Just Do It! No, Wait, Just Think It!

I get flak for all I say about works, especially when I say we have to stop explaining and apologizing when we say “good works.” Good works are “good.” No, you cannot be changed from dead in your sins to alive in Christ by good works, but you were made alive in Christ to do good works, so go do them (Eph. 2:1-10). God likes good works, even when a non-Christian does them (Acts 10:1-5; 30-31).

I am fighting this fight for those who agree with me, who see the exhortations to good works and the warnings against not doing them. Every day, in song and sermon, slogans are sung and warnings are issued against “trying” to do good works. I want you to have at least one voice reminding you that it’s ok to obey Paul’s admonition to “be careful to maintain good works” without wondering if you’re doing them right.

That said, one of greatest super powers in doing good works is simple. Think about spiritual things (Rom. 8:5-8). The way you live is completely affected by what you think about. “Be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Rom. 12:1). Paul said his weapons were able to tear down strongholds, those things you can’t overcome, to cast down imaginations, those lies you’ve bought into that demons and evil people whispered to you or shouted at you, and that the purpose of the weapons were “to bring every thought into captivity to Christ” (2 Cor. 10:4-5).

Hang around people who think the same way. I don’t mean the people who agree with you on what the Bible says. I mean hang around people who love Jesus, want to talk about him, and keep you thinking about him (Heb. 3:13).

Fight for your mind today because the problem is not that good works aren’t good if you do them for the wrong reasons. The problem is that the mind set on the flesh **CANNOT** please God (also Rom. 8:5-8). So set your mind on things above, where Christ is, who is your life (Col. 3:1-4). Don’t worry about how spiritual you feel; fight to be a spiritual thinker: set your mind, set your mind, set your mind.

Oh, if you want to be thoroughly equipped to do good, read the Bible. That’s its purpose (2 Tim. 3:16-17), and reading it will make you think about spiritual things!

About Paul Pavao

I am married, the father of six, and currently the grandfather of five. I teach, and I am always trying to learn to disciple others better than I have before. I believe God has gifted me to restore proper theological foundations to the Christian faith. In order to ensure that I do not become a heretic, I read the early church fathers from the second and third centuries. They were around when all the churches founded by the apostles were in unity. My philosophy for Bible reading is to understand each verse for exactly what it says in its local context. Only after accepting the verse for what it says do I compare it with other verses to develop my theology. If other verses seem to contradict a verse I just read, I will wait to say anything about those verses until I have an explanation that allows me to accept all the verses for what they say. This takes time, sometimes years, but eventually I have always been able to find something that does not require explaining verses away. The early church fathers have helped a lot with this. I argue and discuss these foundational doctrines with others to make sure my teaching really lines up with Scripture. I am encouraged by the fact that the several missionaries and pastors that I know well and admire as holy men love the things I teach. I hope you will be encouraged too. I am indeed tearing up old foundations created by tradition in order to re-establish the foundations found in Scripture and lived on by the churches during their 300 years of unity.

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