Greedy for Goodness

It's not wrong to want to be a good person. For some reason though, we tell ourselves it is. It's not wrong to desire life. For some reason though, we tell ourselves it's selfish. All we have really done is denied something crucial to our very existence.

It is wrong to pat yourself on the back and become conceited from a small deed, but does that mean it's right to deny yourself the pleasure that comes with doing good? We should of course help people because we feel their pain and cry their tears, not for keeping up a good appearance. However when we do things to help people, there comes this feeling – as if there is a voice inside us saying 'this is good' and 'this is what I was made to do.' It a feeling of deep fulfillment. It is perfectly natural, and we do ourselves an injustice when we suppress it.

Why shouldn't we feel happy about doing what is right? Yet sometimes we neglect to do what is right because we don't want to risk feeling too prideful in that feeling, and the good we could have done never happens – all because of a far bigger pride. I have no doubt when I say Satan has conducted this clever scheme to keep the good we might bring to the world locked away.

Suppress that lie. Be the hero you've always wanted to be.

There is also another lie, and it is one Christians sometimes fall for. In the past I frequently have asked myself the question, “Do I really love God, or do I just love the things he gives me?” I knew Jesus died for us, and bought us eternal life, but I wasn't sure whether I really loved him, or only what his sacrifice granted us.

But why do we give gifts? Why is there so much joy in both the giving and the getting at Christmas time, for example?

Because a gift, given with a sincere heart, is a special thing.

It's a way of saying “I love you.”

Imagine what it would be like if someone received a present, observed it – and threw it out the window, saying, “I shouldn't accept your gift because I don't want to be greedy.”

Imagine the hurt in the giver's heart. Their act of love was deliberately rejected, and not in a heart of actual humility. It was, in fact, the rejection of a heart swelled with pride that eclipses that of the more honest kind of arrogance.

While it is possible for someone to love the gift and not the giver, the danger of false humility should not be overlooked. We should not respond to God's gifts this way. Jesus suffered and shed his blood, gave us the gift of eternal life, an “I love you” message that reverberates throughout history – and we ought not to say we're not good enough to accept it. How can that be right?

As the apostle wrote, we love him because he first loved us, and Jesus' sacrifice showed us just how much he did. He was willing to take our punishment. He was willing to suffer what we should have suffered.

It is not wrong for the receiver of a gift to be endeared toward the giver. The giving and getting of gifts is a love language. Don't say, “I am not worthy of salvation because I want it too much.” God created us to desire life. He wants us to find joy in the life he gives us – because, like a loving father with his child, our joy is his joy. Our happy smiles make him smile.

I realized I do love God. He reached out to me when I was lonely. He gave me a gift greater than any I could have wished for. He became a constant father, brother, friend. My life is in his hands, his love for me will never die, and in that knowledge I can have peace that no matter where I am headed he is with me, guiding my steps and forgiving my mistakes.

Is it wrong to love him for what he has done for me? No.

It would be wrong not to.