Doing Good Series

In the spring of 1897, Thomas Hanna, a 25 year old Baptist

pastor fell out of his carriage and landed on his head. When he woke

up he was in a state of total amnesia. Dr. Boris Sidis and his

assistant Dr. Goodhert had to teach him to talk, to eat, and to go to

the bathroom as if he were a child. They took him to the theater, to

the zoo, and to dinner with his family. For two months they labored

to jog his memory by recreating scenes from his pre-accident life.

One day Hanna experienced a moment of crisis, and the past and the

present came together, and his memory was restored. He recovered

completely and Dr. Sidis became quit famous for his success with this

patient.

The element of surprise in this true story is that Dr. Sidis was one

of the most famous atheists of his day. He was a genius who qualified

to get into Harvard at age 9. I have read his biography, and can testify

that he had one of the most amazing brains in American

history. He wasted most of it, but the point is, as an atheist he did

good for a Christian pastor, and on a mental level he saved his life,

and he made it possible for him to go on to save lives for eternity.

God can use some of the most unlikely instruments for good in this

world. In Paul's life there were Roman soldiers that God used to do

good for Him. These pagans help Paul accomplish his ministry for

God. Atheists do good; pagans do good, and anybody can be an

instrument for doing good in this world. It is not limited to

Christians, for they do not have a monopoly on doing good. Doing

good is universally accepted and encouraged. The result is that the

Christian often feels that doing good is such an anemic idea.

Anybody can do good, and even non-Christians can get so good at it

that they get labeled do-gooders. So with this negative label plus the

universal possibility of doing good, the Christian tends to write it off

as superficial and inconsequential.

The result is that Christians often miss the chance to communicate

with the world on that level where all people understand the

language of doing good. The Christian often gets deceived into

thinking that the Christian approach to people has to be more name

brand, and not so generic. We have to do the spectacular and

unusual. We are like the sports team that thinks that the only way to

win is to be clever and tricky. But the fact is, no team ever becomes

great without getting back to the basics. What Paul is saying in our

text is that doing good is the ABC foundation for living the successful

Christian life.

Paul says there are two kinds of seeds we sow in life. There are

the seeds of self-indulgence which please the sinful nature, and there

are the seeds of doing good to others which please the Spirit. Doing

good then is not a mere side-line in the Christian life. It is a basic

principle of Christian living. That is why Paul is stressing that Christians

must not get weary in well doing. It is the only hope for a

harvest, and so he urges them to do good to all men whenever they

have opportunity, and especially to a family of believers. The only

way you can please God is by doing good, and the only way you can

please anyone else is by doing good. All relationships in life revolve

around doing good for one another. If you are not doing good, you

are not building any relationship you have.

When we say that you have to work at marriage, it simply means

that you have to work at doing good for one another. The same is

true for friendships, and working relationships. All relationships are

dependent upon a mutual doing good for one another. A

relationship where no good is being done is a decaying an dying

relationship. Show me a person for whom you do no good, and I'll

show you a person you do not love very much, for love on any level

can only exist when doing good is part of the relationship. God so

loved the world that He gave His Son. Had God not done good for

the world it would be hard to define, or even to detect His love. Love

is only real when it is exhibited in the doing of good.

Love is not just something you feel. Love is something you do. If

you do not do some good for another, it is not possible to give any

meaning to the statement that you love them. Love has no content