Doing Good (1)

“…God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him” Acts 10:38

John said he supposed that the world could not contain the books that would need to be written in order to tell everything Jesus ever did. Yet, there is a phrase that adequately and accurately summarized what He did: He “…went about doing good…” (Acts 10:38). Everything He said and did was always good – perfectly good.

On one of the occasions when Jesus was criticized and threatened with stoning He asked, “Many good works have I showed you from my Father, for which of those works do you stone me?” (Jn. 10:32) His enemies were often frustrated because they couldn’t argue with the good which He spoke and did.

If we follow Jesus, then we too will look for and take advantage of opportunities to do good. Paul wrote to the Galatians: “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith” (Ga 6:10).

Unbiased Good. Paul urged doing good “unto all men” (Ga 6:10). It doesn’t matter who they are – whether we know them or even like them. We need not necessarily share their likes or status in society. Race, gender, and language must not be barriers. Our commitment is to doing good in the name of Jesus – no matter who is the recipient.

As We Have Opportunity. God holds us responsible for using what we have for good – we’re not responsible for what we do not have (2 Co 8:12). But don’t let wishing we had more in order to do more keep us from doing all the good we can with what we do have! “As we have opportunity” also means we are responsible for opening our eyes to see opportunities and creating them. Closing our eyes to the needs of others or only doing what is convenient is unloving and sinful (Ja 2:16; 4:17).

Rich in Good Works. Paul wrote we are to “do good” and “be rich in good works, reading to distribute, willing to share” (1 Ti 6:18). We should be known for our attitude of readiness and willingness, the desire to do a lot of good – really “rich in good works.” This doesn’t necessarily involve a lot of money – it’s about how we use our possessions, abilities, time, and energy.

Next week more thoughts from Scripture about doing good.    dd