The Fruit of the Spirit--Goodness--Day 8

 

This word only appears once in the  New Testament, so I went back to the root word of "good".  It means morally excellent, good in nature.  From a spiritual aspect (which is what we are looking for), it means what originates from God and is empowered by Him.  In Romans 12, Paul tells us that the will of God is opposite of the works of the flesh, and that it's good and acceptable and perfect.  In Romans 2, we read there is a reward for moral excellence--glory, honor, and peace.  In Philemon, Paul is writing to some fellow workers about their former slave, Onesimus.  Onesimus came to Paul, possibly as a runaway, and Paul led him to the Lord.  (Side note--in verse 11, Paul says Onesimus was formerly useless, now he is useful.  That word "useful" is the same word from yesterday--kindness.  A common slave name. 💓) Paul is sending Onesimus back to them, and he wants them to show goodness to him, not because Paul said to, but to be good originates from God and is empowered by Him.  In 3rd John, John tells of two men--Diotrephes, who is a me monster and doesn't follow authority; and Demetrius, who has a good testimony on his own and from others.  These two men's stories bookend our verse "Beloved, do not imitate evil but imitate good.  Whoever does good is from God; whoever does evil has not seen God." 

Galatians 5:16-26 contrasts the works of the flesh with the fruit of the Spirit.  None of the works of the flesh could be called anything that remotely resembles moral excellence.  Goodness is a hard word to pin down!  We say it about so many things--be good, you look good, good job, good vibes.... I had a Sunday School teacher who taught that we shouldn't say "Oh my goodness", because only God is good.  😳 Only God IS good, yet we are commanded to reflect that goodness.  Being good doesn't get us to heaven, contrary to popular belief.  Being good blossoms and blooms and bears fruit from the Spirit after salvation, as we grow and learn and follow.  Goodness originates from God and is empowered by Him. My mind and heart were changed in the letter to Gaius in 3rd John, when read through the filter of Romans 12:2.  The two men in 3rd John were influential men, one bad and one good.  As we learn to walk in step with the Spirit, God puts people in our paths to teach us discernment.   Only through a mind transformed by the Spirit can we truly see what is good and acceptable and perfect. It's ok to follow people who are choosing goodness, as we train to do the same.  (1 Corinthians 11:1) Or maybe we are the one choosing goodness that others can follow.  Either way, our end goal is always, always imitating Christ, who alone is morally perfect, good in nature, originating from God and empowered by Him.   I will sing of the goodness of God.