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Or as it says in Ephesians (2:10): “ For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand.” Jesus says, “ in everything do to others as you would have them do to you for this is the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 7:12) The golden rule - it is not based on rewards and punishments, or who gets credit. and God will be gracious to you.” (Amos 5:14-15) Hate evil and love good, and establish justice in the gate. This exhortation to do good is found in many other Scripture passages.Īmos, the prophet, surrounded by so much corruption and disappointment states it so clearly - “ seek good and not evil that you may live and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you. That is what we do - not worrying about punishments or outcomes, not stressing over who gets credit or acclaim. We seek to do good! We have been blessed - we seek to be a blessing.
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In that context, what do we do? Well, we live with and for God. This psalm is another one trying to remind us, ingrain in us, that we live our lives in a certain context - under God’s care, for God’s purposes, and lots of things might happen, but we belong to God and God reigns forever over all things. I think that the Psalm that we read today - Psalm 37 - offers us sincere encouragement.ĭon’t be annoyed by anyone who does wrong, and don’t envy them.Ģ They will soon disappear like grass without rain.ģ Trust the Lord and live right! 4 Do what the Lord wants, and he will give you your heart’s desire. 5 Let the Lord lead you and trust him to help. Sometimes bullies seem to win and good guys, and good intentions, finish last. What we all learn and know is this: we live in a complex world - and evil is not always punished, and good is not always rewarded. No good deed goes unpunished - Sure, I meant well No good deed goes unpunished - All helpful urges should be circumvented And there is a famous song, sung by the bad witch, entitled “no good deed.” The song includes these words. “Wicked,” you might recall, is a musical about good and evil, the back-story of the “Wizard of Oz” with a focus on the good witch and the bad witch. One place where this phrase - no good deed goes unpunished - gains some popularity is in the famous Broadway production, “Wicked.” Ginger and I saw “Wicked” some years ago - we even went backstage at the Gershwin Theater to meet the Wizard, played by Tom McGowan, a high school friend of our sister in-law, Becky. We find it echoed in novels, in lines from stories - “kindness brings its own punishment,” or even politics, as “in Washington, no good deed goes unpunished.”
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Hence - our phrase for today - “no good deed goes unpunished.”Īnd then, this idea lives and develops. So, as we each deal with the evils and uncertainties of life, the seemingly predictable and hopeful statements about good and evil become more acerbic and twisted. Good and evil, rewards and punishments do not always go so logically or smoothly. and as we know can happen in our own lives. as life unfolds, we learn fast that evil people can indeed prosper aggression and destruction can take centerstage - as we see happening in Ukraine today. Wouldn’t that be wonderful - good people prosper, truth and integrity prevail - evil gets punished, bullies never win.īut. This is the way we would like the world to be - reasonably ordered by God: evil gets punished, good gets rewarded. For example, the great theologian, Thomas Aquinas, in his “Summa Theologica” from the 13th century, states that “no evil deed goes unpunished, by God the just judge ” and “no good deed is unrewarded, and so every good deed merits some good.” For centuries, theologians have addressed conventional wisdom about God’s rewards and punishments. :)īut this phrase - no good deed goes unpunished - goes well beyond doing good deeds in the church. it can feel like punishment sometimes because once you take on a job, watch out, it may be yours forever. This is what can happen - you sign up to do something at church, serve God. well, it comes from a few of you, suggesting that we address this phrase in the current sermon series. It is NOT in the Bible - it is one of those familiar phrases that emerges over time, gets traction in various ways, and becomes part of what we think and say.Īnd. “No good deed goes unpunished!” Where does that line come from? “Is It True: No Good Deed Goes Unpunished?”