Do Good

Do Good

The Second Message in a Series on “Rules for Life”

April 27, 2008

By Ed Winkler

Text: Luke 6:27-36

(Jesus said:) [27] But I say to you that hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, [28] bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. [29] To him who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from him who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. [30] Give to every one who begs from you; and of him who takes away your goods do not ask them again. [31] And as you wish that men would do to you, do so to them. [32] "If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. [33] And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. [34] And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again. [35] But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the selfish. [36] Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful. (Revised Standard Version)

This is the second message in the series, “Rules for Life.” These three rules that we are examining are John Wesley’s General Rules for the Methodist societies. Wesley, the founder of Methodism, knew that the societies needed some ground rules if they were to survive, so he created these rules:

1. Do no harm

2. Do good

3. Attend to the ordinances of God, or as I put it, stay connected to God

Last week, we talked about doing no harm. This week we will talk about the second rule, doing good. The Letter to the Ephesians tells us that we are “created in Christ Jesus for good works.” Wesley took those words seriously. For Wesley, to be a Methodist was to do good. He had a famous quotation about doing good: “Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.” What a powerful statement. What would the world be like if we actually tried to live that way?

Wesley didn’t just talk. He was actively involved in doing good works his entire adult life. He founded schools and orphanages; he started charitable organizations to feed and clothe the poor; he visited prisoners; and he started a fund that loaned money to women so that they could buy looms and material to make cloth (a very important job at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution). He fiercely opposed slavery. Wesley was so interested in the helping the sick that he wrote a book on the treatment of diseases that he sent with his traveling preachers so that they could treat people as they traveled around. He experimented with electricity for the treatment of illnesses. He even developed a cure for baldness: he prescribed rubbing an onion on the scalp every day. Wesley could have been a very wealthy man from the many pamphlets and books that he wrote, but he gave away so much money that he was almost penniless when he died. Wesley gave us a powerful example of doing good.

Some of us, like Wesley, have the capability of doing great things for the Lord. In the 1960’s, a successful businessman named Millard Fuller saw the need for decent and safe housing in poorer parts of the world. With the help of a Biblical scholar named Clarence Jordan, he developed a model for building houses through partnerships of non-profit organizations and low-income people. The organization that he founded, Habitat for Humanity, has built more than 250,000 homes around the world, providing homes for more than a million people. It started with one man who saw a need and wanted to do good.

I knew retired fireman who collected used clothing. Whenever his basement got filled with clothing, he would rent a truck and take the clothes to poor people back in his impoverished home town in eastern Kentucky. He wasn’t rich or famous. He saw a need and he saw resources, and he had a strong desire to do good.

I know teacher who saw that many immigrants wanted to learn English so that they could get by in our country, move up the economic ladder, and become productive citizens. So she recruited church members to teach English as a Second language at night to adults. She put signs in Spanish around the areas where day laborers gathered. They flocked to learn English in a church basement. English as a Second Language is now being taught in dozens of churches in Northern Virginia. She is not famous. She is a middle class, middle school teacher who saw a need and had a strong desire to do good.

Most of us do not have the energy or dedication of the three people I just mentioned. But there are many opportunities for doing good all around us. We have those opportunities every day. And small things matter. For the next few minutes I’d like to share some thoughts on doing good in our lives.

Perhaps the first thing for us is to simply keep our eyes open to what we can do. I heard a story this week of a nurse who was feeling especially frustrated one day. It seemed like she was doing a lot more busy work than nursing. So she stopped and prayed a simple prayer: “Lord, use me any way you can.” From that moment until the end of her shift, she was bombarded with difficult cases that required the full range of her knowledge and skills. She opened herself up to the Lord, had a desire to do good, and had a wonderful experience in her profession. What would happen if we added to our morning prayers, “Lord, use me any way you can.”? I wonder what kind of possibilities the Lord would give us. It might just change the world.

