The Fruit of the Spirit: Goodness
By Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe
Galatians
5:22-23 (NKJV)
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.”
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.”
Spirit-directed goodness is more
than just outwardly adhering to a set of rules.
The Greek word translated here as “goodness” is agathōsynē. It means
uprightness of heart and life. Goodness emanates from our inner most being,
from our heart. It must become part of
our spiritual DNA. Goodness, as a fruit
of the Spirit, must be an integral part of our spiritually.
Goodness is not limited to something that we
do. It is something that we are.
Jesus had an encounter with a man
who understood the importance of doing good, but did not understand the essence
of goodness:
Luke
18:18-23 (NKJV)
“Now a certain ruler asked Him, saying, "Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" So Jesus said to him, "Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery,' 'Do not murder,' 'Do not steal,' 'Do not bear false witness,' 'Honor your father and your mother.' "And he said, "All these things I have kept from my youth."
So when Jesus heard these things, He said to him, "You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." But when he heard this, he became very sorrowful, for he was very rich.”
“Now a certain ruler asked Him, saying, "Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" So Jesus said to him, "Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery,' 'Do not murder,' 'Do not steal,' 'Do not bear false witness,' 'Honor your father and your mother.' "And he said, "All these things I have kept from my youth."
So when Jesus heard these things, He said to him, "You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." But when he heard this, he became very sorrowful, for he was very rich.”
We can do
good under our own strength and with our own purposes in mind. We can be good only in the power of the Holy
Spirit and with God’s purposes in mind.
It is that transforming power that enables us to be like Jesus, not just act like Jesus. It is a radical transformation that reaches
down to the very core of our being and rips out the root of self-centeredness
and frees us to become more and more like our Lord.
Then out of
our new man, out of our Christ-nature, we begin to walk in goodness, in beneficence.
Our good works must arise out of our
Holy Spirit endowed goodness, not out of a sense of duty or obligation or
desire for recognition. Titus 3:8 (NKJV) “This is a faithful saying, and
these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in
God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and
profitable to men.”
In the Kingdom
of God manifested on earth, we are called first to be good and then to do
good.
Oh! to Be Like Thee
Thomas O. Chisholm
Oh! to be like Thee, blessed
Redeemer,
This is my constant longing and prayer;
Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s treasures,
Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.
Oh! to be like Thee, oh! to be like Thee,
Blessed Redeemer, pure as Thou art;
Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;
Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.
This is my constant longing and prayer;
Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s treasures,
Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.
Oh! to be like Thee, oh! to be like Thee,
Blessed Redeemer, pure as Thou art;
Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;
Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.
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