The Spiritual Danger of Doing Good by Peter Greer

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Paul said, “So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me” (Romans 7:21).  Like all Christians, Paul carried around two natures:  his new nature and his old nature, which is “hostile to God.”

Peter Greer, CEO of Hope International, is one of the premier Christian leaders in the fight against global poverty.  Yet, as Peter very transparently reveals, he relates to Paul’s words in that when he wants to do good, evil is right there with him.

A study by Fuller Seminary professor Dr. J. Robert Clinton found that only one out of three leaders in the Bible “maintained a dynamic faith that enabled them to avoid abusing their power or doing something harmful to themselves or others.”  Only one in three finished well.

Every day, we can rest, not in the good works that we are doing, but in the good work that He has already done.

Confessions of a Do-Gooder

Greer recalls, “Here I was on the front lines, personally handing out blankets and helping families that had lost almost everything.  Noble cause.  Noble mission.  Noble actions of a twenty-five year-old relief worker.  I thought, ‘I can’t wait until the people back home see these photos of me.’ I recognized myself as playacting for people far away, not thinking about loving the people in front of me.”

Many Christians face Christian Karma with God—what they sow, they reap.  What they give, they get in return.  When they do good, they get good results. 

Greer explains he was on a road to continual disillusionment and burnout, no matter where he served or how hard he kept trying to do the right thing. He had a warped view of success.  He was becoming isolated and lacked real friends to point out his foolishness.  That ministry was becoming more important than faith and family.  That his attempts to do good were based on what it did for him and not in joyful response to God’s love.

Sparky Grace

Tim Keller’s The Prodigal God retells one of the most well-known parables of all time.  Contrary to popular opinion, it’s not a story about one wayward son—but two.  Jesus is talking about two brothers, one a hedonist, the other self-righteous.  Both are estranged from their father.

The elder brother heard of his brother returning and the party his father was throwing for him.  Disgracing his father, “the older brother stalked off in an angry sulk and refused to join in.”  In Middle Eastern culture, this is almost as shameful as the younger son’s outright defiance.

Again, the father did the unthinkable.  Rather than chastising his son, the father demeaned himself by going outside to plead with his son to come in. At the end of the story, despite the same offer of love and forgiveness to both brothers, the elder brother pouted outside while the younger brother celebrated inside.

It wasn’t hedonism that alienated the elder brother from his father; it was all the good things he had done.  Good things became ultimate things, creating a barrier between him and his father.

Hedonism and heroism (doing good) are brothers, not polar opposites.  Both are focused on ourselves.

The proof of spiritual maturity is not how pure you are but awareness of your impurity. That very awareness opens the door to grace. - Philip Yancey

When Ministry Becomes Your Mistress

The Spiritual Danger of Giving Leftovers to Loved Ones

A man ought to live so that everybody knows he is a Christian... and most of all, his family ought to know. - Dwight L. Moody

Greer’s wife, Laurel, once said one of the most frightening sentences he ever heard, “You are choosing your ministry over me—and I feel nothing for you.”

Greer explained, “I loved my wife.  I loved my kids.  But I was shocked into the realization that somehow my ministry had become my mistress.”

Busy season becomes a busy year.  Which turns into two.  Then three.  But you feel something else too.  At work, you’re needed, you feel affirmed—you’re indispensable.  At home, you’re not.  At least not in the same way.

Laurel was virtually operating as a single mom.  And Greer recognized he was building a “successful” ministry.

If you’ve felt the demands of both work and family, then you have experienced how easily work can become your mistress.  Greer explained, “I had fallen for the dangerous lie in ministry.  If Serving God Through Service = Good…then Serving God Through More Service = Better.”

Transformational leadership begins at home. No matter what the numbers at work say, we aren’t a success unless our children and spouses are on board with what we do.

If you’re married, recognize you hold a covenant with your spouse, not your work.  God ordained the biblical covenant of marriage.  He didn’t create one for work.  Your first priorities are God, the very center of all we do, and then your family.  And then—and only then—your work.

This is not just an issue for married men and women.  If you’re single, it’s just as easy to become a servant-hearted workaholic.  In fact, with fewer boundaries, an unbalanced life could be an even greater threat.

Conduct “impact assessments” with your wife—using these ten simple questions:

  1. Do my actions show you that apart from Jesus Christ, I have no higher love?
  2. How well are we serving together?
  3. How well am I encouraging your spiritual growth?
  4. How well am I guarding our time together?
  5. How is our prayer life together?
  6. How well am I supporting you to grow in your gifts/skills?
  7. Are we discipling our children well together?  How convinced are you that parenting is truly a partnership?
  8. How well am I caring for your friends?
  9. How is our physical expression of love?
  10. What can I do to love you better?

