Good deeds?

What are good deeds?

Do all "good" deeds come from the same place; a place of love? Can the exact same deed come from a place of wholeness by one person and a place of need by another? And if it comes out of ²need is it truly a loving deed?

Truly good deeds that come from a heart of love have ¹no strings attached. The doer of such deeds is only interested in the deeds being gratefully received.

But this is not because the doer needs it to be gratefully received for themself. But because it confirms the deed helped the recipient as intended to i.e. to show love.

Such deeds are not designed to manipulate others to meet their own need for love.

Deeds done out of a need for love are actually done under the guise of giving. Such deeds do not come out of love but out of a need for love and affirmation gained through their good deeds. This is giving of a sort but only superficially i.e. on the outside.

Truly good deeds are intended to give love and also enjoy receiving it as well. It is who we're designed to be as bearers of God's image. But receiving isn't the motive for this kind of action. Love is i.e. giving not receiving.

Deeds done to fill a need in us is giving to get love. This comes out of a need for love, not from a place of love. It comes from emptiness (lack of love) not fullness. Therefore it is not truly giving, but ²taking.

This need only exists because of our disconnection from our Designer and Creator who is the source of life, love, and all things. We can not be truly loving if we are not plugged in to the Source of love.

If we accept God's love extended to us through Christ we shift from being takers of love to givers but not until then.

"Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing."

- John 15:4-5

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Footnotes:

¹good deeds are not enough. But deeds done out of love. This is why love is not easily offended. It comes out of fullness not need...

"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 

And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. 

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things...

So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love." - 1 Cor 13:1-7, 13 

²this is not to say such deeds are never helpful, but in time we may find they have clear strings attached which may cause us to have to detach from those who "love" in this way.

Is making a lot of money legit?

Is it legitimate to pursue making a lot of money as an end in itself? No.

However, note the above says the love of money is the problem, not money itself.

If we diligently pursue doing things with excellence for the glory of God, it is not only totally legitimate to be as productive and fruitful as possible, but what we are called to do. 

From the beginning in Genesis and throughout the New Testament, God's mandate to humanity was to be fruitful and multiply i.e. bear much fruit. This honors God.

This may result in financial success (and sometimes does, particularly if God gave you the temperament and skills to be an effective business person). But it's not automatically a guarantee. 

Since making money is not the focus (though it can clearly be a legitimate measuring stick of success under the right conditions), but the pursuit of excellence for Christ's sake is i.e., doing everything - including "business" - for God's honor (glory) regardless of whether we see a significant financial reward or not. 

We should always strive for excellence and never back off from being as fruitful as possible, both spiritually and materially. Doing things with excellence has more to do with effort and intent than outcome. Backing off from doing all things for God's glory is not optional. Honoring God in all we say and do is the calling of every believer.
 

What about our skills?

What if our skills and abilities, energy, stamina, strength, and mental sharpness have considerably dropped off with age or for some other reason, such as overall health or injury? Is this a legitimate reason to slow down? 

Because money is not the final measuring stick of a legitimate endeavor but intent to honor God is, we are still to pursue things with excellence regardless of our skills i.e. being excellent for Christ's sake always remains the ¹same even though our abilities change over time (some for better - like increased wisdom through increased life experience - and some for worse, like declining physical and mental stamina). 

Doing everything with excellence for the glory of God should ²always be our goal and modus operandi, regardless of the resources or skills we may or may not have; whether those resources change, decline, or increase.

What about excellence vs doing just enough to "get by?"

Excellence in the marketplace, in contrast to the lack of excellence, provides a greater opportunity to put God on display; to demonstrate that living for God is a more excellent and productive way than not living for him and living only for self-advancement. 

This is exactly why Joseph excelled in every circumstance he found himself in and was entrusted to oversee things wherever he went. He was eventually promoted to second in command in Egypt, probably the greatest nation on earth at that time. This led to great prosperity, which in turn was used to save many lives, including his own family. 

Truly knowing and living for God makes us more productive, resourceful, and excellent, resulting in greater honor to God and service to humanity made up of fellow bearers of God's image.

Excellence in attitude.

We are not only to be excellent in our effort but excellent in attitude e.g., humble, diligent, caring, grateful etc., which usually, though not automatically, leads to an excellent outcome. In fact, the right attitude leads to the right outcome. Therefore, knowing God is more excellent in the work environment (or any area of endeavor) than not knowing Him.  It is the superior way of living life. 

But we must distinguish between truly knowing God versus knowing about God. They are not the same. 

Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

Ecc 9:10  Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going. 

