Men of the LightNäide

Revealing Goodness

As a dad, one of the most daunting jobs has been teaching my kids right from wrong.

I’m well aware that these childhood lessons will shape them long after my most hands-on parenting years are over (Proverbs 22:6). And while the lessons themselves may not be that difficult, the challenge of teaching them steadily, modeling them well myself, keeping words and discipline consistent, etc., is the main way I keep working on being a better father.

Whether we’re teaching our kids or ourselves, I’ve also found it sometimes easier to focus on the “don'ts” when it comes to living rightly.

Obviously, there are things that we aren’t supposed to do. But when the emphasis of our morality is one long “Do not” list, it can be harder to understand what we are supposed to do.

“Don'ts” are important, but the doing is crucial.

My kids don’t just need “right and wrong” to be defined by the discipline that will come when they do wrong. Discipline is biblical and necessary, but they also need a better vision; they need to know why doing good is important and see their dad living it out, imperfect as he may be.

At Christmastime, as we celebrate the Light that was coming into the world, we know that Jesus came, not just to teach us what was wrong, but to teach us what was right.

Jesus came to model for us the perfect human life, where God’s desires for mankind that went awry at the Fall are redeemed and made right by the perfect Man who shows exactly what God wants for us and exactly how to live.

The apostle John says, “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).

Men of the Light don’t just avoid the dark, but actively choose the light. We don’t just avoid bad things but enthusiastically seek to do good in the world. We don’t just focus on the “Do not’s” but emphasize the “do’s”—and then go and do them.

When we do both together, we avoid the dark things and embrace the light we need to keep doing what is right. We are inspired by a light-filled vision to do good and make right what is not in this world.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, show me the way to go! Build a vision for what goodness and righteousness look like, and grant me the strength to live it out, modeling and teaching it for my family at the same time. Amen.

Reflection: When you think of living rightly, how is your “do” vs. “don’t” balance? What might it take to emphasize more of what to “do?”