Being a "Do-Gooder"—September 4 Bible Reading Plan - Denise Pass
Being a “Do-Gooder”
It’s not enough to just do what is good. Our heart matters. Likewise, it is not enough to just have good intentions. We have to do something about it. Benjamin Franklin is purported to have said, “Well done is better than well said.” But still being a do-gooder is not something we can truly do apart from knowing Jesus.
Bible Reading of the Day: Amos 5-9
So last week I did the entire book of Amos in one of those blonde moments I am known to have. We talked about the potential that problems have. Working through problems is what grows us, especially as we lean on God and His understanding rather than on self.
Scripture of the Day: Amos 5:14-15
“14 Do what is good and run from evil so that you may live! Then the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies will be your helper, just as you have claimed. 15 Hate evil and love what is good; turn your courts into true halls of justice. Perhaps even yet the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies will have mercy on the remnant of his people.”
Being a “Do-Gooder”—Not good works done in the flesh
First, the prophet says we are to do good . . . and run from evil. There is a benefit to us—we will lie if we do this. Doing good is not just good works or vain activities. It is doing the will of God in our lives. We cannot earn our salvation, and so this doing good is doing what God created us to do.
Let’s look at a few verses here to help us understand this doing good.
Being a “Do-Gooder”—Doing Good as a Lifestyle
Galatians 6:9 ESV
“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”
So doing good is not just a once and done thing. It is a lifestyle. And it is not easy, it seems. It goes against our natural bent and our flesh can get weary. The natural inclination of our hearts and flesh is evil, so doing good is something we need the Holy Spirit to activate within us and help us to do.
Being a “Do-Gooder”—How Bad People Do Good
Psalm 37:3 ESV
“Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.”
Before we can do good, we have to trust the One Who called us. There are plenty of people who try to be “good people” and people still say that people are basically good, but friends, this is just not true. If the Bible is our source of truth, which it should be, then we know there is no one good, no not one. So then how can people who are not good do good things? This is why we need to trust in God first and to know Him.
Being a “Do-Gooder”—So Others Will Know God
Matthew 5:16 ESV
“In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”
We don’t do good to try to get to Heaven. We do good out of a relationship with God to help others to get there by seeing the evidence of that relationship through our actions and words.
Being a “Do-Gooder”—As a Display of God’s Grace
Ephesians 2:10 ESV
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
Being a “Do-Gooder”—In Mind and Deed
Doing good starts in the heart. The regenerated heart. Friends, we need a heart transplant spiritually. Good deeds mean nothing if they are not done through the Holy Spirit with a right heart.
Amos 5:15 Brings up the other half of Amos’ plea to us: “Hate evil and love what is good.”
We cannot cherish sin and act righteously for long. Our hypocrisy will find us out.
Ultimately, friends, not doing good is a problem. Doing good is not just for goody too shoes or super Christians. It is for us all. WE Need to serve. Dong good changes us and keeps us on mission. Finally, this admonition from James is a reminder that not acting on what God has placed on our heart is actually doing bad . . . it is sin.
James 4:17 ESV
“So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.”
Doing good bears fruit in our lives that keeps us from evil. Just hating evil and fleeing from it leaves a vacuum that when filled with good, is a beautiful witness to the world.
Application
- Doing good is a part of the regenerated, born again lifestyle.
- Doing good is not just good works or vain activities. It is doing the will of God in our lives.
- It is a miracle that God would use us, but He delights to and when we serve Him, we find our worth and purpose in this life.
7-Fold One-Year Bible Reading Plan
Day #248: Amos 5-9
Scripture of the Day: Amos 5:14-15
Listen: https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/niv/Amos.5
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