Jesus Christ came from heaven to this earth to bear witness to the truth (John 18:37), to be the savior of this world (1 John 4:14), and to give us eternal life (John 17:2). He also left us an example of how we should live (1 Peter 2:21). One example that He left us was that He went about doing good. Acts 10:38 “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.” Jesus described the good He had done in Luke 7:22-23 “Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard: that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.’”
While you and I will not perform the miracles that Jesus performed, we should go about doing good as He did. Hebrews 13:15-16 “Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.” Titus 3:8 “This is a faithful saying, and these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men.”
You may ask, “What good can I do?” Jesus gave you examples of doing good when he described the judgement in Matthew 25:34-40 “Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’” Certainly giving food to the hungry, drink to the thirsty, clothes to the naked, and visiting the sick and those in prison would be doing good. Helping widows and orphans would also qualify. James 1:27 “Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.” Jesus talked about just giving someone a cup of water to drink. Mark 9:41 “For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, assuredly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.” The possibilities for doing good are many and varied. Maybe being courteous or encouraging someone or telling them about Jesus or praying for them is the good that you can do for them. I recommend letting the Holy Spirit guide you into the good you can do. Whatever good you may do, let that be a significant part or your life.
Knowing to do good and not doing it is sin. James 4:17 “Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.” Doing good is a way of letting your light shine. Matthew 5:16 “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” 1 Peter 2:15 “For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men.” Continually doing good is a factor in receiving eternal life. Romans 2:6-7 “Who ‘will render to each one according to his deeds’: eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality.”
To whom should you do good? To everyone, especially fellow Christians. Galatians 6:10 “Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.” Luke 6:32-36 “But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.” Luke 6:27-28 “But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you.”
Sometimes it may seem that the good you are doing is not appreciated or fruitful. Maybe you want to forget about doing good to others and instead just do what you want to do. My encouragement to you is to not grow weary in doing good. Galatians 6:9-10 “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.” Be a person known by God and man for doing good.