Some folks, like the nurse, are in the healing professions. But all of us can be healers. We can be healers by praying for people. We Christians believe in the power of prayer. That’s why we pray for those who need help. We can be healers by comforting people. A kind word of support can make a huge difference. Sometimes, we can be healers just by being present with people. Being with people matters. That great theologian, Woody Allen, said that ninety percent of life is just showing up. Showing up to be with people in their times of need is a healing act. People appreciate the presence of friends and family when they are sick or have problems. We don’t have to make brilliant conversation. We don’t have to be witty or funny. All we need to do is just be present. We can be healers in our homes, schools, or places of work by taking time to be with people.

We have many opportunities to do good with our money. We don’t have to be wealthy to make a difference with our wallets. We can do good with our money by contributing to worthwhile organizations and projects. We can also do good with money by not spending money on things that are not worthwhile.

Last week, we talked about not using words to harm people. The other side of that coin is that we can use words to help people and to affirm people. Have you noticed how much better things are when people cheerfully greet you? Have you noticed how it can brighten your day to receive a note of thanks or support? A famous youth leader encourages adults to write notes and letters to children. Children receive so little mail that they treasure an actual personal note. In fact, these days, few adults receive handwritten notes. The famous theologian, Martin Luther, said that the commandment not to bear false witness requires us to be honest, but it also requires us to use words to build up others. Using our words to affirm and encourage people is doing good.

Sometimes, we may be at a loss to know what to do. Two famous writers on church life answer the question this way: “How do we know what to do? See what God is doing and join in.” How would God have us build up others? What acts of mercy would God have us do? Who in our community needs help? Who in our world needs help? When we ask those questions, it quickly becomes obvious what we should do.

This message comes with a warning and a promise. Here’s a warning: doing good can be addictive. Nina and I used to go on Habitat for Humanity work trips to the Eastern Shore of Virginia with high school students in the summer. The Eastern Shore gets really hot in the summer and, because it’s between the ocean and the bay, the humidity can get to be about three hundred percent. One hot, humid day, we were working on an old house. I was under the house in the crawl space where we were replacing rotted joists. I came out of the crawl space, hot, tired, smelly, and covered with dirt. I looked around at that group of people, mostly teenagers and a few adults, working on that house and thought two things: “I'm not going under that house again. I’m going to get a teenager to do that.” My other thought was, “I really love being here with these people to help a family have a new start in life.” As hot and uncomfortable as those work trips were in August, they were also addictive. Nina and I never tired of those mission trips. It is fun to help people.

It’s fun to help people, except when it’s not fun. We can suffer from doing good. Sometimes, doing good will be misinterpreted. Sometimes, people will question our motives. Sometimes, doing good won’t seem good to the recipient. Sometimes, the best love is tough love and the recipients of tough love don’t always appreciate it. One most frustrating thing about doing good is that a lack of gratitude. Doing good will often be unacknowledged. That’s when we need to remember that we do good for the sake of doing good, not for the applause. If we do good for recognition or gratitude, we will often be disappointed.

Here’s the hardest part for most of us: God wants us to do good to those we may not like very much. God wants us to do good to those who may want to harm us. Jesus told us to “love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” It’s easy to help a friend or a saint. It’s a lot harder to help someone who is obnoxious or nasty, but Jesus doesn’t make any distinction between friend or foe. We’re supposed to help all of them. Maybe we should focus on doing good and let God decide who is worthy.

If the warnings haven’t discouraged you too much, here’s a promise: we don’t do good by ourselves. God will guide us and strengthen us. God will give us energy to do good. When we are doing the Lord’s work, the Lord has a way of providing what we need. The Lord won’t leave us out on a limb.

Doing good is powerful medicine. It’s medicine for those we help, and it’s medicine for us. I have to confess that I’ve heard thousands of sermons in my life, and I can remember very few of them. One sermon that I do remember from a saintly old pastor was called, “A Cure for the Blues.” That pastor, in his wonderful, old Virginia accent, told us that the best thing to do when we’re feeling sad is to help someone. Through the years, I’ve come to appreciate the wisdom of his words. I’ve seldom felt better than when I was working hard to help someone else.

Let’s remember Wesley’s words: do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can. Doing good was a way of life for Jesus, for John Wesley, and for a few other saints that we’ve known through the years. God was with them, God blessed them, and they were usually the happiest people around. We can join in the fun.