How do you judge what is right and good?
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells his listeners they can tell the false from the true prophets. "You will know them by their fruits," he says. (Matthew 7:16)
What are these fruits? The apostle Paul describes the fruit of the Spirit -- "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." Then Paul adds, "There is no law against such things." (Galatians 5:22-23)
One way to participate in the divine work of healing and to promote the common good is to look for the fruit of the Spirit and to join the people and causes that produce love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
So many nonprofits and outreach ministries come to mind. Some that I've been close to are 7Hills Homeless Center, Magdalene Serenity House, Community Meals and Community Clinic. I admire the Genesis Church community that Central United Methodist Church has created in south Fayetteville. Maybe you've been involved with programs like Feed Communities, Peace at Home, WelcomeHealth, Salvation Army, LifeSource, Life Styles, Red Cross, Habitat for Humanity, CASA, Single Parent Scholarship, NWA Food Bank, HOPE Cancer Support, and Compassion Fayetteville. There are so many! (And I apologize for those I missed.) Usually the people who support these good organizations will tell you they get more than they give. That's a sure sign of the Spirit.
You can see the fruits of the Spirit in so many places. Sometimes you can feel it in a business or a restaurant. They love what they do and see their work as service. Many teachers touch lives with their gifts of the Spirit. The fruits Paul lists describe the qualities of a great classroom.
I know elected officials who embrace their work of service with these spiritual qualities. They truly want to work for the common good. I support advocacy organizations that espouse policies and laws that spread the fruits of the Spirit, especially on behalf of the poor and vulnerable -- Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, Arkansas United, the Poor People's Campaign, Arkansas Citizens First Congress. These are secular organizations that embrace Jesus' call to care for "the least of these" and the constant scriptural command to favor "the widow, the orphan and the alien."
"Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." Whenever we see these qualities, we can be confident. "There is no law against such things." As more and more Christians see these characteristics in the loving relationships of our gay and lesbian neighbors, more and more churches are extending the blessing of full recognition for those loving couples in their congregations.
I see the fruits of the Spirit in many who are marginalized or outcast in our society. The Dreamers -- young people who have grown up in our communities having been brought here as children, but without documentation as legal immigrants. I've met so many immigrants, legal and undocumented, who demonstrate these qualities of the Spirit and contribute to our society. They seek a better life for themselves and their families, but our immigration system is too broken to process them legally. They do their best to live lives of hope under a cloud of deportation.
I hope we all know that immigrants commit less crime and create more businesses per capita than native-born Americans. Immigrants contribute more in tax revenue than they take in benefits. With full employment and a dropping birth rate in this nation, immigrants are crucial to America's continued economic growth. They bring new energy to our nation. Immigrant neighbors want what all of us want, a chance for a good life for themselves and their families.
What if we used our political structures strategically to produce love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control? How different might our political conversations be?
Instead of asking what are you against, we might ask what values do you support. How can we create structures of kindness, generosity and peace? How do we work together with patience and gentleness? What if our leaders were full of love, joy, and self-control? What if we withdrew our support from politicians and policies that fail to produce the fruits of the Spirit?
"Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things."
Commentary on 01/22/2019