THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS

G DNESS
Lesson 7 for the 13th of February, 2010
 “No one is good—except God alone”
Mark 10:18
How does God show that He is good?

 Through Creation (Genesis, 1: 31)

 For His mercy endures forever (1 Chronicles, 16: 34)
 He shows the right way to sinners (Psalm 5:8; Micah, 6: 8)
 He forgives (Psalm 86: 5)
 His mercies are over all His Creation (Psalm 145: 9)
 He is a refuge in times of trouble (Nahum, 1: 7)
 He keeps His promises (Nehemiah, 9: 25)
 He forgets the sin (Psalm 25: 7)
 He encourages us (Psalm 27: 13)
 He provides for the poor (Psalm 68: 10)
 He gave us His Son (Ephesians, 2: 7)
 He fulfils every good purpose (2ª Thessalonians 1: 11)
 He shows love towards all men (Titus, 3: 4)
 HUMAN GOODNESS

Only God is good, but

we can achieve a grade
of goodness, although
we don’t have perfect
goodness.

How can we measure

our grade of goodness?
A RULE TO MEASURE GOODNESS
God’s Law is a rule to distinguish
evil and good.

“I would not have known

what sin was except through
the law” (Romans, 7: 7)

The Law teaches us how to behave,

not only how to be good, but also
how to act with goodness toward
others. It is a sign of God’s good
character.
 Who can be
good when he is
measured with
the Rule of
God’s Law?

“All have turned away; they have together

become worthless; there is no one who does
good, not even one”
(Romans 3:12)
“Can the Ethiopian
change his skin or
the leopard its
spots? Neither can
you do good who are
accustomed to doing
evil”
(Jeremiah 13:23)

In spite of all our effort, no one can be good

by himself.
We can do good works, but that doesn’t
make us good people.
Goodness is a fruit of the Spirit, and only the
Holy Spirit can place that fruit in us.
“One of the most earnest prayers recorded in the Word of God is that
of David when he plead, "Create in me a clean heart, O God." God's
response to such a prayer is, A new heart will I give you. This is a work
that no finite man can do. Men and women are to begin at the
beginning, seeking God most earnestly for a true Christian experience.
They are to feel the creative power of the Holy Spirit.

They are to receive the new heart, that is

kept soft and tender by the grace of
heaven. The selfish spirit is to be cleansed
from the soul. They are to labor earnestly
and with humility of heart, each one
looking to Jesus for guidance and
encouragement. Then the building, fitly
framed together, will grow into a holy
temple in the Lord”

E.G.W. (SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 4, page 1165,

on Ezekiel 36: 26)
 “Who is wise and understanding
among you? Let him show it by
his good life, by deeds done in
the humility that comes from
wisdom”.
(James 3:13)

As Christians we are called to produce good works,

“which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians, 2: 10)
 Goodness is not only an inner feeling;
it must be shown in external actions,
in favour of others.

We are not “good” because we deserve

salvation, but because God’s goodness
gives us that salvation.

We are “good” because our hearts, our purposes and our

acts show the world that we really serve God.
“We are accepted through Christ's merit
alone; and the acts of mercy, the deeds of
charity, which we perform, are the fruits of
faith; and they become a blessing to us; for
men are to be rewarded according to their
works. It is the fragrance of the merit of
Christ that makes our good works
acceptable to God, and it is grace that
enables us to do the works for which He
rewards us. Our works in and of
themselves have no merit”

E.G.W. (SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 5, page 1122, on Luke 16: 10)