“For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth.” Ephesians 5:9.
The author G. K. Chesterton said that “Good has many meanings. For example, if a man were to shoot his grandmother at a range of 500 yards, I should call him a good shot, but not necessarily a good man.” When we say a person is good we usually mean he is good at something. Perhaps a person is good at playing the piano and bad at gardening. Or he is good at cooking and bad at parenting. Good always compares us with some standard.
In Galatians, chapter five, Paul lists nine virtues of the Christian life. The virtue that follows kindness is goodness. According to Webster’s New World Dictionary, goodness is defined as “the state or quality of being good.” It is God’s desire that all men should do what is right or do what is good. Unfortunately, without God, man has not that ability and power to do what is right and acceptable in God’s sight. Jeremiah the prophet clearly states, “Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil.” Jeremiah 13:23. Paul the apostle also writes about the condition of man’s inherited nature. “They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.” Romans 3:12. He also writes, “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.” Romans 7:18-21.
The apostle describes the human condition–the dilemma of even a man who desires to do good, but alone cannot succeed in the conflict with sin and the devil. Have you ever felt the conflict between the two forces in your life? Your mind tells you to do something good, but your feelings are the opposite. We all experience that tug-of-war between good and evil, don’t we? Sometimes good wins and sometimes it does not. Without divine help, man is powerless to do what is good. The forces of evil take captive their victims and then lead them to turn away from everything that is noble and good.
Mercifully, man has not been left to battle the forces of evil alone, for the Lord has graciously intervened to rescue man from the pit of sin. He lovingly offers the “fruit of the Spirit” to anyone who desires to have his character and life changed. When Jesus comes again, only a well-rounded, polished, and good character will be taken to heaven. No evil or imperfect character will be permitted into the presence of the sinless heavenly beings. Therefore, good character must be formed today, before we can be translated to heaven. It will be too late to wait to be sanctified when the grace of God has ended. “While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, …” Hebrews 3:15.
Who will respond to the Lord’s voice? In Revelation, chapters seven and fourteen, a special class of Christians is mentioned who will have the Father’s name written in their foreheads. What does this mean? Their character traits will be similar to the God they have worshipped. In Exodus 34:6, a wonderful description of God’s character is given.“… The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth.” Ellen White writes: “The ideal of Christian character is Christlikeness. As the Son of man was perfect in His life, so His followers are to be perfect in their life.”
Desire of Ages, p. 311. And the Psalmist writes this about God’s character: “For the Lord is good; …” “Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, …” Psalm 100:5; 107:8. Over and over again the inspired writers emphasize the goodness of God.
Dear Friend, have you recognized that God has been very good to you in the past year? Take a few moments to meditate about God’s goodness. Has He helped you when you felt like giving up the Christian walk? Has He provided for your basic needs when you lost your job? Has He restored you to health again? Has He enriched your life with faithful and good friends? Has He answered your prayers in a marvelous manner? Has He comforted you, when you were lonely and depressed? Praise the Lord, God is good!
Let us look at a few more ways that God demonstrates His goodness.
1. His works are good.
After the Lord created everything on this earth, He said, “It was very good.” Everything was perfect and without a taint of sin. The earth must have appeared most pleasing to the Creator as He beheld it. Since God is good, He made everything good—the living creatures, the delicate flowers, the lofty trees, the sparkling streams, the crystal blue lakes, the first couple, and the holy Sabbath.
2. God’s gifts are good.
God does not give good gifts to His people only, He gives them also to those who do not love Him. Everyone on earth receives gifts: the sin-hardened alcoholic, the thief, the prostitute, the drug dealer, the child abuser, and all the criminals behind bars, receive the blessings or gifts from God. “… For He maketh His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.” Matthew 5:45.
Sister White writes in Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, p.75: “It is by His word that vegetation flourishes, that the leaves appear and the flowers bloom. Every good thing we have, every ray of sunshine and shower of rain, every morsel of food, every moment of life, is a gift of love.” Every gift from heaven’s storehouse is good, because God is good. During this year, won’t we thank God for the generous gifts He has given us? Each gift bestowed is to remind us of God’s goodness.
3. God’s law is good.
Paul wrote that the Ten Commandments reveal God’s goodness. In the Letter to the Romans, chapter seven, verse 12, we read, “Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good.” In the Old Testament the Psalmist wrote, “How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” Psalm 119:103. The delightful honey sweetness of God’s law is related to its goodness. The moral law is the transcript of God’s holy and good character. Nothing that proceeds from God is harmful, sinful, or worthless. The commandments were given to mankind for their protection and happiness. Unfortunately, man has strayed away from the will of God and has reaped much misery and unhappiness.
