Goodness
The fruit of the Spirit • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Goodness
INTRODUCTION: We are continuing in our message series on the fruit of the Spirit. When you become a Christian, God gives you his Holy Spirit, and the Spirit begins to change you. Just like with regular fruit, it doesn’t happen all at once, but over time you find yourself growing more like Jesus as the Spirit develops this beautiful fruit in your life. So far in our series we have looked at love, joy, peace, patience and kindness. Today we come to the fruit of goodness. (Read Galatians 5:22-23 and pray.)
1 John 3:16-17
16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.
17 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?
18 Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.
NIV
Synonyms for goodness
Virtue, honour, merit, integrity, morality, honesty, righteousness, rectitude, uprightness,
(1 John 3:16–17)
The test of Christian love is not simply failure to do evil to others.
Love also involves doing good to them.
Christian love is both positive and negative.
Isa. 1:16–17 says:
“Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight; stop doing wrong. Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.”
Isaiah 1:16-17 NIV
Cain is our example of false love; Christ is the example of true Christian love.
Cain hated his brother in his heart and committed the first murder.
Christ loved us and died for us.
Jesus gave His life for us so that we may experience truth.
Every Christian knows John 3:16, but how many of us pay much attention to 1 John 3:16?
“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.”
1 John 3:16 NIV
I like the way that the New English translation says it:
We have come to know love by this: that Jesus laid down His life on behalf of us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our fellow Christians. 1 John 3:16 NET
It is wonderful to experience the blessing of John 3:16; but it is even more wonderful to share that experience by obeying 1 John 3:16:
Christ laid down His life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Christian love involves sacrifice and service.
Christ did not simply talk about His love; He died to prove it (Rom. 5:6–10).
“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!”
Romans 5:6-10 NIV
Jesus was not killed as a martyr; He willingly laid down His life.
Look what He says in John 10:11-18;
John 10:11-18
11 "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
12 The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it.
13 The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.
14 "I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—
15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father — and I lay down my life for the sheep.
16 I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.
17 The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life — only to take it up again.
18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father."
NIV
And then also in John 15:13
“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
John 15:13 NIV
“Self-preservation” is the first law of physical life,
but “self-sacrifice” is the first law of spiritual life.
But God does not ask us to lay down our lives. He simply asks us to help a brother or sister in need.
John wisely turns from “brothers and sisters” in 1 John 3:16 to the singular, “his brother or sister,” in 1 John 3:17.
It is easy for us to talk about “loving the brothers and sisters” and to neglect to help a single other believer.
Christian love is personal and active.
This is what Jesus had in mind in the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25–37).
In verse 29 of that passage it says:
Luke 10:29
But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"
NIV
The lawyer wanted to talk about an abstract subject: “Who is my neighbor?” But Jesus focused attention on one man in need, and changed the question to, “To whom can I be a neighbor?”
Two friends were attending a conference on evangelism. During one of the sessions, Larry missed Pete. At luncheon, when he saw Pete, he said, “I missed you at the 10 o’clock session. It was really terrific! Where were you?”
“I was in the lobby talking to a bellhop about Christ. I led him to the Lord,” said Pete.
There is nothing wrong with attending conferences, but it is easy to forget the individual and their needs while discussing generalities.
The test of Christian love is not in loud professions about loving the whole church, but in quietly helping a brother who is in need.
If we do not even help a brother or sister, it is not likely we would “lay down our lives” for “the brothers and sisters.”
I've told this story before and it is not mine; it goes like this. A chinese house church was meeting when all of a sudden the doors flew open and in stomped a soldier. He yells if you leave right now I will let you live. Many people ran out of the house. He yelled a second time. If you leave now I will let you live. This is your last chance. After a few more ran out he said to those few who were left to shut the door. They thought their death was certain. Once the door was shut he said ok let's worship. When asked why he did what he did he said he wanted to know who the true Christians were.
This is what God's love looks like.
A man does not have to murder in order to sin; hatred is murder in his heart.
But a man need not even hate his brother to be guilty of sin.
All he has to do is ignore him, or be indifferent toward his needs.
A believer who has material goods and can relieve his brother’s or sister’s needs ought to do it.
To “close the door of his heart” on his brother or sister is a kind of murder!
If I am going to help my brother or sister, I must meet three conditions.
First, I must have the means necessary to meet his needs.
Second, I must know that the need exists.
Third, I must be loving enough to want to share.
A believer who is too poor to help, or who is ignorant of his brother’s need, is not condemned. If you don’t know you don’t know. You won't be held responsible for not knowing.
But a believer who hardens his heart against his needy brother or sister is condemned.
One reason Christians should work is so that they may be able “to give to him that is in need” (Eph. 4:28).
“Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.”
Ephesians 4:28 NIV
In these days of multiplied social agencies, it is easy for Christians to forget their obligations.
Galatians 6:10 says:
So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all men, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith” (Gal. 6:10, NASB).
This “doing good” need not be in terms of money or material supplies.
It may include personal service and the giving of oneself to others.
There are many individuals in our churches who lack love and would welcome friendship.
I think of all the rehabilitation homes that are full.
I think of all the elderly who have nobody.
A young mother admitted, in a testimony meeting, that she never seemed to find time for her own personal devotions. She had several little children to care for, and the hours melted away.
Imagine her surprise when two of the ladies from the church appeared at her front door.
“We’ve come to take over,” they explained. “You go into the bedroom and get started on your devotions.” After several days of this kind of help, the young mother was able to develop her devotional life so that the daily demands on her time no longer upset her.
Conclusion: If we want to experience and enjoy the love of God in our own hearts, we must love others, even to the point of sacrifice. Being indifferent to a brother or sister’s needs means robbing ourselves of what we need even more: the love of God in our hearts. It is a matter of love or death!
Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 511–512.