Limit travel.  By saying “no” to good opportunities, you get the chance to tuck your children into bed and to say yes to the best ones. The bottom line is this: It doesn’t honor God to steamroll over friends and family in pursuit of service.

Stuck in a Rut

The Spiritual Danger of Doing Instead of Being

Growth and good works do not guarantee you’re heading in the right direction.  Here are some important “Road Signs.”  Greer explains, “I had forgotten why I was serving. My focus was on what I was doing instead of who I was becoming.”

Unless we rediscover the foundation of service, our good works can be all about us. Unfortunately, it’s our natural inclination to forget about the radical message of grace and just keep trying harder.

Silverbacks and Small Steps

The Spiritual Danger of Justifying Minor Moral Lapses for a Good Cause

Justin and Trisha Davis said, “When giftedness outweighs character, implosion isn’t a matter of if but of when.”

An attitude of entitlement is morally toxic. Consider founders of organizations.  “When you’re the founder, you think you can do anything and that the rules don’t apply to you,” said Mark Cheffers, CEO of AccountingMalpractice.com.

Don’t forget it: The rules do apply to you.

The tallest oak tree began as an acorn—and the biggest moral failure began as a small compromise. There are no minor moral lapses.  We go from attitudes to thoughts to behaviors in an easy progression.

Good people doing good things seem to so easily go astray, one small step at a time.  If you believe that “it couldn’t happen to me,” then you are in the most danger.

Integrity begins with the small decisions we make each day.  By increasing the guards around your heart and continuing to pray that God will protect you, you can avoid the pain King David brought on those he loved.

What Goes Up

The Spiritual Danger of Using the Wrong Measuring Stick to Define Success

After five years of success, Greer became painfully aware of the fact that his team had failed to build a solid foundation.  Driven by a desire to have even greater impact, they:

  1. Expanded beyond their capacity;
  2. Hadn’t developed all the necessary internal controls; and
  3. Trusted individuals without appropriate checks and balances. 

In other words, they were not built to last. Jim Collins, bestselling author of How the Mighty Fall (see my summary here), says that the first stage to a company’s decline isn’t an external factor, but an internal attitude: hubris.

Collins recognized that “pride goes before destruction” as the Bible warns in Proverbs.

There’s nothing wrong with a bigger ministry or congregation, but a fascination with such markers is toxic.  Author Richard Foster said, “Make no mistake, the religion of the ‘big deal’ stands in opposition to the way of Christ.”

To God, success is upside down. Businessman Jim Amos shared, “All we get on the mountaintop is a good view.  The real change comes through the hard work of the climb.”

It’s almost impossible to overstate the importance of humility.  As pastor Jon Tyson put it, “When our influence exceeds our character, we are heading toward a disaster.”

Jesus defined success as loving the Lord your God and loving your neighbor.  The extent of our love, not numerical growth, matters most.

3:00 A.M. Friends

The Spiritual Danger of Friendship Superficiality

The disciples were out at sea, and at “about three o’clock in the morning Jesus came toward them, walking on the water.” By 3 a.m., they were struggling, exhausted with the fight…about ready to give up.

At the lowest point of their night, Jesus walked right into the middle of the lake.  He calmed the storm.  He took them back to shore.  Jesus decided to intervene at 3 a.m., the moment of their greatest need.

Carrying out a study of fallen ministry leaders, Dr. Howard Hendricks of Dallas Theological Seminary interviewed 246 individuals who’d had a moral failing within a two-year period.  What he found was striking: None of them had an accountability partner.

God Loves My Job More Than Yours

The Spiritual Danger of Elevating the Sacred Over the Secular

Dorothy Sayers said, “It is the business of the Church to recognize that the secular vocation, as such, is sacred.”

When we think full-time ministry is some sort of a higher calling, we dramatically undermine our calling and impact as followers of Jesus.

In a forty-year span, we devote 96,000 hours to our jobs, and only 2,266 hours at church, noted Adam Hamilton, a pastor from the Church of the Resurrection (COR) in Leawood, Kansas. Hamilton said, “If 12,000 of us realize that we’re missionaries first and we go out to heal, to bring justice, to serve God in the workplace—then when we finally begin to do that, I tell you, the world is going to be different.”

No longer is the best method of evangelism through revivals at arenas and football stadiums, says Dr. Billy Graham.  “I believe one of the next great moves of God is going to be through the believers in the workplace,” said Graham. 

