442 It is extremely important to realize that goodwill is closely linked to
faith in the Lord. The quality of the faith determines the quality of the
goodwill. For the point that the Lord, goodwill, and faith form a unity in
the same way our life, our will, and our intellect form a unity, and that if
we separate them, each one crumbles like a pearl that is crushed to pow-
der, see § 362 and following above. Also see the point that goodwill and
faith come together in good actions, §§ 373 – 377. From those teachings it
follows that the quality of our faith determines the quality of our good-
will; and the quality of our faith and goodwill combined determines the
quality of our actions.
Now, if we believe that everything good that we do as if we are doing
it on our own actually comes from the Lord, then we are the instrumental
cause of that good and the Lord is its principal cause. These two causes
seem to us to be one thing, but in fact the principal cause affects every
aspect of the instrumental cause. It follows then that if we believe that
everything truly good comes from the Lord, we do not take credit for
what we do. The more developed this faith becomes in us, the more the
Lord takes away our fantasies about getting credit for what we have done.
In this state we can practice goodwill abundantly without a fear of taking
credit. Eventually we sense the spiritual pleasure in goodwill. Then we
become averse to taking credit because doing so is damaging to our life.
It is easy for the Lord to erase people’s idea that they deserve credit,
provided those people attain goodwill primarily through working justly
and faithfully in the position, business, or line of work they are in and
with the people with whom they interact (see §§ 422 , 423 , 424 above).
If, however, people believe that they attain goodwill through making
charitable donations and helping the needy, it is difficult to rid them of
the idea that they deserve credit, because as they make those contribu-
tions their desire for reward and credit, although obvious to them at
first, becomes less noticeable [to them] as time goes by.
A Life of Goodwill Is a Moral Life That Is Also Spiritual443 We all learn from our parents and teachers to live a moral life, that is, to
behave like civil human beings. We learn to discharge the duties of an
honorable life, which are related to the various virtues that constitute the
essence of being honorable. We also learn to discharge these dutiful acts
through the outward forms called manners. As we advance in age, we