Filled With Good

Theo of Golden, a novel published by a first-time author, has become a viral phenomenon! It’s a bestseller on many ‘must read’ lists. After reading the story, I agree. The story is about an old man’s gentle acts of kindness in a small Georgia town that changes one life after another. When you put it down you want to be a better person. Yes, it’s just full of goodness.

Are you a good person; not a self-righteous judge of others, but rather someone who makes others feel value, who shares in both joy and sorrow, who makes the burdens of life lighter? Once this way of life was lauded as virtuous. Sadly, the ideal of virtue has become suspect, and often it is the ‘bad boy’ character that gets featured in our stories and pop culture. Ask most people if they want to be known as ‘good,’ and you will most likely get a strange stare because “good” is for the weak, the fearful – or is it? The life that is lived without adventure or risk that grows out of fear of criticism or an unwillingness to step outside of norms is not truly virtuous!

Indeed, real virtue is courageous, goes against the stream, and stands against the normal cruelty of humanity. The Bible says that the Spirit’s life in us will produce ‘goodness.’   Both Peter and Paul urge Christians to be virtuous people, people who live with excellence as their guide; practically and personally. Inspired Scripture tells us that those who claim the Name of Christ will be “true, … noble, … just, … pure, … lovely, … good report, … virtue and … praiseworthy.” (Philippians 4:8, NKJV)

I have no desire to be so void of fire or passion that I am a weak man who is incapable of living an effective life. But I want to be known as a good man. Jesus was a man of virtue, yet He was capable of strong emotion, of challenge to those who abused authority, of resisting evil. Children loved him and moneychangers in the Temple fled His wrath!

There is a famine of personal virtue in our nation. The goodness of character that produces self-restraint and respect for others, which causes the pursuit of excellence is being lost. Our radical self-love is destroying the fabric of a nation. The historian, Alexis de Tocqueville of the 18th century, declared that among the Americans he observed there was such virtue that the need for government regulation was reduced to non-existent. They simply did what was right and good! Call me cynical, but I am certain that were he to walk our streets today his conclusion would be very different.

When personal virtue is lost, law must attempt to restrain selfish acts. Greed and injustice are unthinkable to the person of virtue, but they are a natural, even laudable, choice in a society where radical individualism and self-interest is the highest value.

For the Christian, virtue is not just about learning civility or attempting self-discipline. True virtue is made possible by a transformation of the heart by the power of Christ.

Faith in Him breaks the power of evil. He gives us the Spirit who subdues our sinful nature and create a hunger for the good in us. That will cause us to walk with the broken, the fallen, the debauched, those lost and confused, without adopting their values or being corrupted. Yes, the virtue created by the Spirit living in us allows us to “become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe.” (Philippians 2:15, NIV)

So, are you a person of virtue?
Do you fear being labeld as ‘good’ so much that you will not allow the Spirit of God to develop the beauty of Christ’s holiness in you?
Or are you hungry for God’s goodness, ready to move beyond the natural impulses of selfishness and walk into the Spirit’s plan to make you a noble, holy, and good person?

Here is a word from the Word. May we be challenged to offer ourselves to Jesus and become truly good! “Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans (those who do not know God) that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.“ (1 Peter 2:11-12, NIV)

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Video at https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55

 

My way, in my time, by my preference

I appreciate my local QuickChek™ store so much. It’s close by and I am able to get gas, a good cup of coffee, a bottle of ibuprofen, milk, a sandwich … and anytime of the day or night! The aptly named “convenience store” charges higher prices for the same things I could buy at a large supermarket, but I gladly pay the premium to save a longer trip. I am a true American consumer.

Even in this time of declining involvement with the local church, many who claim the Name of Christ Jesus are basically consumers who drop in when a crisis comes, who show up when life is tough and they feel the need for a little ‘inspiration’ or when they want the prayer. Missing the point of Christ’s Church, they have no desire to build any real relationship with other Christian or to serve in the larger Body in any way. Instead, they trade a donation for some ‘religious goods.’  

The result is an immature and undeveloped faith that is truly an ‘adventure in missing the point.’

The best and deepest Christianity requires a mix of several choices: 
receiving God’s grace by faith,
learning God’s ways through regular study and daily prayer,
becoming part of God’s family in a local church, and
serving God’s purposes as life’s highest priority.

Being a disciple is often inconvenient!

Jesus teaches us that His call is comprehensive, touching every facet of life, and seeking our full engagement. “Take up your cross and follow Me,” He said. Think about that. It is not a pretty metaphor.