Col 3:23  Whatever you do G4160, work G2038b heartily G5590, as for the Lord and not for men, 

Do – G4160

ποιέω - poieō - poy-eh'-o

Apparently a prolonged form of an obsolete primary; to make or do (in a very wide application, more or less direct): - abide, + agree, appoint, X avenge, + band together, be, bear, + bewray, bring (forth), cast out, cause, commit, + content, continue, deal, + without any delay, (would) do (-ing), execute, exercise, fulfil, gain, give, have, hold, X journeying, keep, + lay wait, + lighten the ship, make, X mean, + none of these things move me, observe, ordain, perform, provide, + have purged, purpose, put, + raising up, X secure, shew, X shoot out, spend, take, tarry, + transgress the law, work, yield. Compare G4238.

Work – G2038b

ἐργάζομαι - ergazomai; from G2041; to work, labor: — accomplish (1), accomplished (1), accomplishing (1), achieve (1), committing (1), do (1), do...work (1), does (3), doing (1), doing...work (1), done (2), make...living (1), perform (4), performed (1), performing (1), practice (1), produces (1), traded (1), work (9), work be done (1), work do...perform (1), working (7), works (1), wrought (1).

Heartily – G5590

ψυχή - psuchē; of unc. or.; breath, the soul: — heart (2), heartily (1), life (36), lives (7), mind (1), minds (1), person (1), persons (3), soul (33), souls (14), suspense *(1), thing (1).

From G5594; breath, that is, (by implication) spirit, abstractly or concretely (the animal sentient principle only; thus distinguished on the one hand from G4151, which is the rational and immortal soul; and on the other from G2222, which is mere vitality, even of plants: these terms thus exactly correspond respectively to the Hebrew [H5315], [H7307] and [H2416]: - heart (+ -ily), life, mind, soul, + us, + you.

Thayer Definition:

1) breath

1a) the breath of life

1a1) the vital force which animates the body and shows itself in breathing

1a1a) of animals

1a1b) of men

1b) life

1c) that in which there is life

1c1) a living being, a living soul

2) the soul

2a) the seat of the feelings, desires, affections, aversions (our heart, soul etc.)

2b) the (human) soul in so far as the right use of the aids constituted it that offered it by God it can attain its highest end and secure eternal blessedness, the soul regarded as a moral being designed for everlasting life

2c) the soul as an essence which differs from the body and is not dissolved by death (distinguished from other parts of the body) i.e. put your heart into it. Do it with passion, spirit, and energy.

As a believer in business for over 45 years, I have wrestled with what is legitimate and what is questionable in "doing business." 

The following links are some conclusions I have come to so far, based on scripture first and my own experience, failures, struggles, and successes. 

For those who have wrestled with these same things, I trust you will find the below helpful. 

For a discussion on the fallacy of the health and wealth gospel, click here.

For a further discussion on excellence, click here. 

For a discussion on sowing and reaping, click here. 

For a discussion on legitimate vs illegitimate business, click here 

For a discussion on giving what you have, click here.

For a discussion on being diligence vs undisciplined, click here

For a discussion on resting in God, click here

For a discussion on whether competition is good or bad click here

For a further discussion on being diligent, click here

For a discussion on what is more important, great effort or great faith, click here

For a discussion on the fallacy of the health and wealth gospel, click here.

For a discussion of what exactly is money/currency click here.

For a discussion how faith is hard work click here.

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¹And as we mature, our walk with God should strengthen, so this becomes a more consistent and common part of our life, not less common.

²Whatever you have, no matter how much or how little, use it with all the faith, strength, and energy God gives you for his glory.

legitimate vs illegitimate business

What distinguishes a legitimate enterprise or business from an illegitimate one? 

Being ¹service driven vs. solely profit-driven.

There is nothing wrong with profit in itself, but when profit becomes the ²sole motive, serving others becomes irrelevant or secondary at best and usually leads to ⁴harming others. This is a disservice and the opposite of serving others.

When an enterprise is focused on ²serving others we are loving our neighbors and helping them flourish. The result is that the "consumer" ²benefits. 

We are dependent on certain things to not only survive but to flourish to our maximum capacity. To provide those things to honor of God and for the benefit of our fellow man or woman is to serve both God and humankind.

If we are diligent in serving others, it often results in our economic benefit as well, i.e. profit. We "win" by helping others "win." But serving others is and should always be our focus, regardless. 

As believers, this is carrying out the commandment to love our neighbor as we love ourselves i.e. treating others the way we would like to be treated. If we gain (profit) in this exercise, this is a good thing, not bad i.e. it is not exploiting our fellow man or the planet, as ⁵some assert, but the possible (though not automatic) fruit of serving them.  

