Receiving God’s goodness and faithfulness

Receiving God’s goodness and faithfulness begins my admitting our need of God’s help and grace in our lives. Trusting Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour is a way to express this. We admit our need to be forgiven and that we can’t fully show others God’s love on our own. What we receive from God we can then share with others.

Reflecting God’s goodness and faithfulness to others is something that Jesus Christ did this perfectly. We can spend a life time learning how to grow in living like this. It is as we grow in our understanding of God’s goodness and faithfulness that we can more fully reflect this to others. Jesus told a parable about three servants who were given different responsibilities by their master. Two invested what they were given and saw it grow. The third buried his resources. He considered the master to be unfair and mean. As a result he was described as “wicked and lazy”. The other two were “good and faithful” servants. Their faithfulness in little things meant that they were entrusted with more. (See Matthew 25:14-30 for the full story)

To what degree are you living as if you believe that God is good and faithful? How are you opening yourself up to God? How are you reflecting this to others?

God's goodness and faithfulness

Believing that God is both good and faithful can sometimes be difficult. We can be tempted not to trust in God’s faithfulness because of our negative life experiences. When other people let us down and disappoint us we may blame God. Perhaps our prayers haven’t been answered in the way that we had hoped. Or maybe we have been unfaithful to God or to other people. But the Bible assures that God is faithful, no matter what happens to us or what we do. For example, “The Rock his work is perfect, all his ways are just. A God of faithfulness is He and without iniquity (sin)”. (Deuteronomy 32:4) and “God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.” (1 Corinthians 1:9)

The Bible also tells us that God (and God alone) is truly good. (Exodus 33:19, Psalm 23:6, Mark 10:17-18) Other religions paint a picture of a God or gods who are to be feared as angry and hateful. “If you don’t keep them happy they will hurt you”, is often the message spoken or unspoken. But Jesus Christ shows us by his love, and tells us in his teaching that God is good.

Spiritual DNA

Have you thought about your spiritual DNA? DNA is the building block for all forms of life. It is used to pass on the essential character and nature of things from one generation to the next. The Bible tells us that we also have a spiritual DNA. As children of God we are made in his likeness and intended to reflect his character and nature. (Genesis 1:25-27) The apostle Paul describes this DNA as the “fruit of the Spirit”. (Galatians 5:29-25). He contrasts it to human effort and work. We don’t become like God by trying to be “good for God”. The lemon tree in my backyard produces lemons not apples. It is a natural result of the kind of tree that it is. The “fruit” of the Spirit is a result of drawing our life from God. Goodness and faithfulness are two aspects of this “fruit” which also includes love, joy, peace, patience and kindness, humility and self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23) Together, they are a unity which demonstrates that God is our spiritual father and we are his children. They become our heritage and birth right when we develop a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. So, how do we do this?

Sharing the dream

"Dealers in hope’are people who have the capacity to ‘dream’ and to see a better future beyond the present reality. Prayerfully inspired by God such people have made a huge difference to the world down through the ages. From the apostle Paul to Martin Luther King (Jnr) and Mother Theresa, such people look beyond what is to what could be. But they don’t achieve the dream by keeping it to themselves. Such people share their dream and inspire others to unite in working towards it.

‘Dealers in hope’ need the courage to say what needs to be said, not just what people want to hear. The prophet Jeremiah warned of judgment before he spoke of return from exile. He was persecuted before he was heard as God’s messenger. Martin Luther King (Jnr) was killed for sharing his dream. To be heard when we speak about a ‘better future’ requires a commitment to truth and integrity. Australians in particular are wary of spin doctors who gloss over the present situation in a dismissive fashion or deny the costly path which leads to a better future.

The apostle Paul powerfully shared the hope of the gospel. Like so many others since, his credibility came from words supported by lifestyle. He pointed to the ultimate hope which is found through being justified by faith in Jesus Christ and put at peace with God. He says that such a relationship enables us to access God’s grace. The ultimate ‘better future’ is life lived in the presence of God. It begins now and continues for eternity (Romans 5:1-5).

But how does this message translate into the everyday reality of our personal lives, our schools and our troubled world? What does it mean as we deal with rising interest rates and photos of young children pulled from the rubble of bombed buildings? How does it inform the way that we teach and the way in which we administer our schools? How does it enable us to look students in the eye and answer their questions about the meaning of life?

Triumphalism and cynicism are both common responses to the quest for a better future.Triumphalists so emphasise the positives of the present that they deny the existence of any negatives. For them the better future is already present. Such leaders usually leave no room for critique. They live in denial of the need for or possibility of change. They give the impression that everything is perfect. But scratch the surface and a different picture invariably emerges, even in the best community or organisation. Cynics, on the other hand, see all the faults and problems but none of the possibilities for change or growth. Any sense of hope is crushed by the overwhelming awareness of all that is wrong with the world. Sometimes life’s difficulties can wear us down and cause us to lose hope for the future.

