One writer stated

I concur with Thomas Fuller - "a good example ..." is definitely the best guide. AND IF I WANTED TO EDIT THIS MESSAGE AS I AM NOW THEN I CAN. I WILL OFCOURSE REMOVE THIS CAPS / BLUE SECTION ONCE BOB HAS REVIEWED.

This is really a test, so apologies for the intrusion.

Uh . . . is the whole topic a test or just Alex's response?

Hi Cyndi, yes, they are literally testing this account, no the topic is not a test, as you can see, even while they were testing a good portion of my content disappeared !   But, it was nice to have Alex, the Tangler CEO to enter in with his comment.  For the time being, feel free to start another topic, or reply to this topic if you can remember what is was that was said.   An attempt will be made to re-write it when given a chance, but, it never really seems to ge back to just the way it was!

next one

Who is my Neighbor?-   Click to See Video

One writer in the newspaper wrote, "Being good is something I've never held in very high esteem, even though my parents thought it was one of life's highest virtues. Generally most people do not like people who parade around in garments of self-congratulation. These people are often referred to as goody two-shoes who can't be trusted. Mark Twain said in 1894 "Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example."  The author of the newspaper article said, “we have all seen too many saints with feet of clay." Unfortunately, it would seem that these type of complaints about hypocrisy in Christendom are all too common.

A 19th century woman, writing her brother in 1890, wrote, "How sick one gets of being good. How much I should respect myself if I could just burst out and make everyone wretched for twenty four hours."

This woman seemed to have quite a few pent up feelings to be this miserable in her thoughts. However, perhaps we can all identify with her feelings on some level, especially when we are having a rough day or rough year and everyone else appears to have a wonderful day and a wonderful year.  At least for me, sometimes, it difficult to notice the needs of others when my eyes are so focused on my own problems.

• Was this woman tired of  "trying to being good" and for the wrong reasons?
• Who is actually Good?
• Is it always good to try and be Good?
• Does being good require hard work?
• Do evil doers think they are bad?
• Do genuinely good people let their good deeds stand alone? Do good people do what they do without expecting praise or recognition?

What did Jesus say about being Good, or doing Good?

Would our forum members like to share an example of person that has blessed and inspired your life through GREAT EXAMPLE?”  Here is one example that came to my mind: Remembering a former Manager of mine who was a believer, it was only recently found out that this man demonstrated by "example", but very few people actually knew what his good deed was. Without fanfare this manager had another manager friend who had cancer, and this man with cancer had a wife who was also stricken with Alziemer's, and he could no longer further afford health care for himself. So, my manager friend took this man with cancer into his home and nursed him for 8 months until he died, all this with very few people even knowing that he had done this.

Would you agree with Thomas Fuller that:

“A good example is often the best sermon”?

Being haughty is bad. Can a haughty person then truly be good? The arrogant person is also a hypocrite, doing well for their own gain and glory. We know that the Lord does not reward this kind of behavior. "Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall." Proverbs 16:18. "For what is the hope of the hypocrite, though he hath gained, when God taketh away his soul? Will God hear his cry when trouble cometh upon his soul?" Job 27:8 & 9

So good is good and arrogance and hypocrisy are bad!  

Yes, certainly Good is Good and Arrogance and Hypocrisy are bad too! In relation to the arrogance and the hypocrisy, I assume that you are referring to those who think they are better than others, or holier than thou. Human pride and piety, perhaps these are the most displeasing of human traits.

1.   Is it always good to try and be good?   I think that 'trying' to do good, at times may not be so good, especially, if it comes with the wrong motivation.

2.   Is anyone actually good?  Well, I think most of us know the answer to this one?

(Might you or anyone else have a reply for the next three questions)

3.   Does doing good often require hard work?

4.   Do good people do what they do without expecting praise or recognition?

5.   Is a good example often better than a sermon?

Would anyone like to share an example of a person in your life that has blessed and inspired your life through truly GOOD EXAMPLE?”

