Tis the Season to be...Good

Written by Ed Allen
Saturday, 22 December 2001 19:00

The Person You Always Wanted to Be

The old Southern evangelist, Vance Havner, used to tell the story of a little girl who liked Santa Claus better than Jesus because, she said, "for Santa you have to be good for Christmas but for Jesus you have to be good all the time."

We want to be good people.  In fact, 10 out of 10 surveyed want to be good people, but we need some help.  Some of us don't have any idea what that means really, and some of us know what it means and don't think there's any way for us to get there. 

So today we want to take a holiday journey? toward goodness.  We're going to do four things today.  First, we want to make sure we're headed in the right direction.  Then we want to make sure we fuel up.  Then we want to open up a goodie from our treat bag.  Then we want to make sure we take the care necessary to avoid the dangers that attend our trip. 

Galatians 5:16-25

"(16) So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. (17) For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. (18) But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law. (19) The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; (20) idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions (21) and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. (22) But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, (23) gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. (24) Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. (25) Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit."

Head in the Right Direction (headed for the right goal)

• Dumb and Dumber - driving in the wrong direction
• Make sure we're shooting for the right thing in life.  So how do we get the life we want?
  • Money? Marrying the right person?
• You get the life you want by being the kind of person you want to be.
  • Through Jesus

Fuel Up (using the right means, the right power source to get to our goal)

• You become the person you want to be by allowing the H.S. to control your life.

  Galatians 5:22-23

   "(22) But when the Holy Sprit controls our lives; he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, (23) gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."

Unpack Today's Treat

• Goodness is a part of what God makes us when we live under His control.
• Ever heard the phrase, "she did that out of the goodness of her heart?"  The word Paul used in Greek means exactly what we mean by that English phrase.
• It conveys the idea of generosity and benevolence, going the second mile when none is required.
• Let's look at what the Bible says about goodness:

   

  • Goodness is commanded. 

1 Timothy 6:18

 "(18) Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share."

• Goodness is expected. 

Romans 15:14

 "(14) I myself am convinced, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, complete in knowledge and competent to instruct one another."

• Goodness extends to all relationships

Romans 12:17, 19-21

 "(17) Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. (19) Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord. (20) On the contrary: "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head." (21) Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."

• Goodness is our response to evil.

Mark 10:17-18

 "(17) As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. "Good teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" (18) "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good--except God alone."

We want to be good people, so what's the fuel that gets us there?   You become the person you want to be by allowing the Holy Spirit to control your life.

Cautions

Our journey is not without danger.

• Antinomianism

• Legalism

How to Avoid These:

Remember you must be good in order to satisfy God's demands.

• Jesus said our righteousness should surpass the Pharisees.

• Without holiness no one will see the Lord.

Hebrews 12:4

 "(4) In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood."

• Remember it was commanded.

Recognize that you cannot be good under your own power.

• Russian writer Alexandr Solzhenitsyn said, "If only there were evil people somewhere, insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessary to separate them from the rest of us and destroy them.  But the line dividing the good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being.  And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?"

• "There is no one who does good, not even one." 
  

Romans 3:12

 "(12) All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one."

Isaiah 64:6

 "(6) All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away."

• We like to think of ourselves as pretty good.

• But God doesn't grade on a curve.

Rejoice that God is good; his goodness spills over into our lives because His Spirit lives in us.

• Fruit of the Spirit is goodness. 

Conclusion

That's what Christmas means: God has broken the barrier between eternity and time, between heaven and earth.  His goodness now can break into time and space and spill over into our lives. 

As I meditated on goodness this week I realized it is a more complicated idea than at first it might seem. 

In us, it is always tainted.  Great potential for good, forever marred by opposing tendencies. Our goodness cannot be understood apart from this reality. 

In God goodness is perfect, but forever complemented by his severity.  God's goodness cannot be understood apart from this reality.   J. I. Packer -