Many Christians have false ideas regarding the validity of the law and even claim that through the death of Christ the moral law has been abrogated. Ellen White writes that “Without the law, men have no just conception of the purity and holiness of God, or of their own guilt and uncleanness. They have no true conviction of sin and feel no need of repentance. Not seeing their lost condition as violators of God’s law, they do not realize their need of the atoning blood of Christ.” The Great Controversy, p. 468.
What did Jesus Himself say about the perpetuity of the Ten Commandments?
Let us read from Matthew 5:17, 18: “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.”
There you have it! God’s law will remain valid throughout eternity. Let us all acknowledge, repent, confess our sins, and come to Jesus for spiritual healing. Won’t you do this my dear brother, my dear sister, my friend? Remember that the law will condemn us in our sins, but Jesus will save us from our sins.
4. The cross is good.
Almost 2000 years ago, a man named Jesus died on an old rugged cross.
He was placed on the cross because of his love for the human race. This powerful element motivated Jesus to endure anguish, loneliness, extreme sorrow, and excruciating pain. Although Christ was innocent of any misdeed, crime or sin, He was willing to be crucified for our sins. Our ugly personal sins nailed Jesus to the cruel cross. Yes, the sins that we have committed killed Jesus. Our sins of hatred, selfishness, envy, jealousy, pride, impatience, unbelief and so forth, had to be paid for in blood. The sins of the whole world weighed heavily on the human-divine Substitute. Please consider reverently the following words from the pen of inspiration:
“…The guilt of every descendent of Adam was pressing upon His heart. The wrath of God against sin, the terrible manifestation of His displeasure because of iniquity, filled the soul of His Son with consternation. … But now with the terrible weight of guilt He bears, He cannot see the Father’s reconciling face. The withdrawal of the divine countenance from the Saviour in this hour of supreme anguish pierced His heart with a sorrow that can never be fully understood by man. So great was this agony that His physical pain was hardly felt.
“…He feared that sin was so offensive to God that Their separation was to be eternal. … It was the sense of sin, bringing the Father’s wrath upon Him as man’s substitute, that made the cup He drank so bitter, and broke the heart of the Son of God.” Desire of Ages, p. 753.
Jesus died to save sinners like you and me who would accept the blood shed on Calvary in our behalf. His ignominious death demonstrated that love was overflowing from the Son of God. Children, young people, do you remember this verse, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life?” John 3:16.
Since He was truly a good man and Savior in every respect, His death reflected the supreme goodness of God. It proclaims loudly that there is hope for every sinner to receive pardon and be saved. Won’t you come to the blood-stained cross and accept the One who died for you?
We Must Reveal Goodness
Once we have accepted Jesus by faith, we will manifest good works. Just as surely as the apple tree produces apples, so the Christian produces good works. Apostle Paul writes, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10.
“As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.” Galatians 6:10.
In Christ the believer is created for good works. He begins to act in good ways. “While true faith trusts wholly in Christ for salvation, it will lead to perfect conformity to the law of God. Faith is manifested by works.
“The faith we are required to have is not a do-nothing faith; saving faith is that which works by love and purifies the soul.” Faith and Works, pp. 52, 48, 49.
Faith leads to works so that the works are the evidence, the outworking of the life of faith. One can confidently assert that works will never save a man but neither can he be saved without works.
Jesus Himself said on the Mount, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in Heaven.” Matthew 5:16.
“As the sun goes forth on its errand of love, dispelling the shades of night and awakening the world to life, so the followers of Christ are to go forth on their mission, diffusing the light of heaven upon those who are in the darkness of error and sin.
“Christ’s followers are to be more than a light in the midst of men. They are the light of the world.” Thoughts from the Mount of Blessing, pp. 39, 40.
The works we produce will be good when they are done from the right motive.
Works can be considered good if they flow from our love to God. Goodness is love in action–doing good out of a good heart in order to please God, without expecting medals or rewards. Christ wants this kind of goodness to be the way of life for every Christian. Some persons often do that which is right for the wrong reasons–perhaps in order to receive praise and recognition.
During Christ’s time here on earth, the Pharisees were great at trumpeting their virtues in order to receive praise from men. Take special note of what Matthew wrote about them: “Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. … And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. … Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. . .” Matthew 6:2, 5, 16.
Perhaps we have seen some modern Pharisees parading their self-righteousness to attract attention and admiration. Jesus calls these types of people hypocrites. I hope that you are not following their example! “In almsgiving, in prayer, in fasting, He
“We call to mind, before our God and Father, how your faith has shown itself in action, your love in labour…. I Thessalonians 1:3, The New English Bible. They labored because they loved Jesus. That made their labors good. They brought glory to God and not to self. “But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.” 2 Corinthians 10:17. When we join Paul in beholding Jesus upon the cross, our own glory turns into dust. In summary, Paul says, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31.