If you are a follower of Jesus, you are already in full-time ministry, no matter where you spend your days.

Warm Food

The Spiritual Danger of Thinking You’re the Superhero

Henri Nouwen said, “I am constantly surprised at how I keep taking the gifts God has given me—my health, my intellectual and emotional gifts—and keep using them to impress people, receive affirmation and praise, and compete for rewards, instead of developing them for the glory of God.”

There are no solo performers. In moments of clarity, it is easy to see how dependent we are on others, but why is it easy to take credit for someone else’s hard work?  Why do we crave to be the superhero in our story, especially when we’re doing good?  And how might God feel when we take credit for what He has done?

In one of Aesop’s fables, a flea sitting on the back of a chariot looks back and says, “My, what a dust storm I’ve caused.”  It’s easy to give ourselves credit that is truly due to God.

Courtney Rountree Mills, who co-founded a nonprofit (Sinapsis) to provide Christ-centered business training and investment capital to innovative, highly scalable start-ups in Kenya, said, “If you first get over yourself, stop expecting praise for everything that you do, and decide to serve for no other reason than to serve God alone, it will change your life.”

The fastest way to break the superhero complex is what author Richard Foster calls the “ministry of the small things.”  Forge the center stage.  Don’t clamor for the spotlight.

Recognized as one of the greatest composers of all time, Johann Sebastian Bach was a devout Christ-follower.  His life’s maxim: All gifts are from God and for God. At the beginning of each piece, Bach would write Jesu Juva—Jesus help me.  Closing every manuscript, he signed S.D.G., short-hand for Soli Deo Gloria—glory to God alone.

Panera Prophet

The Spiritual Danger of Not Having Ears to Hear the Uncomfortable Truth

Good friends sympathize.  Good friends relate.  But good friends also challenge.  This is the type of friend Proverbs describes, “Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses.”

You have two choices when you are called out by a prophet, critic, or friend: to ignore the call or to recognize the seriousness of your rut.  To make excuses and minimize the issue or to realize a loving critique is a gift and an invitation to change.

Justin Davis said, “What I have seen is that the more I have sought brokenness, the more opportunity He has given me to live out my calling.  I get cautious when people desire the gifts of God more than they desire brokenness.”

Shame and embarrassment can make use reluctant to ask for help.  We don’t want to admit our weaknesses.  When we are so focused on doing good, we like pretending we have it all together.  But we desperately need to forget our pride and listen to critique in our lives.

We are in a dangerous place when we fail to realize that critics often speak a word of truth we need to hear.  If we only value positive feedback, over time, it becomes easier to surround ourselves with people who agree with us and marginalize those who criticize.

Who Am I When I’m Not Me?

The Spiritual Danger of Forgetting Your True Identity

James Mason said, “Jesus loves me, and that’s enough.”

Nothing is wrong in taking pleasure in your work (Ecclesiastes 3:22).  Work is a gift.  But finding your identity in your work is a cheap substitute for finding your worth in Christ Jesus.  And Greer noted that he had forgotten his identity as a Christian leader was subordinate to his calling as a follower of Christ.

We can be so wrapped up in the good we do that as Justin Davis of RefineUs Ministries says, “You will be tempted to worship your calling more than you worship Christ.”

As David said, “Fear the Lord, you his holy people, for those who fear him lack nothing.”

Ed Dobson—once a full-time pastor—said, “I am no longer a preacher.  Today, I would say I am a Jesus follower.  Period.”  His identity goes beyond his service and straight to a relationship with his Creator.  This identity is the only one that will last.

Christian Karma

The Spiritual Danger of Thinking Good Things Always Happen to Good People

Beneath the philosophy of Christian karma is the thought, “If God doesn’t give us good in return for our good, then is the Good Shepherd really good?” If the philosophy of Christian karma were true, then surely some of Jesus’ greatest followers would reap the benefit of this philosophy.  But if you look at the disciples, according to tradition, ten of the twelve were martyred. 

God never promised an easy life—and actually promises the opposite:  “In this world you will have trouble.”  This sober promise ends with, “But take heart!  I have overcome the world.”

Good things don’t always happen to good people—but the Good Shepherd is still good and invites you and me to be His hands and feet to those in need, even when we don’t have answers to the difficult problem of pain and suffering.

Spinach Salad With a Side of Shame

The Spiritual Danger of Seeing Everyone’s Sin But Your Own

It’s possible to challenge supporters to live radically for the poor and then blow money on unnecessary home furnishings.  It’s possible to give a talk at a church on God’s mercy to the poor and yet be harsh with my kids when you get home.  It’s even possible to give a talk on humility and be proud of how well it is delivered.

