How to Be a Fruity Christian (Part 15)

Years ago, I read an article that interviewed people at work about their co-workers.  The key subject dealt with those co-workers who were always going out of their way to please others or do good around the workplace.  The conclusion of this article found that most coworkers did not like their peers constantly doing good around the work place.  The mentality of most came down to the following phrase, "Don't be a goody two-shoes!"  Yet when we come to Galatians 5:22-23, we see that the sixth fruit of the Spirit is "goodness" or "loves' quality". 

In the Old Testament the word for good is "tob" and it is first used by God in Genesis 1 & 2 to  describe "the good creation."  In the New Testament the word goodness is connected to the word "benevolence".  Goodness speaks of moral and spiritual excellence.  In Scripture, a person can not be considered "good" if separated in their relationship with God.  Since God is the standard for goodness (Ps. 100:5, Nah. 1:7, Ps. 23:6), only those who walk with the True and Living God are considered good.  Man is not naturally good, because sin defiled that good standing before God.  Man's goodness can only come from his relationship with God.  That is why we ought to be careful when making statement like, "They are good", or "They do a lot of good things", of people you do not know their spiritual condition.  In the eyes of God, there is no such thing as "good" unless that goodness flows from a personal relationship with God.  The prophet Isaiah makes this thought crystal clear when he writes, "All of our righteousness (goodness) is as filthy rags!"  Only those who have been saved by grace through faith in Christ have God's power within to live a "good" life before Him.  Until next time, keep walking close to Christ.