Growing up I was taught to believe that all good gifts came from God. This of course had exceptions. In practice, God’s gifts were limited only to those who professed Jesus and to the handful of adjectives littered throughout the New Testament. This kind of thinking as a child left me envious and confused of others who were not deemed children of God, yet had abilities. How did they get their gifts? I assumed that good could not be done outside of faith in Jesus. This belief left me with more questions and a fractured view of God’s relationship to humanity.
I recently watched a couple episodes of Red Table Talk. It is a talk show on Facebook which covers a variety of subjects. It is created and hosted by actress Jada Pinkett Smith along with her mother and daughter. I believe the show is in part a gift to the black community. It has a power to allow people to take a moment and think through issues that are very taboo, but pervasive in society. She is good at sharing the wisdom she has learned in a way that is nurturing and uplifting. At the end of watching I found myself applauding Jada for her contribution to the common good. As a side note, although I may not agree with all the views expressed on the show I can still be grateful for the good it does provide.
For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. (Mat 5:45 ESV)
If you haven't read the Chronicles of Narnia I suggest you put it on your short list of books to read. In the series there is a constant struggle between good and evil. Good representing itself in Aslan the good ruler and in one book, Tash the evil one. Tash has been defeated and a former minion of Tash comes face to face with Aslan and he confesses his activities in shame. Aslan then reminds him that any good deed he had done in the name of Tash was not to Tash at all, because no good thing can be attributed to Tash, but any good that was done, even in ignorance gives glory to the source of all that is good.
Before I go further let me define what I mean by gifts. I am using gifts as an umbrella term for any good natural instinct, skill, or talent any creature may posses. Whether it is teaching, giving, drumming, running, or prophesying, it is a gift from the Creator. With that said, the gifts that the Creator gives to us individuals and the ultimate gift of salvation is a whole different matter, so one would do well to separate the two. It isn’t only the followers of Christ who are made in the image of God. ALL of humanity are made in the image of God. There are no exceptions. We all start out with a set of tools and whether we use what we were given to build or destroy, that is up to us but the point is we were given them by the same source.
Jesus tells His followers that if they do good to one considered least in their society it is as if they have done it to Him. He also tells the story of the Samaritan man who takes care of the discarded traveler on the road. Samaritans did not share the same faith as their Jewish brothers. Jesus exalted the ‘unclean’ man because of the good work he had done to another. There is no good thing above or below heaven that can be done apart from God. How can one see a person rush into a burning building to save someone, a scientist dedicating their life to life saving research, or a mother who loves and nurture her children as anything less than good, and dare I say, as anything less than glorifying to our Creator? God is the source of all good gifts and we as Christians can rejoice with those who do good, even in the name of another.
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