While it’s not always easy to hear feedback, it is remarkably eye-opening. Inviting people to share with you your blind spots may not be easy, but it’s worth it.

How Do I Look?

The Spiritual Danger of Being Obsessed With What Others Think

A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you. - C. S. Lewis

An obsession with impression management is spiritually dangerous.  When we’re consumed with thinking much of ourselves, we are incapable of thinking much of God.

In the New Testament, Christ recognized that many wouldn’t come to Him because “they were more concerned about what people thought of them than about what God thought of them.”  Their motivation to do good—to please others—prevented intimacy with God.

Shane Everett of the band Shane and Shane shared that being on stage is “pretty cancerous to the soul.  You get a lot of strokes getting on a stage, any kind of stage, whatever that is.  Strokes for the believer often create a breeding ground for pride, for less selflessness.”

A radical, do-anything, go anywhere faith can be deeply contaminated by self-love or self-worship. These desires might sound noble, but they might be spiritual heresy because the focus is on ourselves instead of God.  The purpose of worship and service is to bring glory to God—the antithesis of selfishness.

C.S. Lewis writes, “Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man…  It is the comparison that makes you proud: the pleasure of being above the rest.  Once the element of competition has gone, pride has gone.”

Paul essentially says, “I don’t care what you think; I don’t care what I think.”

A Full Head and an Empty Heart

The Spiritual Danger of Disconnecting Knowledge From Action

Deuteronomy 6:5 says, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”

We can inadvertently worship our education and our knowledge while forgetting how seldom Jesus seemed to be impressed by the most learned scholars of his time.  Our knowledge tends to inflate our egos, while Jesus seems far more concerned about what we are doing with the knowledge we have.

Dennis Hollinger, a friend and president of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, wrote a book entitled Head, Heart, and Hands: Bringing Together Christian Thought, Passion, and Action

  1. Faith of the head is alive in individuals interested in sound theology and those with a firm grasp of apologetics. 
  2. Faith of the heart appeals to individuals who often experience faith in a mystical and emotional sense, and it lends itself to contemplation and meditative practices. 
  3. Faith of the hands fascinates those who are doers, people interested in carrying out works of justice. 

Hollinger argues that each is necessary, and we are a lopsided church when we get these three aspects of expressing our faith out of balance.

The Corinthians were educated and considered themselves wise and spiritually mature.  But Paul deflated their egos.  He told them, “God didn’t choose you because of your theological prowess; rather it was because you weren’t all that impressive.”  God uses the unexpected, the unimpressive, and the lowly to do His Kingdom work. A full head without a full heart is dangerous to the faith.

Man Makeup

The Spiritual Danger of Pretending to Have It All

Pride makes us artificial and humility makes us real. - Thomas Merton

Jesus called out the righteous for wearing makeup.  He said they were “whitewashed tombs.”  On the outside, they looked good, but there was a chasm between their outward appearances and their hearts.  They were dead on the inside.

God isn’t interested in a church pretending to have it all together.  Consider Laodicea, one of the seven churches mentioned in the book of Revelation.  More than any other church, Laodicea was positioned to have maximum impact.  It was affluent.  It had human capacity.  It was culturally relevant.  But Jesus saw their insides didn’t match their healthy exterior.  Jesus said, “So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”

Admitting “I’m messed up” and confessing we don’t have it all together empowers the body of Christ.  Musician Thad Cockrell said, “Strengths divide, but faiths unite.” Our mutual brokenness brings us together.

He extends to us the same offer he gave to Laodicea:  “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock.  If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.”

You-Turn

It’s amazing how you can be convinced you are headed in the right direction—but be on the wrong train.

The change from Saul to Paul wasn’t easy.  Even after his dramatic conversion on the road to Damascus, Paul struggled with his selfishness, pride, and sin.  Paul fought to live fully for Christ—and we have to as well.

Paul’s solution to the struggle is yours and mine as well:  “Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

Consider the Comeback Kids: former do-gooders who are becoming ever more aware of their sin and as a result, totally dependent on God’s deep grace in their lives.  And it’s through these people—like Paul—that Jesus changes the world.

Conclusion

The greatest danger comes from within, so we need to protect ourselves from our own success and service—from the spiritual dangers of doing good.

Let’s remember why we serve. It’s out of a heart posture of gratitude to a God who knows we aren’t perfect, who recognizes that we are a mess, and who loves us anyway.

Ultimately, it’s simply a response to the most radical generosity the world has ever known.