So, what is the role of a ‘dealer in hope’ in the midst of a rapidly changing and uncertain world? It is to share God’s dream for a better world while facing the present realities of life. Paul puts it like this: ‘We rejoice in the hope of the glory of God (which is our ultimate goal). Not only so, but we rejoice in our sufferings.’ (Romans 5:2-3a). A key function then of leadership is making sense of the present suffering which lies upon the path between the present reality and the future hope.

Seeing a better future

“A leader is a dealer in hope”, said Napoleon Bonaparte. We live in an age which is desperately in need of a sense of hope. Events such as September 11, 2001 and the subsequent “war on terror” have brought a renewed sense of uncertainty to the world. Previously we faced the “Cold War” threat of possible nuclear annihilation. Today’s threats are chillingly close and more personal. Locally, it includes armed forces families with members serving in the Middle East, while other students are waiting anxiously for news of relatives living in Lebanon. More broadly, global warming, ecological breakdown and constant media coverage of war and violence add to a sense of impending gloom.

So, what does it mean to be a “dealer in hope” in these troubled times? What guidance does the Bible offer to those who seek to live as messengers of that hope in the name of Jesus Christ?

Firstly, to be a dealer in hope requires the capacity to “dream” and to see a better future beyond the present reality. Politically and educationally many people have become wary of the person whose “dream” is so detached from reality that it reads like fantasy. Other visionary leaders are so task oriented that that they leave a “trail of bodies” in their path as they bulldoze their way forward. However, the biblical understanding of a visionary leader is one who prayerfully seeks after and reflects God’s plans for a better future.

A good contemporary example is Martin Luther King (Jnr.) whose hope was articulated in his famous speech, “I have dream”. He was able to see beyond the racial segregation of his day to a world where black and white children could walk hand in hand. Such was the power of his dream that others continued to pursue it after his death. Three former US presidents and George W. Bush (Jnr.) attended his widow’s funeral. One former president had opposed Civil Rights legislation in the 1960’s but came to honour her.

The prophet Jeremiah also saw God’s better future for his people. He delivered God’s message to them in a time of national despair. Their way of life and religious faith had been battered into submission by the invading Babylonians. They languished as slaves in exile, feeling abandoned by God and under God’s judgment. Jeremiah had previously predicted this consequence of their rebellion against God. Later he offered to them words of hope for a better future (Jeremiah 29:10-14). Verse 11 reads,

“For I know the plans I have for you”, declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you hope and a future”.

The ultimate “better future” is found through being at peace with God through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. This enables us to access his grace and share in the hope of eternal life both now and forever. (Romans 5:1-5) Can you see a better future for your life, for our world?

The Love of Christ

14 When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, 15 the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. 16 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. 17 Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. 18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.” (Ephesians 3:14-18 NLT)

Christ’s peace enables us to be at peace with ourselves, with God and with other people. It also opens us up to the reality of Christ’s love. The above prayer helps us to understand how we can experience more of this love. It involves,

Inner strength through his Spirit
There are many events in life which can discourage and overwhelm us. Paul prays for the church at Ephesus that God’s Spirit will give them inner strength. The original Greek word used is the opposite of “to discourage”. When we are discouraged we can lose our strength and enthusiasm. Everything seems “too hard”. Watching media reports of war and violence, losing our job or having an argument with a friend can all discourage us. But God’s Spirit helps us to look beyond the difficulties of life and human evil. It lifts our eyes to the goodness and faithfulness of God.

Christ at home in your hearts
Jesus says to one of the churches in the book of Revelation, “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.” (Revelation 3:20) When a friend knocks at the door you normally invite them in to your house immediately. But if they turn up unexpectedly you might not. Instead, you might quickly shut the door on some rooms that are messy! The better you know and trust the person, the more likely you are to let them have free access to your home. In the same way, the more that we trust Christ the more we will open up every area of our lives to him.

Your roots will go down into God’s love
A few years ago we planted a hedge of trees along our side boundary. Over time, numbers of them have died. Our local garden centre has told us that a little grub is eating the fine feeder roots on the trees. As a result the trees are starving to death. God’s love gives us life as we put our roots deep down into its soil. This happens as we grow in trusting him. But sometimes the hurts and problems of life eat away at the “feeder roots”. We need the encouragement of other believers and the guidance the Bible gives to keeps us growing in God’s love.

How real is Christ’s love to you? Are you sharing it with others?