The most successful enterprises are those that find a ¹legitimate ³need of others and meet it better than anyone else. The greater the need, the greater the service provided. The greater the service, the greater the opportunity for profit if we are diligent. 

For a discussion on sowing and reaping click here. 

For a discussion on socialism vs capitalism click here. 

For a discussion on doing things with excellence click here. 

For a discussion on whether the pursuit of money is ever legit click here.

For a discussion on what exactly money is click here. 

For a discussion on cryptocurrency, click here. 

For a discussion on giving as we have received, click here

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Footnotes:

¹The nature of the need is also vital in determining the legitimacy of the enterprise or service e.g. providing healthy food vs junk food is a legitimate endeavor. Providing a want such as junk food (or pornography, or abortions etc) simply because there is a demand for it is not. There may be large profits in these kinds of offers, but if an offer is contrary to God's design it is ultimately destructive and a disservice to others and humanity at large regardless of how great the demand or profit.

²Even when profit becomes the primary motive, serving others becomes secondary, which also ultimately leads to people's ⁴harm and the opposite of serving others.

Serving others is good for both the provider and the consumer. This is a "win-win" scenario. 

³We must distinguish between needs and wants. Needs are vital to our existence and flourishing. Wants, no matter how great, are merely what we desire but will not result in our perishing if we can't acquire them i.e. they are not essential to our existence but may only be for greater convenience and comfort versus greater fruitfulness i.e. productivity. 

We are called to be productive (fruitful). Anything that enables us to do so is legitimate. Helping others be more efficient so they have more time to be more productive is a legitimate endeavor. 

This is our initial mandate in the Old Testament:

‭‭Genesis 1:28-30 

And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. 

This is repeated in the New Testament: 

‭‭John 15:5...

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing... 

 

By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples...

 

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, - regarding advancing God's rule (kingdom) of love - he may give it to you. 

⁴Such as using corn syrup in foods as a sweetener because it is cheaper and adds more to the bottom line even though it's harmful to us.

⁵Ayn Rand asserted capitalism and altruism are opposites and do not mix i.e. in a true free market system we can not benefit (win) by helping others benefit (win). 

Click here for a 2-minute video of her explaining worldview. 

However, as an atheist, she didn't understand the dynamic of being empowered to love others when we know we are fully loved. 

She interpreted altruism as a giving away of our dignity - or others taking it from us - and not an expression of the dignity we derive from God, the eternal overflowing fountain of love. She saw altruism only as others taking from us by force vs our freely, gladly, and willingly giving to others out of our fullness of receiving all things from our Creator. A subtle but vital distinction. 

This distinguishes God's Kingdom from communism. This also reveals how the progressive side of the church is unwittingly sympathetic to communism, which is vastly different from advancing God's kingdom by loving our neighbor. 

Givers vs takers

For a discussion on how we are designed to be givers and not takers click here.

When service is our primary focus - but profit is also desired

(though not primary) - this puts innovation front and center. It causes us to continually look for creative ways to meet the unmet needs of our fellow humans and how to also generate the necessary funding to continue to do so. 

Often, but not always, the copycats of legitimate and successful innovation are driven purely by profit, not necessarily how to better serve humanity. 

Knowing God but not fully yet!

Understanding the "already... not yet" aspect of the gospel (good news) is vital. This addresses how we are seated in the heavenly's but have yet to be in heaven. Without a clear understanding of the difference, we will not enter into the benefits of what God has already secured for us in this life. 

This involves a clear understanding and faith in who we are in Christ right now vs who we are not yet but will be one day. This concerns how we are viewed by God now vs how we will experience God in eternity.

To gain a solid understanding of this key component of the gospel (good news), we need to differentiate between our ¹legal status (standing) before God and our actual experience of God.

What do we mean by the expression "already but not yet?"

Christ already fully loves us (just as much as He will in eternity), but we have not yet experienced that love to the full extent we will in eternity.

God is already fully committed to us, totally engaged in our good, and fully present with us now (just as much as He will be in eternity) but we do not yet see him face-to-face i.e. we are not yet without any obstructions, or distractions and fully in his presence (though His love and care are perfectly and fully set upon us now and every moment in Christ...in Him, we live and move and have our being).

We are totally delivered from the ultimate legal consequences of our past, present, and future rebellious distrust of God. But we are not yet presently or fully delivered from all the practical consequences of that rebellion or from being in a broken, rebellious world and wrestling with the day-to-day struggle of our own distrust. We ²still wrestle with trusting God perfectly even as His children - in the same way Christ did (though Christ did without sin i.e. he always obeyed. We often do not).

