The danger of trying to be good

I’ve been blogging about obedience and how it comes from a heart of love and trust.  It comes from trust that God will not ask us to obey in anything that is truly and ultimately harmful to us.  It may be hard.  It may require sacrifice.  But God is always good and His sovereignty is working towards good.  Even in the Cross – especially in the Cross – God was bringing great good out of very evil events.  I have been “arguing” for the power of God’s love to bring us into surrender of our own way, and into obedience which leads to the most abundant life we could ever have.

But now let's look at the flip side.  What if we are pursuing goodness wholeheartedly and thinking that we have made progress?  What if our pursuit leads to impatience with the failures of others to cooperate with or live up to our view of what is right?  It's good to see that in our obedience we are becoming better and better, right?  Isn't God pleased with this?

Let me ask another question.  Why did Jesus reserve his harshest words for the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law?  Was it not because they considered themselves much better than the ‘common sinners’ and because they measured their righteousness by their own standards?  They had the law of God, but they missed His heart by a mile in their “obedience”.

It may be true that others need to change, and sometimes we begin to recognize their needs as our own life changes and our vision becomes clearer.  We may encounter things that bother us more than they did before we got "cleaned up".  But if our hearts are being changed, those things begin to arouse compassion, not condemnation. 

Jesus used the analogy of the vine and the branches to teach his disciples how true goodness comes about.  He said “Remain in me, and I will remain in you.  No branch can bear fruit by itself;” (John 17:4a) and “apart from me you can do nothing” (vs.5b).  The fruit of the Spirit, by whom we are connected with Jesus, is “love, joy, peace patience, kindness, goodness, etc.   These qualities come from the Holy Spirit in us and the results (fruit) of living them cannot be self-generated.

Looks good, but it's not real

When a believer is trying to produce good behavior and compliance in himself, or motivate others to do so, he is in danger if he becomes disconnected from the ‘Vine” in the process.  If self-effort seems to be working, the “fruit” is self-righteousness and pride which can easily become haughty, judgmental and condemning of others who don’t try as hard or as “successfully” as he has.  Right away we can see that the “fruit” is rotten.

Behind self-effort can be misunderstanding of our condition as human beings.  We are fallen creatures living in a fallen world and it is only Jesus in us that makes a difference.  I used to try to be perfect because I actually thought I could be good enough if I tried hard enough.  My inevitable failures only cemented my sense of unworthiness and my need to hide my true (and unacceptable) self.  On the other hand, if I was able to make something work, I wanted others to do the same so it would be easier for all of us.  Whichever end of the stick we are holding there's an expectation that life should work if we all just try.  But that is forgetting that without the grace of God working in our hearts we are self-centered  and lost.  The world is never going to cooperate with our agenda for goodness (or with God’s) apart from the saving grace of Jesus’ work on the cross and surrender to the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. This applies in our marriages, our families, our friendships, our work and our church.

(source unknown) 

So what are we to do about all the problems we see?  Or what am I to do if someone says that I am the problem?  There is an answer that applies to both situations.  It is to confess and repent of everything that hinders my connection to the Vine.  I don’t have to fix these things, just tell the Lord that I know they are keeping me from abiding in him and being filled with the fruit of the Spirit. I can thank him by faith for transforming me from within and pray that the other person will be blessed to receive God’s love as well.  People may conform for a time because of fear or shame, but they are transformed by mercy. A transformed heart is able to show mercy to the next person and so the love of God spreads.

Is there a danger in trying to be good?  I think the answer is in "trying".  Desiring to be good is from God but becoming good happens through humble trusting surrender to His love. The "work" is in laying down whatever keeps us locked up in pride or fear or control. Once we lay that down God does what only He can accomplish - give us a new life!

at the Grand Canyon!

When I surrendered the need for change in myself to Jesus, counting on Him to work, I felt gratitude rather than self-satisfaction for the results.   Rather than making demands of others, I saw Jesus was the source of hope for all of us.  It's all about Jesus - and that's why he deserves the glory!


Note: For an excellent teaching on grace and law in relationships click here:  Prodigal Grace Part 2 (10/28/12)