But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness……Galatians 5:22
One of God’s attributes is that He is good. He is the standard for what is good, which is where our idea of good originates. He is the highest good, the best good. There is nothing that can compare with Him.
I like the way A.W Tozer explains God’s goodness, “God is kindhearted, gracious, good-natured and benevolent in intention. He is infinitely good, but most importantly, He is perfectly good. God is never partway anything!”
“Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good” (Psalm 136:1)
“You are good, and what you do is good” (Psalm 119:68).
We can see God’s goodness in salvation, breath in our lungs, safety, food, clothing, transportation…and the list can go on for a while. We often don’t deserve God’s goodness, which should make us all the more humble and grateful.
As believers, we are called to live a life that is a reflection of Christ, and Paul called believers in the church of Galatia to live by the Spirit and not by the flesh.
While we will never be “good” we can strive to demonstrate this “fruit” daily.
“The Greek word translated “goodness,” agathosune, is defined as “uprightness of heart and life.” Agathosune is goodness for the benefit of others, not goodness simply for the sake of being virtuous.”(GotQuestions)
This is the Greek word used in Galatians 5:22 related to this fruit of the Spirit. Remember, it is only through the help of the Spirit that we can do good.
“”Goodness has a transparent quality. Most simply, you can depend on good people to be and do what they say (they keep their word)—and to do what is right (simply because it is the right thing to do).” ” (Wright, 2017)
We can see how God’s goodness has benefited us. What good can you do to help those around you?
A smile
Helping a friend in need
Visiting the sick
Praying for a friend or enemy
Giving to the poor
With God as our standard for goodness, we should ask the Holy Spirit to guide us. The more we study and apply God’s Word, the more we learn to be more like Him and reflect His character.
Sometimes, doing good will cost us something.
“The good man or woman resists the temptation to find some way out of keeping a promise, or speaking the truth, or doing the honest thing. Nearly always, there is some alternative option available. But the good choice is the right choice, even when it’s the hard one.” (Wright, 2017)
Jesus told His disciples that they should be light to a dark world. We should be models of goodness.
We are living proof of God’s goodness through His gift of salvation ,the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ our Savior. Hopefully, the good we reflect points others to Christ and draws them to Him.
So remember, our goodness is to glorify God.
Reference
The Wiersbe Bible Commentary By Warren W. Wiersbe (2003)
Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary Editor Ronald F. Youngblood (2014)
GotQuestions: The Fruit of the Holy Spirit – What is goodness? https://www.gotquestions.org/fruit-Holy-Spirit-goodness.html
Christopher J. H. Wright, Cultivating the Fruit of the Spirit: Growing in Christlikeness (2017)