For now, what connects and brings something of - ³but not all - the glorious future blessings God has in store for us into the present, is faith. 

Faith in what? Faith that God is fully committed to us and engaged in our lives as much now as He will be in eternity. And He is working in all things for our good for those who love Him, even if it doesn't seem or feel like it presently. And He is using all things good, bad, and ugly to draw us into greater union with Him, who is life, love, and the source of all things.

In this present existence, the just - those who are legally and perfectly right before God because of Christ - live by faith. Faith is the evidence of what we hope for (confidently expect) and the certainty of things not yet seen (Heb 11:1) i.e. faith in what is already perfectly ours - though not yet fully ours in our day- to-day experience. By this faith, we bring something of our glorious future of overflowing joy and delight into the present. The more we agree with and trust in what we now have (God's perfect acceptance, commitment, and love) the more we experience something of it but do not yet fully have, i.e. the full experience and participation in what is already ours legally. 

You could say God has all of us now as much as He will ever have (regarding His complete acceptance, love, and devotion to us) but we do not have all of God yet. God is always working through all our experiences in this life to move us more in that direction practically/ experientially, to align us more fully with what has already been earned for us legally. Christ already fully took care of the legal part i.e. "It is finished."

No matter how much faith we have it will not result in the ³full experience we are yet to have in eternity i.e. we are not glorified yet with all its benefits. Glorification is real and something different from our present experience. Something will happen to us that is not yet happening. 

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

Only in eternity will all tears, pain, and death be eliminated. Only then will the rest of creation be fully delivered from the corruption, pollution, and decay of its present bondage.

Yet, at the same time, we are already glorified in the eyes of God.

And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified (a present reality). Rom 8:30. 

Our present existence consists of pain and suffering. For now, we primarily experience God by faith. But there are times He will give us glimpses of His infinite love providentially, i.e. we will experience something of His involvement in our day-to-day lives circumstantially. And if we are about advancing His purposes, this involvement may be very significant - just nowhere near the same level we will see in eternity.

In eternity, we will experience God fully and directly without interruption, in all the fullness of His glory, face-to-face. Now we relate to God through faith, hope, and love. In eternity, love will be central if not the only way we relate to Him. Who hopes for what they already fully have or must trust what is fully seen?  

For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love. - 1 Cor 13:12‭-‬13

"...then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known..."

This wording is deliberate and specific. It says our experience of God (knowing Him perfectly) is not yet full even though God's disposition of love and commitment to us (and knowledge about us - including our sin) is i.e. we are fully known (and loved) by God even though we do not yet fully know (and love) Him. 

This suggests the reason we will one day fully know him is because He already fully knows and embraces us now in our brokenness i.e. he knows everything about us, good, bad, and ugly, and fully receives and embraces us in Christ.

For a further discussion on how we know God now vs in eternity click here.

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¹Because of Christ the disposition God has towards us now is exactly the same as it will be in eternity i.e. perfect and total love and acceptance. We will be no more loved by God in eternity than we are right now. The difference will be our experience of that love. It will be different because we will be different (glorified) and face-to-face with him vs seeing him now through a glass darkly (in a mirror dimly) i.e. we now live by faith, not by direct sight, as we will one day be in His direct and unobstructed presence.

The only reason we are equally loved and accepted by God now as we will be in eternity is Christ. He took the full consequences of our rebellious unbelief onto himself and assigned his perfect obedience and the right standing he earned with the Father fully to us. In the eyes of God, we are legally, perfectly, and fully received and embraced in the same way, and as much as the eternal Son of God is...the Son of His eternal and infinite affection. We are now seated (legally established) in the heavens, but not fully (physically) present there yet.

²God seeks to eliminate that wrestling as much as possible by increasing our faith and removing our doubt as we faithfully pursue Him.

³Though a great deal of the energy and effort expended by many believers is to secure all the benefits of heaven here and now. This is sometimes referred to as the "health and wealth" gospel or the "prosperity" gospel. To assume this, does not recognize the benefit of struggle and the importance and necessity of strengthening our faith through it.

For an excellent, more technical article on the "already, but not yet" teaching in scripture click here.

Who are we?

There are ¹two fundamental aspects of our being (nature) that define us. One is divine, the other is decidedly human and the opposite of divine.

1. We are like God,  the divine - in His image.

2. We are not God - not self-sufficient, infinite, without limits, but finite i.e. human.

Because we are like God and created to interact (commune) with God - who is ²infinite. Therefore only our union and relationship with this infinitely loving God can make us whole - complete us. 

Because we are not God, we are limited, dependent, finite, not infinite, we ³must be in union - connected - with the infinite to function properly, i.e. as designed.

