Bearing Goodness That Glorifies God

      The God-glorifying goodness of Galatians 5:22 is not being a “good ol’ boy,” going along to get along.  This is absolute devotion to what is good in self and in others.

      I Corinthians 13:6 said love does not rejoice in iniquity but in truth.  In this passage, truth is contrasted with wickedness because following God’s truth is how we perform goodness.  This is the crux of goodness – in what do we rejoice?

      Answer this question by asking what entertains us.  What do we enjoy watching on television, hearing in songs, reading in books and telling in jokes?

      Do we ever find ourselves happy that the guy got the girl?  Never mind that they didn’t marry and just fornicated – they were made for each other.

      Do we ever find ourselves cheering on the guy who left his jerk wife for the love of his life, high school sweetheart with whom he was really always meant to be?  Never mind that the divorce was unlawful and the new marriage adultery – it was such a happy, touching ending.

      Do we ever find it thrilling to watch the vigilante hero, taking matters illegally into his own hands, violently taking vengeance?  Never mind that God said vengeance belongs to Him – it was awesome to see the hero put the hurt on those bad guys.

      Of course, here is the disclaimer.  I am well aware that not every show, movie, book or song having violent or immoral aspects is bad.  The question is, did we rejoice in sin?

      We are to be devoted to goodness, rejoicing when people follow God’s will and happy when we are doing so.  In our society, we are told to do what feels right, following our instincts.  But in God’s kingdom, we are to stand on what is right, which is rarely natural and does not always feel good.

      This is not just about our entertainment, but also our real relationships.  When we are devoted to goodness, we strive to be a good influence, provoking others to do good.  Granted, we cannot make anyone do anything.  However, we must not sit idly by while others, whether brethren or otherwise, sin.

      We need to set the proper example for them.  More than example, we also need to talk with them.  Romans 15:14 demonstrates that being filled with goodness means having knowledge of the truth and admonishing others based on that knowledge.  We may understand why they act as they do, but if it is a sin, we must admonish them to do what is right, no matter how it feels – for us or them.

      We must be devoted to goodness in ourselves and in others.  No doubt, this will make us different from the world, but that is our duty (Romans 12:2).  How much goodness will we bear this week?

Edwin L. Crozier