What makes you do good things?

Question

This is a question for Christians, mostly, but anyone can answer. Do you do good things because you are doing it for your reward in heaven? That if you are not rewarded for it here, God will bless you in the afterlife? There has to be more motivation than my faith tells me to. Do you get joy out of helping people and not expecting anything back? Answer honestly. If you lie it's not just to me but to yourself. Do you realzie that if you do it for any reward at all - here or in heaven - it is the wrong motivation? You are doing it for the wrong reason?

Believe Me, Josieb, and St. Mike - you aren't seeing the big picture.

Answer 1

The motivation for doing "good things" (a loaded term that needs to be seperated into at least two different concepts, but that's for another post) comes from a hatred of doing evil things and a love of doing good things. If you do them for your benefit, I agree, that is the wrong motivation, namely greed. God certainly doesn't reward greed, but what He does reward is (to use a Christmas term, we are in the season) loving good for goodness sake. That is why just doing good things doesn't get one to heaven but a change of heart along with acceptance of who Christ is, which is evidenced by loving the good and hating evil. Doing good for the glory of God comes as a result of the heart change, because even though you may do it for the glory of God, if you still don't want to do it, then God still is distanced against the good things you do.

Answer 2

All the Christian responses can be summed up as follows:

"I do good things because I'm TOLD to, not because I'm actually a decent person."

We live on a planet covered with billions of people that are all different from one another. You cannot have a society of murderers, or else everyone would soon be dead. You cannot have a society of mindless followers, or else they would soon die of their own ignorant torpor. Or be killed by the murderers.

So there must be a balance. It is not human nature to be good all the time, so we all do bad things as well. Perhaps I do good things to offset other things I have done, or perhaps I can simply inspire others to think outside of themselves for a little while. As the population grows and we get closer together, we are mentally shutting each other out more and more.

This needs to stop if we are to continue as a species, and doing good things or helping others gives us all hope that we aren't all doomed. Besides, treating others as you wish to be treated is simply a sign of respect.

I am not Christian, and no bibles were read in producing this message.

Answer 3

I enjoy helping people because the Holy Spirit inside me, that little piece of God (and Jesus in my heart if you wish) makes me feel good and want to do more good things as I cultivate and grow my faith. You do not expect anything back, but just know in your heart that you are doing "good" and universally, what does that hurt? When you have Jesus in your heart and you do something "good" you feel His pressence in the form of "warm fuzzies all over". Sometimes tears even come to the eyes, knowing that you are helping, and it is even better when you do it and get nothing back because you have made a small difference and maybe helped someone else to find that small bit of joy inside too from being helped. Love and Peace this Christmas!

Answer 4

I help people because God blessed me with a heart that receives joy, and great inner peace when I do so. I do things for people so that they may know the love of God that lives within me, God first loved me and this is why it is possible for me to return that love to others, I honestly do not know if I will go to heaven, so that has nothing to do with it for me, but if all God wants me to do is love all man kind and give God the glory I simply wish I could have 2 lives instead of one to do it....

Answer 5

When you benefit someone else's life in any way, even if they don't know it was you, or if they weren't grateful, you are rewarded.

It doesn't matter if you are rewarded again in heaven. Just do what's right, help when you can, and let God worry about the rewards.

Answer 6

I do good things because God has done such a wonderful thing for me. I owe God a huge debt that I can never repay but I can die trying to repay it. As a Christian, I am a Representative of Jesus Christ. When non-Christians come into contact with me they are judging God and Jesus by how I act, behave and communicate. I want to be a good wittiness for Jesus Christ by letting others see the good work he has done in me and through me.

Answer 7

From the time when I understand things I have helped people . Its just in me I feel it is our place to do what we can to help in any way we can its not for rewards , Its because we are here to help .I feel good inside to do this , and anyway its natural .I wouldnt want to be any other way

Answer 8

I think is something most of us have inside, I mean when we born we are all nice babys its the difficulties of life what makes us be not that good, so is human nature I mean Its something genetic(for the survival of the specie), it is similar as why ants help themselves so much.
You can also think, that everybodys likes that someone helps them, so if you like to be helped, help the others.
You can be egoist as well, as you said to go to heaven or just because to feel good or comfortable and haver your moral calm.

Answer 9

When I feel peace on my heart. I enjoy doing good things for others becuase it makes me feel that some one out there needed my help and I was able to make things better or easier for that person, it's the best feeling ever! It makes me smile :)

Answer 10

I had a friend who said that she had to pray hard to not sin. I thought about it and I had to work really hard just to sin. We may have had different views of what sin was, but to your question.

Nothing MAKES me do good things. I just do good things. I have to think about and work at doing bad things. Maybe it is just me, but I happen to think many, if not most, people are this way.