What is the nature of our relationship with God? 

He is the source of all things and we are recipients of all things, i.e. All we are, have, and need to exist and function ⁴comes from God either directly (such as our breath-existence and our abilities) or indirectly through His creation - e.g. food, water, air, sun, other image bearers, etc.

Because we are finite yet designed for the infinite, we must go outside ourselves to find not just what we need for our physical existence but also lasting meaning, purpose, value, and fulfillment i.e. our non-physical - spiritual and emotional - existence as well. 

Since God is the Creator and the Source of our being (existence), and we are in his image, to understand ourselves correctly, we must ⁵know and understand God correctly.

How do we know God? God is a person. What can be known about him on a personal level must be revealed to us by Him; just as others only truly know us to the extent we reveal ourselves to them. 

His revelation to us of Himself comes in great part through his words (the bible) - What he tells us about himself specifically, as well as what he says in general. 

He also reveals Himself by His actions; through creation - which includes us and our being like Him.

God's fullest, most complete self-revelation occurred when God the Son took on human form as Immanuel (i.e. God with us) and came to live (abide) among us. 

"Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high..." ‭‭Heb 1:1-3

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it... And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth..." - John 1:1‭‭-‬5‭, ‬14 ESV

Yet we are not presently connected to God because we have rebelled and broken away from our dependence and need for Him. We act as if God is irrelevant or unimportant when it is just the opposite i.e. He is all important. 

If we wish to be reconnected with our Creator, Jesus tells us how in the following statement...

And this is eternal life: that people can know you, the only true God, and that they can know Jesus Christ, the one you sent. - John 17:3

To understand why we are disconnected and how to reconnect click here.

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¹theology - the study of the nature and essence of God

anthropology - the study of the nature and essence of humankind.

²God is infinite both in depth (qualitatively) and breadth - duration (quantitatively). There is no deeper love or a love that never ends except His. His love has always been before He created. And that love is infinitely broad and deep because it is among and between infinite persons i.e. GOD as Father and Son, in, by, and through the infinite Spirit. God is infinite love and infinite Spirit.

³yet we are not connected because we have willfully rebelled from our dependence on and need for God. We now live contrary to our design - disconnected from our Creator. The source of life, love,, and all things - which is clearly evidenced by the current chaotic state of humanity and the world.  

⁴Whether we function optimally, as He desires and designed or not, we still live, move, and have our very being (existence) in God. If there were no God, there would be no us i.e. We still exist because of God whether we willfully and consciously have a personal relationship with God or not.

⁵John Calvin's opening paragraphs of The Institutes. 

Italicized comments in (brackets) are my own to help clarity the authors intended meaning.

1.Without knowledge of self there is no knowledge of God

Our wisdom, in so far as it ought to be deemed true and solid Wisdom, consists almost entirely of two parts: the knowledge of God and of ourselves. But as these are connected together by many ties, it is not easy to determine which of the two precedes and gives birth to the other.

For, in the first place, no man can survey himself without forthwith (immediately) turning his thoughts towards the God in whom he lives and moves; because it is perfectly obvious, that the endowments (gifts) which we possess cannot possibly be from ourselves; nay (no), that our very being is nothing else than subsistence in (existence and maintenance by)  God alone.

In the second place, those blessings which unceasingly distil (come) to us from heaven, are like streams conducting (pointing) us to the fountain.

Here, again, the infinitude of good which resides in God becomes more apparent from our poverty. In particular, the miserable ruin into which the revolt of the first man has plunged us, compels us to turn our eyes upwards; not only that while hungry and famishing we may thence (thereby) ask what we want, but being aroused by fear may learn humility. For as there exists in man something like a world of misery, and ever since we were stript of the divine attire our naked shame discloses an immense series of disgraceful properties every man, being stung by the consciousness of his own unhappiness, in this way necessarily obtains at least some knowledge of God. Thus, our feeling of ignorance, vanity, want, weakness, in short, depravity and corruption, reminds us, (see Calvin on John 4: 10,) that in the Lord, and none but He, dwell the true light of wisdom, solid virtue, exuberant goodness. We are accordingly urged by our own evil things (ways/conduct) to consider the good things of God; and, indeed, we cannot aspire to Him in earnest until we have begun to be displeased with ourselves. For what man is not disposed to rest (depend on) in himself? Who, in fact, does not thus rest, so long as he is unknown to himself; that is, so long as he is contented with his own endowments, and unconscious or unmindful of his misery? Every person, therefore, on coming to the knowledge of himself, is not only urged to seek God, but is also led as by the hand to find him.

