Doing the right thing, even when faced with an opportunity for revenge.
Archive for September, 2010
Goodness is the engagement of love! It displays integrity, honesty and compassion to others and allows us to do the right thing. Goodness takes our virtue and excellence and models it to others in the action of love. It is doing the right thing even when we have a chance for revenge. Joseph was betrayed and sold as a slave, but he chose to trust God and help and treat others better than he had been treated.
2 Peter 1:3-8 says, “By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.
In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with goodness, and goodness with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Goodness is the quality that makes people liked and even loved by others. Goodness in a person’s life is attractive and luring, it catches people’s attention and respect. This is the quintessential element that attracts people to you and finds and keeps friends. It builds marriages and shows God’s love to others around us. It is being a role model and putting into practice excellence in all that we do for God and for others. Goodness enables us to be liked and enjoyed, even if an enemy comes against us.
Related Text:
1 Peter 3:11
Proverbs 25:21
Matthew 7:12
Luke 6:27
Genesis 37-45 (story of Joseph)
Kindness is the medium through which Christ’s love becomes evident through us. Does that make sense? It’s hard to see love. What I mean is, if you just picked a random person out of a crowd, and this person was standing completely still and saying nothing, it would be nearly impossible, without a blind guess, to determine if they had the love of Jesus in them.
When we show kindness to others, it’s one of those traits that help us display God’s love. Kindness is the essence that shows the world that we are a Christian.
Are you kind to all people, equally? Or do you save the best of who you are for the people you like the most? Think of it in this way, if you met your friend for lunch, but they had no food to eat, you would probably share your sandwich with them without thinking twice about it. But would you be willing to share that same lunch with a homeless person? It’s a tough question, it really makes you ask yourself what kind of person you are.
1 John 3:17 says, “If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?” . . . Ask yourself, what goes through my mind when I hear about an earthquake or flood in another part of the world. Do you try to find a way to help, or are you just glad that you’re not suffering and go on about your life? Again, tough questions.
Ephesians 4:32 says, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Here, Paul relates kindness with forgiveness. Who out there is holding on to a grudge? Or, if you don’t like to use the word grudge, who out there is holding on to their hurt? Forgiveness can’t be difficult for us sometimes. But, just because it’s hard to do, doesn’t mean we should give up on it. Ask God for the strength and the compassion to forgive.
Related Text:
Romans 12:9-21
Colossians 3:12-14
James 2:1-4
Mark 12:31
1. How do I exhibit kindness in my daily life?
2. What can I do to develop more of a kindness attitude?
3. What blocks the practice of kindness in my life? How can I make kindness function better, stronger, and faster, even in times of uncertainty and stress?
This Bible study is heavy on life application! Patience. Patience is being able to accept or handle unfavorable situations.
Let’s all go ahead and raise our hands right now, and admit that we could all do better at being patient . We all have those times in our lives when our patience runs out, and I’m sure there are times where we’ve handled it well, and handled it with a mini-meltdown.
I think it’s safe to say that there are two main areas of our life where we need patience. Those areas are Patience with other people, and patience with God.
When we have patience, it allows us to display the fruit of the spirit. Patience will allow the other qualities of the fruit of the spirit to be evident. I hope that makes sense, and I hope that shows you just how important patience is. Let’s be honest, if you’re having a meltdown, someone who’s watching you isn’t going to think, they must really love God.
Now, let’s look at our patience as we relate to our God and our savior.
God has not revealed when the end of this age and Jesus’ return will occur. But His Word counsels us: James 5:7-8 says, “Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm …”. God has promised that Jesus will return and that all who believe will return to Heaven with Him.
God has an excellent reason for wanting us to have patience. 2 Peter 3:9 says, “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance”. In His master plan of salvation God intends to provide an opportunity for everyone who has ever lived to understand His Word and repent.
God wants us to wait patiently for Him to act on His own timetable. That is so hard for us because we want to create our own timetable. Colossians 1:11-12 says, “May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light”.
As we have studied the fruit of the Spirit, we have looked at Love, Joy, and Peace so far. When studying those qualities, we have looked at what the Bible says about persevering when facing trials and hard times. Patience with God shows that we trust him.
Opposites of patience are fear, worry, doubt, distrust
Ask Yourself: Am I patient or impatient? Can I tolerate circumstances that don’t go my way, or do I try to create things even if God would have me wait it out? Am I annoyed by people all of the time? Am I walking around always frustrated at others?
Let us all spend some time in prayer today asking God for patience, for the strength to persevere when we find ourselves in difficult or stressful situations.
John 14:1″Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me .”
Romans 8:28, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
Colossians 1:11-12 says, “May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light”.
Peace is one of those words that we all seem to know what it means, but if we’re asked for a definition, it’s a little hard to put into words. Peace is more than just a time without war or violence. And, if you think about it, there’s an inner peace, and an outward peace.