How to Produce the Fruit of Goodness
Perhaps you have heard the story of the man who fell into a well. Stuck in the mud down at the bottom he is looking up but can’t get out. He is helpless. Buddha comes by, looks down into the well, and says, “If you will come up here, I will teach you about not falling into another well.” And the man replies, “Thanks a lot!” He continues to struggle and Confucius comes by. He looks down into the well and says, “If you had listened to my teaching, you would not have fallen into the well in the first place!” And the man says, “Thanks a lot.” And Confucius goes on his way. About that time, Jesus Christ comes along and He looks down into the well, plunges into the well, takes hold of the man, lifts him out, and walks with him.
Christianity teaches that man needs a Savior. He cannot save himself and is powerless to produce the “fruit of the spirit.” Without Christ man produces a variety of imitation fruits. They may look almost like the “real thing” but only through Jesus’ power can he bring forth good fruit.
Some weeks ago I visited a young man in his home. At the kitchen table where I was sitting, there was a vase with some beautiful roses in it. Out of curiosity I had to touch them, to determine if they were real or artificial. I was astonished to find they were an imitation! The roses looked so real to me, but in reality they had no life. Isn’t this like many Christians are? They seem to possess good fruits, when actually they grow fake or counterfeit fruit. Jesus knows whether the fruit if real or not!
There are different wrong ways to produce the imitation fruit. One way is by merely having a “form of godliness” which produces “form fruit”–an imitation.
This fruit may look good on the outside, but when inspected closely, is seen for what it is–man-made.
Another type of imitation fruit appears when so-called Christians keep the commandments as an obligation. They try to produce good works out of a sense of duty rather than out of love to God. What does the Spirit of Prophecy say about such Christians? “The man who attempts to keep the commandments of God from a sense of obligation merely–because he is required to do so–will never enter into the joy of obedience. He does not obey.” Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 97.
Since there are imitation fruits produced by man’s own efforts, there are also genuine fruits produced by the working of the Holy Spirit. How is the genuine fruit produced? We read the answer in John 15:4, 5: “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” In order to bear fruit, we must abide in Jesus. This is the only way that genuine fruit will appear.
“The Saviour does not bid the disciples labor to bear fruit. He tells them to abide in Him. … Living in Christ, adhering to Christ, supported by Christ, drawing nourishment from Christ, you bear fruit after the similitude of Christ.
“This union with Christ, once formed must be maintained. …
“So long as the soul is united to Christ, there is no danger that it will wither or decay.” Desire of Ages, pp. 677, 676.
Once our initial connection to Christ is made, we must continue to abide in Him. How is this done? “By prayer, by the study of His Word, by faith in His abiding presence, the weakest of human beings may live in contact with the living Christ, and He will hold them by a hand that will never let go.” Ministry of Healing, p. 182.
“Those who will put on the whole armor of God and devote some time every day to meditation and prayer and to the study of the Scriptures will be connected with heaven….” Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 5, p. 112.
Aren’t these wonderful thoughts? We can continue our communion with Jesus on a daily and hourly basis which will produce fruit. It is important to note that a union with Christ should not be an on-and-off connection. This type of union produces sickly or no fruit at all. “When we live by faith on the Son of God, the fruits of the Spirit will be seen in our life; not one will be missing.” Desire of Ages, p. 676.
God’s great expectation is for all of us to be permanently attached to Christ. A new minister in France began visiting his congregation in order to get acquainted with them. One couple anticipated his visit and were anxious to make a good impression. One day when the man returned from work his wife said that the minister had been there.
“What did he say?” the husband asked. “He asked, ‘Does Christ live here?’ and I didn’t know what to say,” the wife answered. The man’s face flushed. “Why didn’t you tell him that we were respectable people?” “He didn’t ask that.” “Why didn’t you say that we read our Bible and offer our prayers?” “He didn’t ask that either.” Irritated, the man asked, “Why didn’t you say that we are always at church?” “He didn’t ask that either,” sobbed the wife. “He only asked, ‘Does Christ live here?’”
This question is for you and for me! Does Jesus live in my home? Dear Friend, to know about Christ is not enough. To be convinced that He is the Savior of the world is not enough. To believe that He has saved others is not enough. It is not enough to believe the theory of truth and to have our names on the church books. It is only when we commit and surrender our lives to Jesus that we will bear the fruit of the Spirit and be assured of salvation.
Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior? If you haven’t, won’t you accept Him by faith today? May God grant this in mercy, is my prayer!