God is Always with Us



When Good Men Do NothingINTRODUCTION Edmund Burke once said, “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” In the endless battle between good and evil, it is seldom the numbers that determine the outcome of each skirmish. Many times, the side for the right has beaten overwhelming odds. More often evil wins simply because the good men are not willing to stand up and fight for what they know is right. I. When good men do nothing, they get nothing done. A. To BE good, one must DO good. 1. We must do good deeds, expecting nothing in return - Luke 6:35 ESV But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. 2. We were created to do good works - Eph 2:10 ISV For we are God's masterpiece, created in the Messiah Jesus to perform good actions that God prepared long ago to be our way of life. 3. Christ gave Himself to gain a people zealous of good works - Titus 2:13- 14 LITV looking for the blessed hope and appearance of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself on our behalf, "that He might redeem us from all lawlessness and purify a special people for Himself," zealous of good works. (underline added) B. The parable of the “one talent man” 1. He took what his master gave him and hid it - Matt 25:18 ISV But the one who received one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground, and buried his master's money. 2. He was condemned for returning only what his lord gave him - Matt 25:26 ISV "His master answered him, 'You evil and lazy servant! So you knew that I harvested where I haven't planted and gathered where I haven't scattered any seed? 3. He didn’t do any outright evil. He didn’t steal the money, but he didn’t do anything good with the money. He did NOTHING. - Matt 25:27 ISV Then you should have invested my money with the bankers. When I returned, I would have received my money back with interest.' C. The church at Sardis seemed to be alive, but was dead - Rev 3:1 ESV "And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: 'The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. "'I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. D. Too many churches and Christians do nothing. 1. They stand idly by, mere spectators “sitting on the sidelines” instead of actively participating in the good work. 2. If Good wins, they join in the celebration though they did nothing to produce the victory. 3. If Evil wins, they complain long and loud though their own laziness produced the undesirable result. E. We must learn from the parable of the Fig Tree - Matt 21:19 ESV And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, he went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And he said to it, "May no fruit ever come from you again!" And the fig tree withered at once. 1. What will the great Judge do with those who claim to be good and yet do nothing? a. John the “Baptizer” warned - Mat 3:10 ESV Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. b. Jesus too, gives the same warning - John 15:1-2 ISV "I am the true vine, and my Father is the vintner. He cuts off every branch that does not produce fruit in me, and he cuts back every branch that does produce fruit, so that it might produce more fruit.III. When good men do nothing, Evil triumphs. A. Evilness, sin, and sinful men must be opposed. God commands that the good are not to just avoid evil, but to actively oppose it. 1. Have no fellowship, but reprove them - Eph 5:11 ISV and have nothing to do with the unfruitful actions that darkness produces. Instead, expose them for what they are. B. When one is silent before the evil, we become a partaker with them - Eze 3:18 ISV "So when I say to a wicked person, 'You're about to die,' if you don't warn or instruct that wicked person that his behavior is wicked so he can live, that wicked person will die in his sin, but I'll hold you responsible for his death. C. In the fight against evil there is no middle ground, no gray area, no neutrality - Matt 12:30 ISV "The person who isn't with me is against me, and the person who isn't gathering with me is scattering.III. When good men do nothing, they are no longer GOOD. A. Too many have the mistaken idea that “good” is merely the absence of doing wrong or evil. 1. A person is not “good” just because he/she hasn’t done evil. 2. A good person is actively working for what is good - 1Pet 3:11 ISV He must turn away from evil and do good. He must seek peace and pursue it. 3. When we do NOT do good, we are SINNING - Jas 4:17 ISV Therefore, anyone who knows what is right but fails to do it is guilty of sin. CONCLUSION Whether are not we are willing to admit our failures/sins, the truth is that we (even as Christians) are SINNERS. When we fail to do good to others when we have the opportunity and ability, we are guilty of sins of “omission”. We cannot let evil triumph over us by inaction. We must stand up and be counted among the Redeemed. We must speak up against Evil, rebuke evil people and their evil ways. As our hymn declares, “Stand Up, stand up for Jesus”. ................
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