GOOD DOERS AND DO GOODERS
And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith. (Galatians 6:9-10).
There's this story making rounds on social media of a hungry man who hadn't eaten for days. He went to a canteen and begged the owner for food on credit. She bluntly refused to give the man food claiming that so many people had failed to pay her to whom she sold on credit. After being severally refused, the hungry man sat dejected by the entrance as several people came in and out of the canteen to eat, ignoring the hungry man crouched by the entrance. Finally, a man came, asked for the matter with the man who appeared to have fallen asleep and the owner narrated the story. The man was moved with compassion; he paid for a good serving to feed the hungry man, but alas on getting to him, they found that the man was not sleeping but had died.
Doing good is godliness. The bible tells us God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, and He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed...(Acts 10:38). Jesus Himself told us the story of the Good Samaritan saying, "Go thou and do likewise" (Luke 10:37). The Good Samaritan not only had compassion on the dying traveler but also used his resources to save his life.
The story also tells of others who withheld compassion from another in desperate need even though they possessed the resources to save a life. These can be described as do gooders. The priest, the Levite, and the food seller in our opening story failed to do what they had the means and capacity to do. The dictionary defines a do gooder as 'a well-intentioned but naive and often ineffectual social or political reformer'.
Most of our politicians fit this description in the manner they serve the purpose for which they have been elected. The slight difference is that their own lackadaism is fuelled by self interest - an attitude of 'I-before-others' or 'mine-before-theirs'. They know what others need but would rather serve themselves first. 'Apple tree top politics' is described as sitting on top of the apple tree, feeding well first on ripe apples, then throwing down remnants to others waiting below. Psychologists have propounded the theory that this behaviour stemmed from the primordial past of humans as apes, especially Africans - the fight for survival. The fittest survive!
William J. Hampton wrote, "There'll be no time to correct lackadaisical driving techniques after trouble develops". A lackadaisical person knows what to do but lacks effort, zeal or interest to perform well the task in hand, with unpleasant consequences. He is not lazy but has the attitude that procrastinates or declines to do the right thing at the right time, out of an agenda of personal gain.
The bible concludes on this matter saying, 'Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin' (James 4:17). Good doers will be commended and rewarded but Do gooders will be judged and condemned.
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