3 John 11  Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. He that doeth good is of God: but he that doeth evil hath not seen God.

In the beginning Adam and Eve partook of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.  Ever since, man has had to make a choice in every area of his life between what is good, which means:

That which is agreeable, pleasant, excellent, rich, valuable, appropriate, becoming, the best, kind, right, for my welfare and the welfare of others, honorable, beautiful, blessed, beneficial, moral (and the list continues indefinitely.)

and what is evil which means:

That which is wrong, wicked, mischievous, hurtful, bad, troublesome, sore, afflicting, ill, adverse, unfavourable, harmful, naughty, noisome, grievous, sad, disagreeable, malignant, unpleasant, giving pain, unhappy, displeasing, unkind, (and the list continues indefinitely.)

The question that arises when we come to any choice in life is, how do I know what is good and what is evil.

The answer is not as simple as we think. On the contrary, it is greatly complicated (as we’ve seen in the good and evil definitions above.)  Only God knows what is truly good and what is truly evil, therefore we must know the mind of God in order to know how to follow that which is good and to do that which is good.

Philippians 2:5 states “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus…”

Matthew 11:29  gives us the answer as to how to have the mind of Christ in us: “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me;”

Professing Christian, are you following that which is good (which comes from learning of God and trusting Him) or are you following that which is evil (which comes from leaning upon your own understanding?)

He that doeth good is of God: but he that doeth evil hath not seen God.

Leviticus 1:1-3

1 And the LORD called unto Moses, and spake unto him out of the tabernacle of the congregation, saying,

2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, If any man of you bring an offering unto the LORD, ye shall bring your offering of the cattle, even of the herd, and of the flock.

3 If his offering be a burnt sacrifice of the herd, let him offer a male without blemish: he shall offer it of his own voluntary will at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the LORD.

THE WORD OF GOD AND THE MAN OF GOD Notice, the LORD called unto Moses. God spoke to His chosen man Moses, to instruct His people.  God is still using chosen men to instruct the saints.   Ephesians 4:11-12 states

11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

THE PEOPLE OF GOD

Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them,

God has much to say to the people of God.  But, He has only one message for the person who is not a child of God and that is to turn to Him and be saved.

The child of God then begins to grow as he or she hears the Word of God.  The true child of God hears the Lord’s voice (John 10:27) and wants to please Him by doing what He tells them to do.

THE WILLING HEART

….he shall offer it of his own voluntary will…

The voluntary will is a must for a blessed child of God.  This has to do with a delight, pleasure, willfulness.  The psalmist stated “I delight to do thy will”

Let’s lift up our voice, even now to our Lord and thank Him for His Word and for the man of God that He has brought into our lives.

May each one of God’s people do what we do with a voluntary will.