The Spiritual Fruit of Goodness

But the fruit of the Spirit is … goodness … (Galatians 5:22).

The moral character trait of goodness is possessing a high moral excellence that is kind and beneficial toward others. It doesn’t seek one’s own gain but that which can be added to another.

Many men would want to shame his fiancee when he discovers she’s pregnant by someone else. But Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly (Matthew 1:19). Being a just man – or literally a man of goodness – Joseph didn’t wish to bring any dishonor or shame upon Mary.

The Bible says that Jesus, the Good Shepherd, went about doing good (John 10:11; Acts 10:38). He never engaged in what was popular or would make Him popular. He only did that which was right and beneficial to others in accordance with the will of God the Father (John 5:19-20; 8:28).

While Jesus performed miracles and healed many people of their physical ailments, His primary purpose was always spiritual. It does absolutely no good to feed the hungry, raise the dead, or heal the lame, and yet leave them in their sins and estranged from God (Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 4:16-21; 5:18-26). His deep and foremost concern for eternal and spiritual benefits was evidence of His goodness.

Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus (Philippians 2:5).

Taken from my sermon on Galatians 5:22, The Fruit of the Spirit Is, part 3. Listen to the full sermon by clicking here.

The Lie of a Conman

There’s a famous American story about a traveling conman named Harold Hill, who made his living teaching music lessons. He arrived in a small, religious farm town where no one would fall for his con, so he started a rumor that playing pool (or for my British friends, billiards) would result in a crime wave. People abandoned the pool hall and the conman was ready to reap the benefits of his lie.

Ready for another form of entertainment, Mr Hill was ready to sell the townsfolk musical instruments. Then he sold them music lessons. Then he sold them band uniforms. Then …. I won’t give away the end of the story.

The “Music Man” lied to destroy another man’s business and make himself wealthy. The same happens in politics each day. Two years ago an American politician’s son was accused of drug use, gross sexual immorality, financial crimes, and government corruption. The media did everything it could to protect the son and his father. The politician and media accused another candidate of the same crimes. Now the media has “discovered” that everything they denied about the politician’s son was absolutely truthful. To make it worse, the politician not only knew about his son’s evil workings and used his political clout to hide the truth, that political figure personally benefited from his son’s evil.

Though it should not be so, this kind of sinful activity occurs in religious organizations, among religious leaders, and in congregations.

A lie is an interesting thing. It requires a good memory, because you have to recall exactly the details of the lie. A lie also has a tendency to grow in its scope; one lie often requires another, and another. Lies also usually haunt the liar. He lives in fear that his lie will be discovered, his reputation tarnished by truth, and so he’s always ready with another lie.

As Christians, redeemed through the death of our Saviour and being transformed into Christlike character, we are commanded: Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him (Colossians 3:9-10).

Lifting the Veil on Sanctification

But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord (2 Corinthians 3:18).

Exodus 32-34 details Moses’ response to Israel’s worship of the golden calf. In their false worship, Israel broke the Ten Commandments they’d twice previously agreed to obey. In his anger at their sin, Moses slammed the two tablets of stone to the ground, illustrating Israel’s disobedience.

One result of Israel’s sin was God’s refusal to dwell in the midst of His people. Instead He’d remain far off (Exodus 33:7). Sin separated God and man.

From outside the camp, Moses would enter the tabernacle of meeting to hear from God and then bring God’s message to the people. Moses became the mediator between God and man.

Whenever Moses met with God, his face shone like a lamp, reflecting the majesty and glory of God. The glow terrified the people because it revealed God’s perfect holiness and the darkness of their sin-corrupted hearts. After delivering God’s word, Moses would veil his face – not to hide the glory of God – but to hide the fact that the glory quickly faded from his own face (Exodus 34:30; 2 Corinthians 3:13). Moses’ veil protected the people from God’s judgment but also kept them from being transformed by God’s glory.

In Second Corinthians 3, Paul uses the shining face of Moses as an illustration. Many people only see the Bible as a series of stories, God’s wrath, commandments impossible to comprehend or comply with, and difficult sayings. Sin veils the heart from seeing Jesus in Scripture, the primary reason Scripture exists!

But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away (2 Corinthians 3:16). When we follow where the Scripture leads – which is always to Jesus – we see Him in all His glory and can’t but help to love, adore, obey, and worship Him alone.

Now we all, we who trust in Jesus by faith, have the veil of separation removed and we find ourselves looking in a mirror. The shadows are replaced by a crystal clear revelation of Jesus. As we lovingly gaze at His image revealed in Scripture, something remarkable happens to us: the Bible becomes ever clearer and we find our own image being transformed bit by bit, from glory to glory, into Christ’s moral likeness and character. This is sanctification!