Sprout: 21 Days for the Fruit of the Spirit to Bloom in Your LifeSample

Now That's Good!

By James Morris

Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. He who does good is of God, but he who does evil has not seen God. —3 John 11 NKJV

Imagine a par 3 on a golf course and hitting the ball within two feet of the hole. Someone might respond with “Good shot.” Or being a baker and baking a delicious dessert. “Good cake” might be another appropriate response.

God created the earth, and He called it good. Good? I could come up with many unique words to refer to creation. It is incredible, phenomenal, exceptional, and so on. Ephesians 3:20 says God can do “exceedingly, abundantly above all we ask or think.” I can imagine God’s response after creating the earth being something more like, “Now that is exceedingly, abundantly above all that people could think or imagine.” So why did He call creation good?

Jesus’ first miracle was turning regular water into wine at a wedding, and it was called “the good wine” (John 2:10). The most extraordinary wine ever made was referred to as good. In the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Jesus is referred to as “Good Teacher”[1], and in the Gospel of John, Jesus refers to Himself as “the Good Shepherd.”[2]

So what is good? Why is goodness, not greatness, a fruit of the Spirit? When God uses the term “good,” He is referring to “that which God intends.” For example, God called Creation “good” because it was as He intended. In fact, the first time God said something was not good was when man was alone. It is good for man and woman to be together because both are created in the image of God. Man alone was not the completion of what God intended, and therefore, it was not good. The full representation of God in male and female is good. God’s intention was for a man to” “leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh” (Genesis 2:24).

Knowing that good is “that which God intends,” we can grow in the fruit of the Spirit and be filled with goodness. If we experience goodness, we have a life of obeying God and fulfilling His will for our lives. At Gateway Church, we teach about hearing, believing, and obeying God. This is goodness. We can share God’s goodness with others by being obedient and by being used by Him in all we do. It is God’s intention for us to experience His kingdom here on earth.

First Peter 2:15–17 says, “For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men—as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.” The will of God is for us to do good. The way we do good is to do that which God intends for us. This Scripture passage explains that by doing that which God intends, we will “silence the ignorance of foolish men.” In doing so, we will be bondservants of God and implement His intentions for us.

Because we are human, we need some general guidelines of what the will of God is. Start by honoring everyone—every age, gender, ethnicity, economic group, education level, etc. Honor all! Next, love your fellow Christ-followers and fear God. Finally, honor the authority and government under which you live. In doing these things, you are fulfilling the will of God.

Now, let’s take it a step further. God has an individual calling for each of us. When you walk in His will, doing that which God intends, it is pure goodness. Of course, it doesn’t mean everything is perfect every day, but it does mean that every day is good. We walk in our individual callings by hearing and obeying God.

Goodness is indeed a part of the fruit of the Spirit. Are we truly submitting our lives to be used in every moment by God? This is a life of submission to God and making Him Lord of every area. The more we do this, the more we experience the goodness of the fruit of the Spirit.

[1] Matthew 19:16; Mark 10:17; Luke 18:18, all references NKJV

[2] John 10:11, 14 NKJV

Prayer

God, thank You for Your good creation. Thank You for Your good will for my life. Help me walk in daily obedience to You. I submit my life, schedule, words, and actions to Your will. Please speak to me every day and open my heart to hear Your voice. Give me the courage and boldness to follow Your direction and use me to make a difference for You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

For Further Reflection

1. Read Matthew 5:16. How do your “good works” help others glorify God?
2. Is anything in your life not “that which God intends”? Ask the Lord what needs to change and what you need to do to bring about that change.