Do Good To One Another

We’ve all seen a movie where the villain plants a “time bomb” and the hero must find it and disarm it before it blows up.  Ticking time bombs are dangerous.  Ticking time bombs need to be defused before they explode and do immense damage and destruction.  Whether we realize it or not we deal with ticking time bombs in relationships every day.  Time bombs are planted in relationships when we do something evil to another person or another person does something evil to us.  Evil in relationships manifests itself in varying degrees of being selfish, rude, unkind, malicious, showing favoritism, jealous, or hateful etc.  Unless these relational “time bombs” are defused they are going to explode and cause serious damage or permanently destroy a relationship.  So, how are we to defuse hostility and restore peace in relationships?

READ:  1 Thessalonians 5:12-22

Paul gives us a way to defuse relational “time bombs” in vs 15, Godly Relational Characteristic #4: Do GOOD to one another!  The word good means that which is, “excellent, fine, or good.”  To do good is to, “treat others in a way that is for their BENEFIT”.  In Luke 18:19 Jesus gives us the standard of goodness saying, “why do you call me good?  No one is good except God alone”.  God’s relational character is to be our standard of goodness.  God is our example of treating others in a way that is for their benefit including being selfless, kind, merciful, and loving, etc. Why is doing good an important relational characteristic?  When are we to do good to others?

Doing good is an act that promotes PEACE (1 Thes. 5:13) – Rather than planting “time bombs” of evil in relationships with others, Paul commands the Thessalonians to, “be at peace” among one another.  Peace is a relational attitude between two individuals which is absent of hostility or animosity.  Paul said something similar in Romans 12:18, “if possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all”.  Therefore, one of our highest relational goals as believers should be to behave in ways which uphold and maintain peace in each and every relationship that we are in!

Doing good is to be our RESPONSE toward those who have done EVIL to us (1 Thes. 5:15a) – Whether intentionally or unintentionally, it is inevitable that others will plant evil “time bombs” in their relationship with us (just like it is inevitable that we will plant evil “time bombs” in our relationships with others).  Our response to the evil done to us will determine whether we experience peace or hostility.  If we return evil for the evil done to us, we detonate the relational “time bomb” and peace in the relationship will be lost causing it to explode into greater hostility.  Whereas, doing good is a godly alternative to “repaying . . . evil for evil” and will quickly defuse hostility in the relationship and bring about peace.  In Romans 12:17, 21 Paul says, “repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable . . . overcome evil with good” (cf Lk 6:35).  Vengeance in relationships only increases hostility, whereas doing good increases peace!

Doing good is what we should ALWAYS seek in our relationship with EVERYONE (1 Thes. 5:15b) – Since doing good is such an evil defuser, Paul says that it is something that we should pursue all the time with all people!  Doing good is something we are to seek diligently and pursue with intense effort.  Doing good is something we are to do “always” toward “everyone”.  So, no matter what evil anyone ever says or does to us, “as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone” (Gal. 6:10).  This supernatural amount of goodness is only possible with the power of the Holy Spirit working in and through our lives (Galatians 5:22-23).

CONCLUSION
Jesus Christ defused the hostility that our sin caused between us and God by dying on the cross for our sins.  Jesus Christ chose to do something for our benefit in spite of the evil we did toward Him.  If we have been the recipients of the goodness of God through Jesus Christ, then we should know how to treat others in a way that is for their benefit whether we feel like they deserve it or not!