James 3:17-18 says, “But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.” We can call this peace that James describes here as outward peace. This peace is the personal quality that doesn’t stir up trouble or cause anger or disruption. And we can all think of examples of people around us who are peace-keepers, and those who aren’t. We can also read about this outward peace in Romans 12:16, which says, “Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.”
Inner peace is what Paul is talking about when he describes the fruit of the spirit in Galatians chapter 5. It means that we are surrendering and yielding ourselves to the Lord to be in His control. With God’s peace, we will allow tranquility to be our tone and we can control our composure even in hostile circumstances. Basically, with God’s inner peace, which is a part of the fruit of the Spirit, we will overflow with outward peace. This is fueled by our relationship with God and our decision to surrender control of our heart, our mind, and our will over to Him.
Peace comes from Jesus, and, if we are living by the Spirit, as Paul explains in Galatians 5, His peace will be a part of our lives. I would like to read for you a couple of passages where Jesus speaks directly about peace. In John 14:26-27, Jesus says, “But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” In John 16:33, Jesus says, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
I think, for me at least, John 16:33 helps me understand what God’s peace is all about. To me, peace is the knowledge that no matter what happens to me while I’m alive, nothing, not even the worst of the worst stuff, can take me away from my savior.
It’s easy to say, “Yea, I believe God is in control.” But, when you’re in the daily grind of your life, it’s harder to say, “God, I don’t understand why things are happening the way they are, but I trust you and I will follow your lead.”
Peace comes from understanding that God is in control and peace comes from trusting God with that control.
As we close today, I encourage you to open up your Bible and see for yourself what god says about peace. You can start by reading the verses we discussed today, Galatians chapter 5 (it’s not too long at all), James 3:17-18, Romans 12:16, John 14:26-27, John 16:33. You can also look at Isaiah 26:3 (don’t be intimidated by the Old Testament), Romans 5:1, Colossians 3:15, and Philippians 4:7. And, if you have trouble knowing where to start, you can always flip to the back of your bible in the concordance, look up the word peace, and see what Bible verses are listed there.
John 14:26-27
“But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”
Galatians 5:22-23
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”
If you have joy in your heart, it can do nothing but overflow and be evident to everyone around you. Joy will allow us to enjoy our relationship with Christ, with all of God’s creation, and with others around us. Joy is more than simply pleasure or satisfaction, or happiness. It’s closely related to those things, but it has a more “all encompassing” quality about it. When I say all encompassing, I mean that, when we have joy, it penetrates every area of our life. The good times and the bad times, the happy and the sad, the stressful and the easy-going.
When you hear someone say, “have joy even when life turns hard”, you may ask, how in the world is that possible? Well, it’s possible because, even in those rough spots, we still have a Savior.
In fact, in John 16:22, Jesus tells us that our Joy in His resurrection will be indestructible. It will be a permanent feature in our lives.
Therefore, we can say that Joy is not dependent on the circumstances in our lives. Think about it as unconditional happiness, mixed with unconditional peace, and throw in some excitement and some perseverance. And you get joy in all circumstances.
In fact, the Bible is very specific about joy and facing troubled times.
James 1:2-4 says, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
Now, we can talk all day about “you should be joyful even when your life is taking a turn for the worse” but no amount of talking from me will enable you to have joy in your heart even when you lose your job or lose a family member or friend, or get in a wreck, or clean up the bathroom after the pipes bust. Believe me, when you’re ankle deep in your own sewage, you’re going to quickly forget about this Bible study.
But, when Jesus is the center of your life and when you remain obedient to His word, joy, like the entire list of the fruit of the spirit, will remain with you. What will enable that joy to be present is Jesus. As Paul teaches us in the New Testament, we must allow our minds and the way we are used to living, to be transformed by God, so that we may become more like Jesus. (and, here’s a spoiler alert, what we’ll come to find after studying all nine qualities of the fruit of the spirit is this, each will remain as a part of our lives when we keep Christ at the center or hearts)
Like we talked about yesterday, we need to examine our lives, asking if we are living obediently and asking if we have the qualities that the Bible tells us should be evident in the life of a Christian. Some opposites of joy are Distress, Sorrow, Despair and Regret. Despair limits us like a ball and chain from growth and the enjoyment of life because we become consumed with our circumstances. Regret is when we have lost control of our attitude and response. Distress cuts us off from relationships, leaning, experiences and from God. And lastly, a lack of joy in our life will lead to depression which will cut us off from seeing hope and purpose in our life.
If you look at your life and you don’t see any of this joy that we have discussed today, that doesn’t mean that it is out of your reach. What we must do is humble ourselves and pray to God, asking to be filled with His joy.