Curious, in regards to your question #1, you suggest that it is not always good to "be good", when should a person not try to be good? By default, if it is not good to be good, then it is sometimes good to be bad. However, if bad is the right thing to do then it becomes good.Therefore, I would suggest that it is always good to try to be good, otherwise, you're just being bad. 

The suggestion here is not that 'true good' might not always be 'true good'. However, occasionally, people, including myself, at times, may think we are being good, or doing good, when we may not be, especially if we are coming from the wrong place. For example, if we are trying to do good because other people insist on it from us or we are doing good as a way to earn our way to heaven.    My guess is, that you really do know what this example is getting at here.  Namely, that the lady in the above illustration was obviously  "trying in the wrong way to be good". Was there any real good coming from her heart? It pretty difficult to believe that she was doing much genuine 'true good' for herself or anyone else with this attitude. She said she would "love to make me and you and everyone else miserable for 24 hours!" How much genuine good can come from that point of view? To me, it seems like her desire to do 'true good' had been essentially blocked. The suggestion here is that it may actually be a misnomer, to imply that a person with a wrong attitude, can do much good for themselves or for others. Remember when JESUS was dealing with what is  'True GOOD;  in relation to the young rich ruler, Luke 18:18-23, who was   'trying to be good',   but still lacked one thing. Therefore, was he really so good in the end? Perhaps the ultimate question would be this: is the so-called good, really much good, if it is lacking, or being done with the wrong motivation?

It would seem that the lady above was "doing good" because of social restraints and a sense of moral obligation, not as a directive of the heart. Her words in her letter betray her true feelings about acting appropriately. She wasn't truly "good-hearted", she was merely performing well to avoid consequences.

"A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh." Luke 6:45

So the heart has to be in the right place in order to produce "good works" or else it is just the appearance of "good".

Great explanation Cyndi, and it seems like a really good scripture that you chose to support your view.

Would you also say that 'doing good', often requires hard work?

And what about 'being good' vs doing good, do you think that it also requires hard work?

Ahhh . . . to live for God is to fight the good fight! And to fight takes effort, and effort equates work. Is an easy fight really a fight? How much effort is required to be categorized as "hard"? I suppose the level of perceived difficulty of pursuing the things of God's Word can only be assessed by the individual. What we do know for sure is that we are to fight to do good.

"But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses."

1 Tim 6:11 & 12

And since we've already determined that only a good heart can produce good works, I would say that "doing good" is a product of "being good" (the state of being that is defined in Duet 6:5 as loving the Lord your God with all your heart, soul & might.) The appearance of "good works" without a "good heart" is cheep imitation that nets you a disappointing eternity! (See Job 27:8 & 9 above)

Thank you for helping me to visualize my thoughts and attaching scriptural supports to them.

In the world we live in, we are constantly faced with moral decisions, and doing good seems to get harder rather than easier. The Bible states that we should be more like Christ, as we are created in his image. Doing good was the way Christ lived while on the earth. He "went about His Father's business," healing the sick, feeding the hungry. Was this easy? It does not seem that it would be.

"But I say unto you which hear, love your enemies, 'do good' to them which hate you."  Is this easy? It is my opinion that it is not always so easy.

Luke 6:27

"Therefore, if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head."

Romans 12:20

This means that we should 'do good' for others regardless of how someone might treat us. Is this 'work'? It would seem that it is a type of work, but not one that is truly hard when HE is involved.

JESUS life consisted of doing good 'works', and he was always on the go, busy busy, so to speak, in his activities of 'doing good.' Sounds like work, but work that that no doubt became lighter, because it came out of HIS Great Love for us.

Matthew 11:28-30

"Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my 'yoke' is easy and my burden is light".

The freedom that we have in Christ and the support which HE gives us throughout this life, makes his 'yoke' easy, (being harnessed together with HIM), HIS burden, (the service) becomes lighter, when we know that He is right there with us.    bob