘Be holy, because I am holy'" (1 Peter 1:14-16, God's Word Translation, emphasis added throughout). The reason we have standards of conduct and behavior that are typically different from the general population around us is because we are not living according to our personal, selfish desires. Instead, we are seeking to conduct our lives as holy people of God—conforming ourselves to be like Jesus Christ in every aspect of our lives—doing exactly what He would do, in the way and manner He would do it. In other words, we are to act as if we are holy—because we are! One definition of holy is: Living according to a strict or highly moral religious or spiritual system. Therefore, we live by strict and moral standards to conform to the command of God to act holy because we are! Expected Standards With that understood, what are some of the types of standards that members of the congregation are normally expected to adhere to? What are some of the expected standards of behavior in God's Church? • Appropriate hair length. • Appropriate dress, jewelry and makeup. • Appropriate music. • Keeping God's Sabbath holy. • Arriving at services on time. • Good behavior of children at home and at services. • Cleanliness and neatness, including in the home. • Dating and marrying in the Church. All of these issues have been written about and discussed by members of the Church for years. Most of us are familiar with the expected standards. Willing to Be Governed We know we should strive to live by these standards of conduct, but why do we have these standards and why does the ministry and the Church expect adherence to them? In addition to the need for uniform standards that promote behavior that follows God's laws, another important benefit of having standards in the Church is for all of us to show that we are willing to be governed. Perhaps you feel a standard is too strict or that a standard is not being applied appropriately. With standards like the ones above, some people are going to have negative reactions to being told to adhere to these standards. Yet the greater expectation from God is that we willingly and humbly submit ourselves and yield to the authority that has given us these standards. God must know our hearts. He must know that we have put self, pride, ego and vanity out and replaced them with humility. We are to have a spirit that yields and submits to authority. God is the ultimate authority in our lives. Today, we show we are under the authority of God by coming under the authority of the Church. We will be under authority forever in the Kingdom of God. God has to know we will always say: "Yes, Father, whatever You say, that's what I'll do!" We can never question or challenge God! What is God seeing if we question and challenge His representatives and His government today by refusing to fall in line with the Church's established standards of conduct? We cannot mandate certain behaviors, but as a part of God's Church, we should desire to submit to the guidance and direction of the Church and the directives and guidelines it has established. You see, it's all about government. As the UCG study paper on governance states: "Righteousness flows only from godliness, and one of the great lessons of the Bible is that the value and benefit of an individual (or group of individuals forming any institution) is directly proportional to the degree of submission to the Spirit of God and conformity to His model of holy conduct and behavior. God instructs His followers to be submissive—first to Him, then to one another, and also to those in God-ordained positions of authority and responsibility. Anyone who has a healthy fear of God will have a healthy respect for fellow Christians and a positive understanding of the value of submission." God is training us as His children to learn to become like Him. God is a loving Father, the Church is our Mother, and we are the children! Our parents are disciplining us, molding us, shaping us into the type of spiritual adults we are about to become! May we be responsive and submissive to our spiritual parents. UN