And, behold, there was a man named Joseph, a counsellor; and he was a good man, and a just: (The same had not consented to the counsel and deed of them;) he was of Arimathaea, a city of the Jews: who also himself waited for the kingdom of God. When Barnabas came, and had seen the grace of God, was glad, and exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. For he was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith: and much people was added unto the Lord. That thou mayest walk in the way of good men, and keep the paths of the righteous.
The good man’s heart is established on the living God - the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. The good man knows that there is absolutely no goodness in his heart at all, and that his only Goodness is found in Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh. The good man in the Bible is unconditionally surrendered to God and His will; he is out-and-out for Jesus Christ. He denies himself, he follows after Jesus in His private and public conduct, he is completely given over and abandoned to God and His will. According to the Scriptures, a good man has no will of his own except the will of God; he makes God’s will first in his life. A good man wants to be all God wants him to be; that kind of man is on safe ground. A good man makes much of Jesus, and not himself.
A good man fears his Maker; he cares about what God sees, hears, and feels. A good man always checks things with the Bible. The good man’s heart is fixed on the Atoning Blood of Jesus Christ. Thy will be done in earth. The earth being the good’s man body, the earthen vessel where Jesus Christ The Treasure resides (II Corinthians 4:7). Give God the proper place in your thinking and doing. A good man wants the will of God to be done in his heart and body. A good man is always asking for faith from God, that is trustfulness, obedience and loyalty to Jesus. A good man does not seek superiority over others, and he does not envy other's superiority. A good man maintains a quiet submissiveness to God and exercises restraint to his vile propensities, impure inclinations, and natural impulses.
Go with God, follow Jesus Christ, yield to the Holy Spirit. Turn your dreams and ambitions over to the Lord Jesus. A good man loves souls and hates his sins. A good man wants what God wants. All the unhappiness in this world comes because a man wants something in his life that God doesn’t want there. A good man is content with what God lets happen in his life. A good citizen is all out for his country. A good wife is all out for her husband. A good husband is wholly devoted to his wife. A good man has no purpose for his life but the purpose of God and His Son. A good man is courteous, maintains self-control, controls impure urges and carnal impulses, and chooses right responses to offenses and circumstances. He checks his desires and curbs his emotions.
Give God the right place in your affection and life. Adore the Lord Jesus Christ; abhor your sins. Put the reins of your life into God’s hands. Let God have His way in your life in the little things and big things. Have compassion toward others, help the helpless, keep thyself pure for Jesus' sake. Hitch all your ambitions to God’s will. Think and act aright; behave and conduct yourself uprightly, wisely and purely; watch against sin and every false way. A good man takes notice of evil thoughts that lead to folly, and he refuses them and looks to Christ for strength and good thoughts. A good man is slow to anger, not easily provoked, and refrains from retaliation and resentment towards those that offend him.
The good man always thinks he is much more sinful than others around him. The good man strives to do right, love mercy, and walk humbly with God. The good man’s heart is established and determined to glorify Jesus Christ in his body. The good man doesn’t change every time the wind changes, he is true to God. God is supreme in a good man’s heart and life. Get your heart fixed on Jesus Christ and let His way be first, supreme, and dominant in your affections. Let your eye be single, sincerely desire for God's will to be done. The good man's trust is fixed on Christ’s Righteousness, not any of his own self-righteousness. Be so afraid of neglecting Jesus and leaving Him out. Give Jesus the first place and everything else will get fixed up.
Kooky religious people are more concerned about a technical interpretation of scripture that is not essential to salvation or sanctification, than they are about souls staying out of hell. Many people worship their technical theological positions more than God and Jesus Christ. They think they are mighty good folks by keeping all their convictions and forms. They get so tied up with religious technicalities that they miss Jesus Christ, the sinner's only hope. Many deluded self-righteous people underscore their denominational ways and put emphasis on their convictions. These people are called religious externalists. Convictions swell the religious ego in folks today and take them away from God; they cannot practically reach normal people out in the world today, because they are so religiously kooky.
Watch out for religious machines ran by religious bosses. Don’t wind up in hell emphasizing your external religion or making your church or ordinance a means to the end. Many people love to strut their Church-ianity, and they wind up strutting right off into hell. Never underscore temporal religious activity and foolishly forget the merits and power found in the eternal Blood of Jesus Christ. That’s a good man in a Bible sense.
