Learn To Do Right
“Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor; Defend the fatherless, Plead for the widow…19 If you are willing and obedient, You shall eat the good of the land;” Isaiah 1:17 & 19 NKJV
We are instructed to “learn” to do good, to do the right thing, to be what He would have us to be. We have to learn not to do what the natural mind would instruct us to do and instead learn to listen and do what is right in His eyes. We don’t just happen to do the right things in life, we have to be diligent and intentional in what we are doing. It is a discipline that comes from learning to hear the leading of the Spirit instead of following the dictates of the flesh. We learn to do good and to do what is right in Jesus.
There is also a diligence in this. It is easy to fall into the old habits of the flesh and the world without even realizing it. When we are diligent to be in the Word and filling our minds and thoughts with the things of the Word, then we will continue to learn to do good. However, the lack of diligence in this leads to spiritual laziness. The result of spiritual laziness is that we fall back into a carnal mindset and find that we are not doing what is right in His eyes. We may desire to do right, but without this diligence in the Word, we are doing wrong by default because that is the only result of the flesh.
We also have to be intentional about learning to do good. There must be a consistent determination to achieve this goal of doing good and what is right in Jesus. In school, a person does not just learn by simply sitting next to the school building. You won’t even learn by sitting inside the building or even just sitting in the classroom. There has to be attentiveness, a willingness to learn and a readiness to learn. Even while sitting in the classroom individuals have to apply themselves, or nothing that is taught will be received and take root.
The same thing applies to learning to do good in Jesus. You have to be intentional about it and apply yourself with a determination to hear and learn. The benefit of this is seen in verse 19 of Isaiah chapter 1: “If you are willing and obedient, You shall eat the good of the land”. In other versions, it says you shall eat the “best” of the land! As we continue to learn to do good and do what is right in Jesus, we find that we are enjoying all of His best. This does not imply that Jesus is withholding anything from you. All of His blessings are already established. You just have to position yourself to receive them. It is all in front of you and as you learn to do good you move forward to possess it. If you refuse to learn you have chosen to walk away from those blessings, the blessings that He has already prepared for you. The choice is ours, be diligent and intentional and learn to do good.
J Todd Hostetler