From John Fenn……www.ifaithhome.org

I’ve been thinking for some time on why Acts 10:38 says of Jesus: “Who went about doing good”, before it says “and healing all that were oppressed of the devil, (for God was with him).”

When WE think of the life of Jesus we first call to remembrance his healings & miracles. But when a writer lists things it’s understood the most important point comes first, in the same way we might tell a person the highlight of our day first and later include other things we did. Thus Luke said he went about doing good first, and then added that he healed people.

So I’ve been looking for evidence of what was apparently the most notable aspect of Jesus’ life for those who lived at the same time as the Lord - he went about doing good.

Connected to others

At what must have been about 9pm on the night he was betrayed, Judas the Treasurer gets up from the Last Supper, and everyone assumes this: “Some thought because Judas had the money bag Jesus had said to him to buy things that would be needed for the feast (Passover); or, that he should give something to the poor.” (John 13: 29)

 I find it amazing that when the Treasurer left at 9pm the assumption included that he might be going to give money to the poor. I can’t recall anytime I have left somewhere and people just assumed I was heading out to give money to the poor, have you? The only conclusion we can draw is that Jesus made a habit of giving to the poor at all times, day and night. This had to be part of “He went about doing good”.

Of course Jesus’ very first miracle was an act of doing good. In John 2:1-11 we have the story of him turning water into wine when a wedding feast he was attending ran out of wine. He even told his mother it wasn’t his time, but the inner motivation to ‘do good’ prevailed, resulting in the host saving face to the enjoyment of the guests. And this was done anonymously - he let the host receive the credit for saving the best for last.

Miracles and healings

The miracle of turning water into wine reveals the miracles flowed from his desire to do good, not separate acts as points in and of themselves. Sometimes doing the most amount of good required a miracle, like turning water into wine, while at other times the doing of good required no miracle, like laying hands on children who came to him while the adults tried to send them away, or eating with the despised Zaccheus.

Church teachings have raised us to look at the miracles and healings as self-contained stand alone events, causing us to miss the fact they came about because Jesus first had a heart to “do good” and in truth were only part of the larger whole of the goodness of his life. In the life of Jesus and the first century church, doing good was the point, and miracles were often the side effect of doing good.

Some friends of ours are missionaries in the Darien jungle between Panama and Columbia, having ministered for nearly 25 years to the Choco Indians there. They have told us that many times as their family of 6 was sitting down to dinner with just enough food to (barely) feed their family, a group of 6-20 Indians would show up wanting them to come to their village. Knowing these village representatives traveled sometimes all night and were very hungry and tired, and wanting to do good to them, they shared their food.

They said the Lord would just multiply the food as a result. When I asked how many times this had happened, they said they stopped counting after about 2 dozen times. Every time the food got low and someone went back to take that last spoonful, they lifted the lid to find the pot full once again.

They didn’t seek the miracle, it just happened because they wanted to do good for their guests.

Other good things

A few months ago when I was first thinking on this, I shared these things about Jesus’ life during one of our house church meetings. We scanned the gospels together to find other good things Jesus did. Here are some of the things we discussed: He touched lepers and the unclean, and he allowed the unclean to touch him. He ate with some of the most hated and notorious people to the point they accused him of being friends with drunks, publicans and sinners. He met people where they were at.

In Matthew: In 8:26 he calmed a storm in which the boaters thought they would die. In 14:15 & 15:32 he fed several thousand people who would otherwise faint from lack of food. In 17:27 he paid taxes for Peter and himself, making a way to pay those taxes by the miracle of the coin in the mouth of the fish.

He paid a fishing partnership for the use of their boat by providing a huge catch (Lk 5:4,10). In Luke 10: 38-42 he brought order to a home in disorder as 1 sister was griping at another - Mary chose the good portion. In John, after his resurrection, he asked if the guys who had fished all night but caught nothing had any food and they replied they did not. So he had broiled fish and bread prepared when they got to shore. (21:9)

Time doesn’t allow me to list everything we talked about that day - can you read between the red lines of the gospels and find how Jesus went about doing good that were outside the miracles we usually look for?

“Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever.”

Hebrews 13:8 makes the above statement, therefore we must conclude that Jesus is still going about doing good, and that is where his priorities lie, with miracles and healings flowing and proceeding forth from such a motivated heart. He lives in us by the Father’s Spirit, we are his body, therefore his highest and best way of doing good is through individuals, not programs. If miracles result, so be it. We are his hands & feet.

 Doing good in Jesus’ day was personal. Doing good in the traditional church is a program to give money to.

Think of the contrast. Think of what “doing good” means in traditional church. It means delegating ‘doing good’ to ministry programs that specialize in “doing good” by giving money to specialized ministers who are trained in doing good - ministries to the homeless, outreaches to the projects, feeding and clothing programs at the holidays (only), missions - programs with specially trained people who specialize in those types of ministries and largely dependent on the financial crumbs that fall from the church’s table, while the central church keeps people focused on “their” programs and buildings.

This allows people to give money to programs to assuage their conscience without becoming personally involved with those in need and hurting. But Jesus doesn’t want specialists, he wants real people.

 This is important because it relates directly to what I’ve been calling Relationship Based Christianity found in home and family based churches, instead of program based Christianity as seen in the traditional church. When relationship based Christians do good it’s person to person just like Jesus, not person to program.

Is it any wonder

This emphasis on “doing good” by those who lived with and observed Jesus in action, flows right into the birth of the church. Acts 4:31-37 indicates a seamless transition from Jesus’ life into that combination of miracles and “doing good” formerly seen in his ministry. None lacked a thing, and as a result of that unity and love many miracles followed. In traditional church people cry out for unity while never understanding unity came about because people did good, caring for one another, seeing that none lacked. Again miracles followed doing good, not as an end in themselves or stand alone events.

 We later see Stephen, who was a man of great faith and power and did great wonders and miracles among the people. But he was first and foremost a server of tables and caretaker of helpless widows.  The miracles he was known for flowed from going about doing good. (Acts 6:1-8)

Space does not allow me to list the numerous exhortations in the epistles about the emphasis on doing good, but here are three: Ephesians 4: 28 - let him that stole steal no more, but let him work with his hands so he has money to give to him who has need; James 1:27 - Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to remember the orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep himself unspotted from the world; and James 2:15-17 which says not to merely say to a brother or sister “be blessed” if they have needs. Demonstrate your faith by helping them.

If the New Testament emphasizes emulating the life of Jesus who had as a first priority to do good, and sometimes that doing good required healing or miracles, shouldn’t we think like that? If we put doing good as our first priority as Jesus did, would Christians be characterized in the media and culture as a bunch of self-centered emotional nuts focusing on miracles real or imagined, prophecy and prosperity, living in a bubble completely irrelevant to society? Why are some consumed with the latest prophecy, prosperity, spiritual warfare, healing, who is speaking where and which church has the best worship as their #1 priority?

How many people have I taught in classes and Bible schools all over the world who have said to me they want to be used in miracles and healings, or that the Lord has spoken to them that they will have a huge healing or deliverance ministry, thinking that is the highest and best, but stumbling over these simple truths?

Sometimes doing good requires a miracle, sometimes not, but it is within that doing of good that we should look to be moved by the compassion of the Lord, and watch the miracles proceed from there. I submit for consideration that providing someone’s groceries or utility bills is for them as great a miracle as turning water into wine - the need was met unexpectedly by our heavenly Father just the same.

When people call to remembrance our lives as Luke did of Jesus in Acts 10: 38, will they similarly first recall that we; “went about about doing good”?

Some thoughts this day,

Blessings,

John Fenn

www.ifaithhome.org

Posted by Bessie on Tuesday, April 29th, 2008 at 2:15 pm.