2.Without knowledge of God there is no knowledge of self

On the other hand, it is evident that man never attains to a true self-knowledge until he have previously contemplated the face of God, and come down after such contemplation to look into himself. For (such is our innate pride that...) we always seem to ourselves just, and upright, and wise, and holy, until we are convinced, by clear evidence, of our injustice, vileness, folly, and impurity. Convinced, however, we are not, if we look to ourselves only, and not to the Lord also - He being the only standard by the application of which this conviction can be produced. For, since we are all naturally prone to hypocrisy, any empty semblance (appearance) of righteousness is quite enough to satisfy us instead of righteousness itself. And since nothing appears within us or around us that is not tainted with very great impurity, so long as we keep our mind within the confines of human pollution, anything which is in some small degree less defiled delights us as if it were most pure just as an eye, to which nothing but black had been previously presented, deems (estimates) an object of a whitish, or even of a brownish hue, to be perfectly white. Nay, the bodily sense may furnish a still stronger illustration of the extent to which we are deluded in estimating the powers of the mind. If, at mid-day, we either look down to the ground, or on the surrounding objects which lie open to our view, we think ourselves endued with a very strong and piercing eyesight; but when we look up to the sun, and gaze at it unveiled, the sight which did excellently well for the earth is instantly so dazzled and confounded by the refulgence (brightness), as to oblige (compel) us to confess that our acuteness (skill) in discerning terrestrial objects is mere dimness when applied to the sun. Thus too (in the same way), it happens in estimating our spiritual qualities. So long as we do not look beyond the earth, we are quite pleased with our own righteousness, wisdom, and virtue; we address ourselves in the most flattering terms, and seem only less than demigods (insignificant or lesser gods). But should we once begin to raise our thoughts to God, and reflect what kind of Being he is, and how absolute the perfection of that righteousness, and wisdom, and virtue, to which, as a standard, we are bound to be conformed, what formerly (previously) delighted us by its false show of righteousness will become polluted with the greatest iniquity (most wicked actions); what strangely imposed upon us under the name of wisdom (what we mistakenly thought by our own estimation) will disgust by its extreme folly; and what presented the appearance of virtuous energy (right or good efforts) will be condemned as the most miserable impotence (totally inadequate). So far (so distant or removed) are those qualities in us, which seem most perfect, from corresponding to (in relation to or compared to) the divine purity.

rest

What does it mean to "rest" in God? Is there only one meaning?

I would suggest the Bible teaches there is an initial rest and an ongoing rest. 

After we have come into God's Kingdom and into our initial rest from His rightful judgment and condemnation, we are called to enter into and partake in an ongoing rest (contentment). 

The rest of this article will address ongoing rest. 

This occurs when we live according to two key truths.

1. We thank God for everything - especially the "bad" things - whether we understand why they are happening or not.

2. We faithfully (though not perfectly, necessarily) seek to do everything God calls us to do, whether we like it or not.

The 1st (i.e. hard circumstances) we do not control and must accept (receive) ¹passively, and the 2nd we do "control" and must pursue actively. 

Both require a choice we make by faith, and in this sense, both are active i.e. we choose - "control" - how we respond and how our circumstances affect us, not the circumstances. 

But neither can happen without God's strengthening/ empowering us (i.e. we can't do it in our own strength). But by His strength, which only comes through deeper trust in Him. 

We must come to a place where we fully recognize He is trustworthy in both what he allows (#1 above) and in what he calls us to (#2 above), and respond accordingly i.e. in and by faith. 

This is our choice alone and determines how these circumstances influence and shape us.

The theological underpinnings needed to live this way are infinitely deep, because they are grounded in our trust in the infinite love, power, faithfulness, care, and wisdom of God i.e. they must go as deep as God is vast, and as much as our faith allows us to embrace Him as being exactly who He is and claims to be.

To give assent to and ²faithfully carry or live these out, we must recognize (believe) God ³is always good, all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-loving at all times and in all things. 

If you doubt these things about God concerning you and difficult circumstances, you will not be in a posture of humility and dependence needed to enter His rest. You will remain - abide if you will - in a state of agitation i.e. unrest, anxiety, or fear.

Resting in God is the essence of the now-popular saying, "God is good all the time, and all the time God is good."

Does this mean we will never struggle with believing these things?

Christ himself - the founder and perfector of our faith - wrestled with this in the garden of Gethsemane. He wrestled with both obedience (active) and acceptance (passive) of what God was about to allow him to go through. 

What settled it for him was one very simple decision, "...not my will but yours be done." He came to the place of complete surrender and trust. Once he did, his struggle was over. He was at peace i.e. resting in his trust in the Father, regardless of what He was about to and did go through.

