Jon Goodwin

Fruit>Power – Jesus said it.

Jesus did not desire to overturn Roman rule.  He desired to overthrow the throne of your heart.  The overthrow of the throne of your heart would then lead to a radical transformation of your life.  His Kingship, though internal, would manifest itself outwardly.  The fruit of this would then be seen, heard, and felt.  Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control would all be present.  At the same time outbursts of anger and an argumentative spirit would be among things that would no longer be present because the fruit that was produced would eventually choke out these poisons.  

In world where it still appears as though Rome is ruling, does it appear to those who are watching you that Jesus is ruling you?  

There were attempts made to take Jesus and make Him king.  Whenever His followers pursued influence over holiness Jesus always countered with correction.  Domination and power over are never the goals of the kingdom of God.  It is power under.  As we live a life under the influence of our King and we allow His influence to permeate every facet of life and flow forth in such a way that the aforementioned fruit becomes available and accessible to all who come in contact with us.  

If you spend all your time guarding your garden, your vegetables will eventually get choked out by weeds. True, birds, rabbits and rodents might never eat your fruit but guess what?  If you spend all your time tending your garden, weeding it, watering it, pruning it, you will also not have the birds, rabbits, and rodents eating your crop?  Why?  Because you are also present.  Yet at the same time, you will produce way more fruit.  Simply put, if your whole life is spent watching for evils to fight versus cultivating the good around you that you can control, your fruit production will always suffer.  At the same time those around you will suffer because God in His providence has called you to produce His fruit and give it away to those He has put in your path.  

Jon Goodwin

Love God, Love Others…Love Other Stuff

Discernment is a word that has created some confusion in my life.  Not because I don’t know what it means but rather because of its absence.  I have known many who I would view as wise discerning people that lose all semblance of that definition when it comes to politics.  If I might be frank, I would also add that I have lost a ton of respect for people that I once viewed as discerning in the last few years.  

What is the reason for this?  My belief won’t sit well with many but as a pastor and someone who has spent my entire life in and around Christian organizations and Christian people it is my belief that a large portion of Christendom does not have a biblical world view.  Before you get mad at me, please understand that I am not alone in that perspective.  In fact, the Barna Group conducted research and concluded that only 17% of practicing Christians have a biblical worldview.  Many have a world view that is by in large shaped by opinions that they have sprinkled a little Bible on top.  It is my belief that for many their discipleship and formation has been crafted not by the Word of God but by partisan party politics and by their cable news channel of choice. It is my belief that many do not find their identity in Christ as much as they find their identity in a man-made system.  

The idea that we are aliens and strangers and that this world is not our home seems have gotten lost in 2025 American Christianity and the reason for this is because many would define themselves as American Christians rather than simply Christian or Christ follower.  Many of these folks loudly speak of loving God and country when the Word of God clearly speaks not of loving God and country but rather of loving God and neighbor.  These are two wildly different things.  And wildly different because my neighbors and I have a much different view of what our country is supposed to look like.  

If Jesus was serious of what He spoke of in Matthew 22 then loving God is to be our primary objective, loving our neighbor is a close second, and everything else is pretty far down the list.  As a person who claims to be a Christ follower, when my politics grant me permission to mistreat those I disagree with, this is a red flag that my allegiance to country has surpassed my allegiance to my Savior.  When this happens, I have violated the commandment, “You shall have no other God’s before me.”

When loving country outweighs loving neighbor, this is where you find republicans sitting in the diner verbally trashing the democrats or the democrats in the coffee shop verbally trashing the republicans.  When loving country outweighs loving neighbor, talking points become signs placed in front yards and neighbors with different perspectives become enemies.  Why is that?  Because when idols are attacked, idolators must defend them.  

On the flip side, when love of neighbor takes precedence over love of country, and a country abuses its citizens, this is when we are to rise up.  The Bible is littered with references about caring for those who are most vulnerable amongst us. 

I 100% recognize that what I am writing here is controversial in many circles and none more so than the circle I live in.  Over the past few years, I have had people that I thought were in my circle turn on me because they disagreed with something I said about politics or simply had a different perspective than they.  They allowed views of country to ruin a friendship.  In several of those cases, I was stunned.  

I have long been concerned that those who claim Christian as their banner have been way more vocal about what they were against than what they were for.  This should never be.  Our hearts must be positioned towards people.  When this idea holds a proper place in our hearts it is here that we find common ground.  It is here that people feel loved, valued, and safe.  You and I should not have to agree on much for us to be able to treat one another with dignity and kindness.  After all, it is at the core of our belief system…or is it?

That being said, I love America.  I am thankful to be an American.  Despite her flaws, I still believe she is a great nation, and I am blessed to be here.  My goal, make America a little better everyday by serving and loving my fellow man in the name of Jesus.  My God didn’t call me to change the world, but I do believe when I live out His Word, He can change someone’s else world.  So, I will keep living, loving, and serving.