Satisfaction
“But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, . . .” Luke 6:27 NASB
Do good – If you read this passage only in its Greek translation, you might conclude that doing good is essentially about benefiting the other. The Greek kalos is about what is valuable so we might think Yeshua is instructing us to do things that the enemy considers fair, worthy or important. But that would be a mistake. Yeshua clearly delivered his instruction in Hebrew, and in Hebrew tov is not simply about what is valuable. It is about what is useful. In particular, it is about ordinary, everyday objects or actions that are purposeful. This leads to a general category of harmony and contentment. To do good is to bring peace to life. That involves material blessings, benevolence and friendship. In the administration of justice, it means satisfying the conditions of ownership.
But Hebrew thought includes another element that cannot be accomplished by simply exercising good will on behalf of an enemy. Heschel states it beautifully: “Man cannot be good unless he strives to be holy.”[1] Doing good is not simply social justice. It is not merely charity. Doing good in Hebrew means striving for holiness, and we cannot fulfill this commandment of the Messiah without attaching our hearts to the heart of the Father. Benevolence alone is not enough. You and I must strive to exhibit the holiness of God before our enemies. Walking through the valley of the shadow of death doesn’t mean escaping.
Perhaps we need to reconsider our approach to benevolence. If we are simply Greek, we will commend ourselves for providing value to those who oppose us. We will think we have fulfilled the Master’s demand because we have done something beyond the expected. Heschel reminds us that good is not reducible to humanitarian aid. Good is about the character of God and any expression on His behalf must represent His holiness. It is not sufficient to assist. One must also love. Ah, but isn’t that precisely what the Messiah says in this Hebrew parallelism? Love, then do good.
Evaluate your benevolence. Ask yourself if it is motivated by a desire to display the holiness of the Lord. Ask if your acts are ones of love. If you find they are tax-deductions, ego enhancements or social expectations, perhaps it’s time to make a change. If you discover that your actions toward your enemies are not filled with a desire to emulate the holiness of the Lord, you may want to adjust. Do good. Keep on doing good. But remember the difference between kalos and tov.
Topical Index: good, kalos, tov, holiness, Luke 6:27
[1] Abraham Heschel, Man’s Quest for God, p. 95.
Who is my enemy? Anyone who is on the other end of fracture of any kind, and also anyone who is in opposition to me or someone I love, too. I have noticed that, in early posts, Skip was referring to his book, Guardian Angel, as The Perfect Enemy for a working title. This definitely broadens the idea of what my enemy is. My enemy could be a righteous person who represents justice in a place where I am not producing it. I could be out of line in some way, along with someone else’s bent behavior. My enemy could also be someone with whom I agree with completely, yet is hustling me along the path to destruction. YHVH could also be my enemy.
In these other understandings of who my enemy is, lack of simple acts of benevolence are not the problem, so they are not going to be able to fix the problem. If holiness carries the idea of presence, connection (righteousness), and justice as well as mercy, then there is a whole lot more work expected of me.
I may be the one who is participating in injustice toward another (or who is identifying with, or supporting, or even IGNORING(!) something that represents injustice), which means there is something I need to QUIT doing to be able to restore fellowship. There may be someone I am avoiding because they represent something I am loathing (fearing) which is causing me to want to walk on the other side of the road when I am near them. I have to quit checking out, then, and go ahead and show up in that mutual space and establish that needed connection. If they are poor, hungry, oppressed, sick, in need, mentally or emotionally unstable, or are experiencing injustice, then if I do not step up and do something to provide or restore the missing connection that they are experiencing, then I am joining the ranks of their enemies, too. All that is required, after all, for evil to flourish is for good men to stand by and do nothing. I am going to either be part of the problem or part of the solution. There is no other option called Check Out Of This Place. Unfortunately, I think we are often tempted to rationalize when it comes to the question of whether or not we decide to engage in the disfunction around us. Holiness is being present in the present and Presence and accounted for in the moment whatever the moment may call for. I am sure Yeshua never walked by on the other side of His road when He encountered misery and disconnection around Him. This is a high standard!
Simple acts of benevolence I may can manufacture, and my flesh may even be able to find justification and self benefit for, but the standard of erasing fracture, dissolving chaos around me, humbling myself in the places I am being out of line, repenting for being on the wrong end of misunderstandings, and recognizing the places where justice is crying out in the streets are all places where I stand in opposition to YHVH if I choose to check out (which is what a profane person does), for He is always going to be taking the side of the oppressed. If I fail to make a move toward the repair of whatever is in front of me, then, I may well be counted as a part of the problem, at which point I have just taken on an Enemy I do not ever want. The sooner I scoot over to His side of the road and ask what part of the solution He wants me to handle, then, the better!
Good Morning Y’all. Happy Memorial Day! As someone who has suffered from some “mental” (brain) illnesses, I hope one day we will be able to test a person’s brain for “cholesterol” or scan a brain for a “blocked artery”. It has been my experience that a person is not always capable of controlling their behavior. People will balk at that idea, but as anyone with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) will tell you, intrusive thoughts come into the brain and compulsive rituals follow. You can tell yourself it doesn’t make sense, but the overriding compulsion takes over. This is scary. It is scary to me, but until we recognize that the brain becomes sick just like any other organ, things can’t change. Of course now there is research to say some of our emotions derive from our gut. Interesting. For me the mentally ill are the most oppressed group anywhere on the planet. It crosses over all the boundaries no matter what part of the globe you live on, how educated you are, or how much money you have. Add to the list. It is a stigma that permeates the atmosphere. And it stinks. This TW is interesting to me because it says if I fail to take action in helping the oppressed, then I am part of the problem. And God becomes my Enemy. And I am an enemy to those I fail to help.
I agree! -“Man cannot be good unless he strives to be holy”, then only can our motives for doing good be pleasing and aligned with YHWH’s.
On love-
Rev 3:19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
Ps. 94:12 Blessed is the man whom thou chastens, O LORD.
Heb 12:6 For whom the Lord loves he chastens, and scourges every son whom he receives.
On doing good-
Ps 94:16 Who will rise up for me against the evildoers? or who will stand up for me against the workers of iniquity?
Doing good then, is bringing folks back to His ways and lifestyles, in teaching and correcting, with humility and kindness, speaking in truth and in love, through bonding first and foremost. I have many such testimonies and satisfaction that I have truly done my good.
It’s not simply doing “our part” in keeping silent, or simply “forgiving” and forgetting, and expect YHWH to do His!
Yeshua picked up the ear of the Roman and healed it… Steven prayed the same prayer as Yeshua Father forgive them they know not what they do… Would these be examples of doing good. If so how should we translate this to apply in our lives today…
Our is the rebuke of the devil Satan get behind me… Both to the devil self and Simon Peter an apostle the way we should do in. Reminding of the truth as only the truth will resolve all differences…
Thank you, Ester, for the scripture references. I noted them for future reference.
Abundant blessings to you, LauraA. Shalom!