A cross is an instrument of death, not a means of finding one’s personal path of pleasure. The invitation is to ‘follow,’ not to lead. His invitation is costly, not convenient, but it comes with great promise. “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but are yourself lost or destroyed?" (Luke 9:23-25, NLT)

Knowing how quickly human beings will abandon the pursuit of the Holy, Moses warned the ancient Israelis about wandering. God was going to give them blessings, provide abundantly for them. Would they be grateful, careful to remain devoted to Him? Read on. "“The Lord your God will soon bring you into the land he swore to give your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is a land filled with large, prosperous cities that you did not build. The houses will be richly stocked with goods you did not produce. You will draw water from cisterns you did not dig, and you will eat from vineyards and olive trees you did not plant. When you have eaten your fill in this land, be careful not to forget the Lord, who rescued you from slavery in the land of Egypt. You must fear the Lord your God and serve him. When you take an oath, you must use only his name." (Deuteronomy 6:10-13 NLT)

Tragically, they did forget the Lord! Just a couple of generations after they entered the Promised Land, they wanted more, turned to worship of local fertility gods, and abandoned the LORD. Like true consumers when crisis came, they ran back to God Who faithfully loved them, though they suffered for their sin. Restored to wholeness, they prospered and wandered again. The pattern was repeated many times!

Here are some questions we who are trained as consumers should ask ourselves frequently.

Am I treating the things of the Lord as consumer items?
Are my prayers more fervent, my searching Scripture more intense, when some stormy season arrives, only to be laid aside when things level out?
Is my expectation that God will meet MY need or that I will seek His will and way?

True joy, deepest fulfillment, and the ultimate eternal reward will be found by those who take Paul’s inspired counsel to ‘keep step with the Spirit’ walking in the road of the humble servant.

I can tell you from experience, even as a “professional” Christian who has spent his life in the Church that seasons will come when you have not desire for worship, prayer, or service. You will find people in the Church who disappoint you. I am sure that in the thousands of sermons I preached there were some real duds that bored the socks off of those in the pews. But … we stay faithful, not because we are buying something new, exciting, or even appealing; but rather because we are called by God into His holy family.

Don’t let American consumerism turn you into a church shopper. Instead, pray to be guided by God to a place where you can commit, serve, and grow in grace through every season.

Here is a word from the Word. "So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised. “For in just a little while, the Coming One will come and not delay. And my righteous ones will live by faith. But I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away.” But we are not like those who turn away from God to their own destruction. We are the faithful ones, whose souls will be saved." (Hebrews 10:35-39, NLT)

Amen

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Video at https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55

“C’mon! Get it right!”

A friend offered a gentle rebuke to me recently. It stung because I realized the statement was true. When I pointed out what I perceived to be a lack of effort on the part of another, I heard this- “Well, I guess nobody but you gets it right.”  Those words poked a big hole in my pride, helping me to know that I needed to do better at encouraging, letting go of critical thoughts.

Why do those critical comments come to us so easily?
Ever criticized another’s marriage without really understanding the relationship?
Ever said of another “C’mon. Get it right!” without thinking about the hardships they are trying to survive?
Ever looked at a public person with contemptuous criticism having little actual knowledge of the pressure they face each day in their duties?
Ever threw a word grenade at a fellow Christian who is struggling with some habit, or doubts, or fear when what they needed was support and encouragement?

To be sure, there is a place for evaluation and even criticism. Nobody ever gets it right all the time. We grow when we are made aware of our flaws, when we are challenged to make a better effort. But the years have taught me that it is a lot easier to toss grenades to blow things up than it is to build things.

Jesus generally approached others with offers of acceptance, understanding and lifting them up. Yes, He could be a critic, when necessary, but reserved His critical comments for the self-righteous.  

When some grenade throwers dragged a woman caught in sin He did not lash out at her with scathing words about her shamelessness. He did not chide her for the failure to understand the consequences of her choices. He did not shame her for a lack of character.  He offered her love, gave her dignity. Only then did he say, “Now, go and sin no more.”  (John 8)

Truth here!
*People who are secure because they know the redemptive and complete love of God will be much better at the work of encouragement.
*Those who understand their calling and know their own strengths and weaknesses will have less need to compare and criticize.

When you find yourself tossing those grenades of criticism, pause to take an inward look. Ask yourself where you are feeling anxious about life, what you fear. Renew your understanding of God’s amazing grace, with grateful prayer for His mercy and love. 

This passage has rescued me from judgment more times than I can remember. John says – “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known.”  (1 John 3)

God offers full acceptance, not because we are good, smart, or perfect in every way. The Word tells us that “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ.”  (Ephesians 1:7-9, NIV) Yes, He showers kindness on us, not criticism!

The example of Israel’s great leader, the Lawgiver, Moses, is rich for us. When the LORD told the man that his leadership was ending, he argued asking for more time. Instead, God told him to get another ready to take his place – “commission Joshua, and encourage and strengthen him, for he will lead this people across and will cause them to inherit the land that you will see.” (Deuteronomy 3:28, NIV) Moses’ obedience was remarkable. He became Joshua’s biggest supporter, urging him on, endorsing him before the nation. In part, Joshua’s amazing success was directly attributable to Moses’ encouragement.

There is joy found in instilling another with hope, helping to lift a burden, pointing one to a new way of thinking. Some may realize what you have done and say, ‘thank you.’ Some may never know the wind that you redirected into their sails. Will you toss grenades like any old critic, or will you hold out hope?

Here’s a word from the Word. “Encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.” (Hebrews 3:13, NIV)

Amen
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Video at  https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55