During times of peace and prosperity people believe they can make it on their own, but when depression or war hits, they soon realize that even the powerful are inadequate! During times of prosperity people do evil, and in times of travail they seek to do good. Amos had some words on that:
Amos 5:14 "Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live: and so the Lord, the God of hosts, shall be with you...""Good" is a profound word! There are not degrees of "goodness", but the concept of "good" is finite. "Good" is a characteristic completely void of anything at odds with God. What God desires is what's good. That's what "good" is, so who can be good?
Matthew 9:17b "...there is none good but one, that is, God..."Why is only God good? "But", you say, "Jesus is called good!" That's because Jesus IS God! God is so magnificent that his very being exemplifies good, but he operationalized "good" so that man could have a point of reference.
Romans 3:19 "Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. 20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin."This passage tells us that The Law was given to mankind so that we know that we are sinners and are without excuse; and that all men are guilty of sin! Therefore, since God only is "good", then mankind is not "good". Some say that we are "totally depraved", not even being able to choose to do any good at all. What is perceived as goodness in mankind is by the mercy of God. However, men can strive to be good, but not quite get there!
James 2:10 "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all."This verse demonstrates the finite value of "good"! It's not doing many good things, but doing all things good. Does mankind have that ability?
Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God..."This reinforces, sort of circular, that only God is "good"! If mankind is not good, then what are we? It's what we seek, according to Amos, but we will always fail! We get partial credit for "seeking good", but not credited as worthy. It's much like the student who is at the top of the class. He has already made the grade, and his seeking higher planes and gets affirmation. "Seeking good" doesn't give us the grade, but is our way of thanking the Teacher for our success! The "passing student" got the grade only because the teacher had mercy (for the tests could have been much harder), and seeks to be good to please the Good Teacher!
Seeking good is how we show love for God, not how people achieve heaven. Heaven is not achievable. It's a gift!
Acts 8:20b "...thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money."Salvation is "the gift of God". Substitute "achieved" for "purchased with money" because both mean achieved. Whereas, money can't buy salvation, neither can works; or achievement.
"Goodness" then is what God and only God IS. His very existence is "goodness". No men are good, but yet we are to seek to be good. Just ask Amos! But not only did Amos say "seek good", but he appended that with "and not evil"! Since God's existence is "good" it would appear that anything not of God is "evil"! Since "good" is without degree, being finite, then "evil" must also be finite. This implies that "evil" has no shades of gray, but everything in God's eyes, are either black or white, that representing purity and the former impurity.
Although "evil" is finite and either black or white, all evil isn't of the same value. It's much the same as whether water is liquid or steam. That's obvious, but both have different temperatures. It is more "good" to "seek good" than to not, and likewise doing evil is always wrong, but evil deeds are of different magnitudes.
The more "good" that we seek to do is an indicator of how much we love God, if we're Christians. On the flip-side, the more evil we do demonstrates a measure of how much we are irreverent to God. Christians, although saved, can still do evil and be irreverent; and that, we are not to be, by "seeking good"!
Some say that all sins are equal, hence all evil must be the same. Others say that there are degrees of sin. Sin is black and white. It's the act of not doing "good" or not being as God is. We all fail there as demonstrated above! However, sins have degree, but the punishment, without repentance, is the same. Unless we are "born again", since we have all sinned, by God's justice we are condemned to eternal damnation. With repentance and faith, we are "saved", and there must be something from which we're "saved"; we are saved from an eternity in hell. That is the place evil-doers are destined who are not born again.
Jesus speaking to Pontius Pylat said:
John 11:19b "...he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin."Who delivered Jesus into Pylat? It was the religious leaders, representing mankind. Although Pylat sinned, being the emissary of death, we all are responsible for crucifying Jesus! Never forget that.
Hebrews 6:6 "If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame."Sinners crucified Jesus although they never drove the nail, flogged the man nor pierced his side. We are accomplices to his death and remain guilty of nailing, flogging and piercing our Savior. Our sin is greater than the one who authorized the nails to be driven, him flogged and his side pierced. Since we would be responsible (as apostate sinners) of crucifying him again with falling away, then we were responsible for Jesus' death when he died! Yes, we are the ones who killed Jesus, and our sin was greater than the executioners!
Jesus is the one who said that sin has degree. Since sin is evil and evil is sin, evil has degree. It's of the same nature as the boiling water in the analogy earlier. However, some sins are called out as to degree:
Leviticus 20:13 "If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them."There are additional "abominable sins" to homosexuality, but that always heads the list, even to being the reprobate sin. "Abomination" means that the aforementioned sin is "disgusting" to the Lord. That is a word which evaluates and has degree. "Reprobate" is another degree:
Titus 1:16 "They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.""Reprobate" is "foreordained to damnation" according to Meriam-Webster Dictionary. That's the highest degree and is in effect rejecting Jesus, the unpardonable sin! However, reprobate sins have the same punishment as lesser sins and vice-versa.
Perhaps in Hell there is different punishments for different degrees of evil, as in heaven there are different "crowns" or rewards for those who "seek good" more diligently, i.e., love God the most!
Then "evil" is the lack of "good". All men are born with evil in their hearts because only God is good. The little baby, although innocent in all respects, are not "seeking good" hence, their tender little hearts are sown with evil. Think not? Take away that breast from a hungry mouth and witness the anger! Catch the toddler with a forbidden cookie and listen to the lies coming forth! This is "original sin" or the evil which resides in the hearts of all mankind!
Rereading what Amos said, we're not only to "seek good, and not evil", but if we do there comes more: "that ye may live: and so the Lord, the God of hosts, shall be with you..." If we endeavor to be good and avoid doing evil, then God will be with us! For the patriarchal era that was the faith required for salvation, and was too God's grace. We also show our faith after salvation by doing good and avoiding evil, but look at all the evil Christians still do! We shall never merit what God has freely given and crediting God is his thanks. We credit God by "seeking good, and not evil"!
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