“Grace and peace be yours in
abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His
divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through
the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.
Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises,
so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having
escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. For
this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness;
and to goodness knowledge;
and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance;
and to perseverence, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection;
and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in
increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and
unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2
Peter 1:2-8
goodness — the state of being
good-- pure, moral, conscientious, meritorious, worthy, exemplary,
upright, beneficial, having admirable, pleasing qualities
For Goodness Sake.
Danny, the Build Director, teared up as
he stood watching his team congratulating the little family on their
new home. Handshakes, hugs and comments on the success of the day
passed throughout the group and although dinner was waiting back at
the ranch, no one wanted to break the moment. It had been a good
day.
I am so glad I was there to witness
this life changing event for a young mother and her children. But
their's were not the only lives that were altered. A team of twenty
individuals had answered the call to do something good and this would
have a lasting effect on them as well. That is the way of things
when you put your faith into action by practicing what is good.
The word goodness in the focus
verse in 2 Peter is the Greek word areta and means moral
excellence; a virtuous course of thought, feeling or action. This
step of adding goodness to our faith is a strategic one .
Now that we have put our faith in God, aligning ourselves with him,
Peter says, “Add goodness.” It makes sense that we would follow
God in his ways by choosing to act as he does by doing good. It was his
own goodness, after all, he has called us out of a life of
“corruption...caused by evil desires” and “has given us
everything we need for a godly life.”
Romans 12 gives a Goodness Plan for our
lives calling us to become “a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing
to God...” by being “transformed by the renewing of our minds.”
It gives us a way of seeing things differently by thinking and acting
in a way that is good. And in this way, we are “not overcome by
evil, but overcome evil with good.” That, my friends, points to a
major reason to add goodness to our faith-- It overcomes evil.
That is something definitely needed when it comes to living a godly
life. It also allows us to participate in the divine nature which
gives us a deeper knowledge of who God is.
The challenge set before us is to
continually choose good in everything we do. We not only will be
changed by doing good but it also has a way of affecting others in
the most positive way while bringing attention and glory to the
Father. So, for His sake choose goodness.
God's definition of doing good--
“Finally, brothers and sisters,
whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is pure, whatever is
lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or
praiseworthy—think on such things. Whatever you have learned or
received or heard from me--put into practice. And the peace of God
will be with you.” Philippians 4:8-9
”You are the light of the world...let
your light shine among others, that they may see your good deeds and
glorify the Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:14-16
Hands of Mercy, Ensenada April 2013
