He Went About Doing Good
There is such a great summary of Jesus’ life and ministry in the book of Acts. It reads: “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him” (Acts 10.38). It is so simply, don’t you agree? God is good. There is no shadow of turning in Him. He is light and the light expels darkness; no bad side, no grey areas; just pure light. So Jesus went all over Israel demonstrating the Good News by healing the sick, feeding the hungry, caring for the widows, expelling demons and preaching the Gospel. No wonder He was so popular. Children loved Him. The multitudes sought Him out wherever He went. They didn’t complain or criticize Him at all.
Jesus trained His disciples to do the same. When He sent out His twelve, (Luke 9), and the 70, (Luke 10), He told them to go from village to village preaching the Good News of the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick. They were to bless the houses that received them, fellowship around a meal, minister to the needs of those in each house and declare that God is Good and that His Kingdom had come. The Gospel is just that simple: Go about and do good and give the credit to God.
Those that resisted Jesus’ demonstration of the Kingdom of God were those stuck in their narrow interpretation of the law. Instead of seeing the law as about loving God and loving others, they saw it as an end in itself. When God gave the law to Moses, the glory of the Lord covered Moses. The law was an expression of God’s love to protect Israel from their sin nature and the snares of the enemy. When Moses descended from the mountain, His face shone with the glory and presence of the Lord. The intention of God was for the whole nation to be as priests and kings before Him, but the people were afraid. They did not want to approach God personally and pleaded with Moses to be their mediator and to cover his face. The law became a stumbling stone, rather than a foundation.
Jesus also went up on a mountain to receive from His Father. Moses and Elijah were there and as the glory of the Lord covered Him, His clothes became radiant and intensely bright. This was a greater glory than what was experienced by Moses, yet when he descended from the mountain, the people were amazed, yet ran to greet Him. They were not afraid, but were attracted. (Mark 9.15) Law repels. Grace attracts.
It is the goodness of God that leads people to repentance. It is the goodness of God that triumphs over evil. We are to do good to those who persecute us, who speak evil about us and who curse us. We are not respond with the law; “eye for eye, tooth for tooth”, but with grace and forgiveness. Doing good is a powerful weapon against the enemy. There is no argument against it. James defines sin in this way: “whoever knows to do good, and does not do it, to him it is sin.” (4.17) A true sign that we are saved and living by grace is that we go about doing good.
Scriptures to meditate on:
Mark 9.15; Acts 10.38; Eph. 2.10; Gal. 6.9-10; Mark 10.18; I Peter 2.12; Rom. 2.4