This is why he was able to calmly say to his disciples, "See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer, is at hand.” Matt 26:45b-46. 

He stared pain straight in the face and, out of his total trust in His Father's love, wisdom, and power, was able to embrace the pain, the humbling, and the shame he was about to go through during His crucifixion. From this point forward, he set his eyes on the cross and never looked back. 

Christ was empowered to make this decision because he believed (trusted) his Father was all-knowing, all-wise, all-powerful, and all-loving at that moment in that given circumstance. 

We, too, are called to this and can carry it out by the same strength we receive through this same trust in the Father. When we do, we too will calmly (peacefully) and deliberately move forward in life, no matter what is in front of us. 

For a discussion on how God uses evil for good click here.

For a further discussion on why God allows suffering and evil click here.

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¹Passively only in the sense that we don't necessarily have to or can do anything regarding challenging circumstances (of course, if we can, we should take action, but sometimes nothing we do can change things). However, we are never to be passive in terms of faith. Our faith must be actively and willfully engaged to enter and remain in an ongoing state of rest - peace. 

Both being thankful for challenges and engaging others in sacrificial love require faith (in the same way it did for Christ), so in this sense, everything involves active engagement and is not passive. 

²Some have suggested that if you break the word faithful down, it simply means full of faith i.e. faith full. To be faithful (obedient) no matter what we encounter, we must be full of faith.

³To acknowledge these things about God is not easy (it wasn't for Christ either), especially when staring into the face of great evil, struggle, and personal pain. 

What would you say is the biggest thing God is after in the lives of his children? 

Is it not our experiencing a closer relationship with Him?

and

The most important element of any relationship is trust

and

That which requires our greatest trust is suffering, pain, and challenges. We must embrace these and thank God for them. Without faith/trust this isn't possible.

How? The "good" God works in and through all the things we go through - for those of us who love Him (Rom 8:28) - is to make us like His Son (Rom 8:29). In doing so, we experience the same level of glorious and blissful communion with the Father that the Son did (and does). This is the ultimate good end God is working toward, for us, through our struggles. Not necessarily improved circumstances. This has nothing to do with improved circumstances (though it could and sometimes does lead to them, just not automatically). 

What better end is there than to experience God in all his love and glory to the greatest extent possible? 

And what better means is there to participate in this, other than having the same faith (and faithfulness) Christ had? 

And what faith do we have if not a tested faith? 

And what tests our faith most - and Christ's - if not pain and suffering?

Righteousness vs shame

Righteousness is a dirty word for many today. In the minds of more than a few, it suggests someone who is self-righteous or hypocritical. This is justifiably unappealing to anyone. 

However, the Bible offers a very different definition. 

Righteousness means to be and feel presentable, acceptable i.e. right. To pass inspection and be approved and found acceptable and in right relationship with another, even pleasing in the eyes of someone I wish or seek to please. 

We want to be approved by someone we value and even more so by someone whose opinion we value most; someone who is ¹highly valuable themselves that we highly regard or value. The more important they are to us and others the more significant their approval.

We all desire to be well-pleasing - approved, accepted, praised, and impressive in the eyes of another. 

Shame is feeling just the opposite - it is feeling rejected,  unacceptable, unapproved, and insignificant.

Prior to the rebellion in Eden, there was no shame, i.e. No sense of being unacceptable or unpresentable; of not feeling or being right. We were totally comfortable being uncovered with nothing hidden - not just physically, but in every way. (Hiding indicates guilt and shame. Before the rebellion in the garden, there was neither). We felt no need to hide or cover anything, particularly failure since there had been none.

And the man and his wife were both naked and ⁵were not ashamed.  Genesis 2:25 ESV

Why does shame matter? 

Ever since the rebellion of our original parents in Eden we have been under the burden of a deeply buried sense of shame from failure. This sense of shame (failure) has a very powerful hold and control over us. So much so that Adam and Eve felt compelled to hide - to cover themselves in an attempt to hide their failure to heed God's directions and its resulting shame. 

Since the original rebellion of Adam, we are now filled with shame because of alienation from (and absence of) our Creator - the true and rightful source of our significance and value. 

We severed our connection with God (and our sense of His acceptance and approval) by turning away from Him and refusing to heed his warning to not eat from the forbidden tree. 

As a result, we had to be removed from the garden - i.e. paradise, home - so we could no longer eat of the tree of life while ²in this state of rebellion. This would have allowed us to live indefinitely without having to deal with and face the consequences of our rebellion. This is contrary to who we truly are - i.e. creatures designed to be in harmony with their Creator and willingly participating and experiencing life with and in God. Their choice severed their relationship with our Creator.

