FOS 10 Goodness (and the end of Kindness)

Kindness

Review from the last lesson:

Romans 2:2-4 ESV - 2 We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. 3 Do you suppose, O man--you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself--that you will escape the judgment of God? 4 Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?

This comes in the middle of a section on judging others, but it reveals an important truth about God’s kindness. What do we learn about the purpose of God’s kindness?

-God is kind to us in spite of our sin and patient with us in our sin.

-His kindness is meant to lead us to repentance. 

Ephesians 2:4-7 ESV - 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ--by grace you have been saved-- 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

1- Coming ages: Just before verse 7 it says that we’re raised up with Jesus in the heavenly places. This gives us a clue to what Paul means when he says “coming ages.” He’s talking about heaven. And notice the verb tense. In God’s economy of time, this has already been done. We have an eternity to enjoy God.

2- Immeasurable riches: God shows us great kindness with His gift of eternal life in His presence following our short life on this broken earth. It is beyond all the riches we can imagine. Have you read Revelation chapters 21 and 22:1-7? It describes the remade heaven and earth we will have in eternity. It’s clear John tried to put into words a beauty beyond our present earthly experience. It takes my breath away.

Colossians 3:12-17 ESV - 12 Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

1. We have looked at these verses before. Read through the above verses and see how many fruits of the spirit you can find: love, peace, patience, kindness 
2. List the character qualities that are called for in these verses: Campassion, kindness, humility, meekness, patience, bearing with one another, forgiveness, love, peace, thankfulness
3. What is the most important quality? Love
4. What should dwell in us? How might that affect the other things in these verses? The word of Christ. It shows us who God is and what He desires of us. Hebrews 4:12 ESV - 12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

God’s word is so important to get to know God and to recognize what He truly wants of us. Going through this study and others consistently will help us discern His truth as opposed to what others might say is truth. Even well meaning Christians can confuse the truth. Going directly to His word will help us recognize that. Keep pursuing God through His word.

Goodness

To add to what we’ve learned about God’s kindness towards us, read the next few verses in Ephesians 2. 

Ephesians 2:8-10 ESV - 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Here we see more of God’s kindness upon us. He gave us the gift of salvation from our sins and eternal life without requiring work or payment.

And did you catch what verse 10 says? Though our works aren’t required for salvation, we’re created for them. What are those good works? They’re the good things we do to make Jesus known and bring God glory. How do we know what works are good? We study God’s word. These works require the fruit of the spirit that we’ve been studying in order to be most effective. Let’s study what else God’s word shows us about good and goodness.

agathōsynē is the Greek word used in Galatians 5  for the word goodness. The meaning listed in Strong’s concordance is:

Uprightness of heart, goodness, and kindness.¹

Deuteronomy 12:28 ESV - 28 Be careful to obey all these words that I command you, that it may go well with you and with your children after you forever, when you do what is good and right in the sight of the LORD your God.

In the verses above, Moses is speaking to the Israelites after the forty years of wandering in the wilderness and before they enter the promised land. The adults who left Egypt died in this time and those left were twenty years old or younger at the beginning of the forty years and also their children. In Deuteronomy he is recounting the things that have happened in addition to God’s laws and expectations of them. We learn that obeying God’s commands is considered what is good and right in the sight of the Lord.

Luke 18:18-19 (ESV) 18 And a ruler asked him (Jesus), “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 19 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.”

In the Luke 18 scripture, the Greek word agathos is used for good. You can see from comparing it to the word used in Galatians that it is the root word of agathosyne.

In the Luke scripture, Jesus is approached by a rich young ruler who is looking for an easy way into heaven—something he could accomplish by giving up what means little to him, which you discover when reading through verse 23. That is not the focus I want to pull out today, though it is important to note Jesus was not implying you can’t have money and go to heaven. Instead, Jesus knew that money had become an idol to him. These two verses are important to us because they remind us that God is the source of goodness and the only one who is fully good.

Though we seek to be good and follow God’s commands, we will not be perfect until heaven. And yet, goodness is what God calls us to. He has provided His Spirit to guide us into goodness and His laws and word to point us to what is good. The verse below in Matthew 19 is Matthew’s version of Luke 18:18-19 and brings those two things together: God’s goodness and keeping His commandments.

Matthew 19:17 ESV - 17 And he said to him, "Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments."

In the verses for study, you’ll have a chance to look closer at God’s goodness and His call for His people to be good. As always, be sure to look at the verses surrounding the one’s listed to get the full context of the verses. And don’t forget to pray before, during, and after your time of study. Ask God to show you what He wants you to see.

For Study:

Psalm 31:19 (ESV)

Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you and worked for those who take refuge in you, in the sight of the children of mankind!

Isaiah 63:7 (ESV)

I will recount the steadfast love of the LORD, the praises of the LORD, according to all that the LORD has granted us, and the great goodness to the house of Israel that he has granted them according to his compassion, according to the abundance of his steadfast love.

Psalm 25:7 ESV - 7 Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions; according to your steadfast love remember me, for the sake of your goodness, O LORD

Psalm 65:4 ESV - 4 Blessed is the one you choose and bring near, to dwell in your courts! We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, the holiness of your temple!

Hebrews 6:5 ESV - 5 and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come.

In the five preceeding verses:

1- What do you learn about God’s goodness? What is God’s goodness tied to?

2- How do the authors of these verses respond to God’s goodness?

3- Take a few moments to praise God for His goodness in ways that you have seen in scripture, the lives of those around you, and in your own life.

Romans 15:14 ESV - 14 I myself am satisfied about you, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge and able to instruct one another.

Philemon 1:14 ESV - 14 but I preferred to do nothing without your consent in order that your goodness might not be by compulsion but of your own accord.

Romans 12:2 ESV - 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

In the three preceeding verses:

1- What do you learn about God’s goodness? What is their goodness tied to?

2- In all of these verses, Paul is the author. He has written the words as letters to churches to encourage and strengthen them. If a pastor was to write about goodness in your life, what might he say? What ways would he praise you, and what ways would he challenge you?

Micah 6:8 ESV - 8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?

Read Micah 6:6-8 to have a full understanding of what the author is saying. Verse 8 is such a rich verse. List out the things you learn about what is good.

¹G19 - agathōsynē - Strong's Greek Lexicon (esv). Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g19/esv/mgnt/0-1/