Ever since our rebellion we have also longed to be restored and return to Eden; to be welcomed again; to be complete again; to have peace and contentment again; to be filled with love and joy without interruption again - as we were originally and are still designed to be now. 

We long to be "home" i.e. in a place where we feel we belong and are safe. A place where we are welcomed, held, and cherished.

But we want this on our terms, not the terms we were designed to live under. We have rebelled and continue to rebel against God and our design. We now refuse to trust Him and seek Him to fill this longing for "home."  We seek "home" anywhere and in anything other than God.

Our rebellion may not be conscious on our part but every time we look to anything other than God for our sense of value, it is an act of rebellion, i.e. distrust of God. We put our trust in anything but God - who alone can give us our true sense of value (glory) - and look anywhere except to Him for life - i.e. for meaning, significance, purpose, value, identity, fulfillment, glory etc. This is now our default response on how we handle life (until God gets hold of our hearts). It is a response of rebellious distrust of God.

We may not feel or be fully aware of the depth of our shame, but we are often keenly aware of a need for approval or praise - or when we are disapproved of or rejected i.e. shamed. At the heart of our need for approval and praise is a sense of shame and a desire to avoid it at all costs. 

We always carry with us a sense of rejection (and a fear that our shame can't be fixed if our failures are ever exposed), a sense of restlessness, of being out of the environment we were meant to be in, of being "away from home." 

Our need to constantly be affirmed (and prove) we are significant, important, and loved - i.e. worthy of these - is because we don't feel we are but should be. ³We are in a constant state of shame, no matter how deeply buried it may be or how unconscious we are of it. 

We may feel good about ourselves in our best moments, but as soon as we mess up - or are simply accused of messing up, the shame - ever lurking under the surface - rushes to the top and rears its ugly head. 

Our failures are devastating because we depend on our successes to feel significant, accepted, and loved - i.e. to feel good about ourselves - instead of looking to God for these things.

Once we get a hold of the fact that we are significant, accepted, and fully loved in Christ, these failures and the fear of them being seen have far less sway over us. The more we believe (abide) in God's love, the less our shame or fears control us and the more we operate from love for God and others. Shame is all about me. Love is about others. 

In Christ, we are free from the need to be approved by others - or even ourselves. As we more fully grasp that we are ⁴approved by the most significant person of all - the very Creator and Sustainer of life and all things - we are increasingly freed from trying to win the approval of others. If He is for us, then who (including ourselves) can be against us?

God constantly seeks to reveal to us how much we depend on something other than him for life (feeling accepted,  loved, and approved). This occurs most often in our pain and struggles. He seeks to strip away our ⁶idols and draw us closer to Him (which usually feels more like death at the time, not a means to life). He is always calling us closer because he knows in Him alone is true and eternal life i.e. to draw us closer is not only for his greater glory but our highest good - our best interest. 

The maturing process is increasingly turning away from those things we derive our worth (and identity) from and more to Him. God is constantly seeking to help us see that finding life - i.e. a sense of value, meaning, and significance - is only in Him and not the other things we look to and have grown to count and depend on. 

As we mature we come to see – by God's love and Spirit - how much we look to ⁶everything but Him for “life.” 

The only question is will you return to him? Christ has done all that is necessary for you to be perfectly accepted and fully embraced by His Father. It is up to us now to receive (believe) this (His) offer. To not, is to continue on our current path, rejecting His offer and Him i.e. to continue on our path of shame and destruction. 

For a discussion on the meaning of life, click here. 

For a discussion on pleasing God, click here

For a discussion on good and bad self-confidence, click here. 

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¹And who is greater, more significant, more valuable and worthy of our respect, honor, and worship then the Creator and Sustainer of love, life, and all things? No one and nothing! For from him through him and to him or all things!

²To continue living in a state of rebellion unchecked by death, only results in increasing destruction by us. 

³I am speaking of humanity in general when in a state of separation from God. We can be and are freed of these things the more we understand, receive and partake of the love of God.

⁴And not only are we approved by the Creator of all things - the most significant person in the universe - but this same person provided for us all that was necessary for that approval. This in great part is why He is so significant.

⁵God's description of us just before we rebelled.

⁶ An idol is anything we value more than God. 

⁷To get an idea of our shame consider having your private thought's or actions played out and posted to a YouTube channel the entire world is subscribed to. Thoughts or acts of anger, lust, fear, disloyalty, lying and hatred and so on we might engage in over the course of a several days. 

Would we be proud of everything revealed or embarrassed to show our face in public? Would people want to embrace us or avoid us after watching? To avoid shame we may go as far as saying any rejection we experience is the fault of others, not our own.