Summon Bonum The Highest Good

To begin with the term Summon Bonum mean the Highest Good. not the greater good but the Highest Good. God is the Highest Good. 3x Deuteronomy 6:5  And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. 6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:

When I was in college I’m sure that I was introduced to the terminology of the Summon Bonum, and when I learned it, I learned it to make an A at either Southern Universisty or LSU or Nicholls State University but it wasn’t until I learned it at the seminary where the term Summon Bonum was made applicable to the scriptures. Because in the biblical world listen God is the Highest Good, and God’s word is the Highest Good. In Deuteronomy the word Teaches us that there is One God. Elohim the Mighty Creator . Elohim is the Godhead plural Meaning God the Father God the Son and God the Holy Ghost. Elohim is the Monotheistic God with at least 3 Immutable Attributes that doesn’t change God can’t lie, God can’t die, and God can’t fail. That’s the elementary version of God’s 3 Immutable Attributes. WE all learned that since we were children right?. But here are the grown up versions of God’s Immutable Attributes. 1. God is Omnipotent meaning God is All Powerful. 2. God is Omniscient meaning God is All knowing and God is Omnipresent meaning God is everywhere at the same time. And the word of God in Deuteronomy 6 clearly state that we serve a Monotheistic God. In verse 4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:

And when we think about God and the many facets and angles and dimension and depth and height and width of God we can’t help but think and declare that God is Awesome. We try to call all wide range of things awesome but nobody and nothing and no event was awesome comparing it to God!!! And modern society always attributes itself to thinking that it is more than it ought to be on side of God.

Simply put that’s mankind’s attempt to be equal or greater than God!! The God Complex theory. Man wants to be his own god. And a lot times in the church in the community our children in our homes they have the god complex.

Here’s how you can tell if somebody in your home in your community or in your church have the god complex. You can’t tell me nothing! You are not the boss of me! I make up my own mind! I do what I want to do! That’s why the song Do what you want nah is sooo popular down here. that’s why revelry is so popular down here in south Louisiana that’s why Mardi Gras and Halloween and Easter even Christmas and other holidays are so popular because they are based around pagan holiday rituals. Christmas and Easter are very special to me but if you check history you’ll find that there are pagan holidays right around Easter and right around Christmas.

And the commercialization of all big holidays in the USA try hard to suggest to us to think carnal minded. And the Summon Bonum the Highest Good to commerical America to corporate America liberal or conservative America“is! not! God!”

We ought to Love God Deuteronomy 6:5  And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. 6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: The story line here is that we love God with out any ambiguity. There should not be the statement I love God but I don’t go to nobody church. I believe in the support the ministries but I don’t give nothing to none of them. That’s good that church folk go up to the church and get things done but I don’t go there and help them with nothing. When my co-worker make fun of God, Christian and the church I don’t say nothing and sometimes I laugh too but sees all of that >>> A true story female comedian Heather McDonald started making jokes about God, and Christians recently and while doing her assault on the Christian community and the church . She was making jokes and and the crowd was falling out laughing and then all of a sudden she fell out on the stage with a seizure and almost died!!! The doctors asked her had she ever had problems of this sort before. She said I have never had these kind of problems ever before. A newscaster asked her do you think it’s strange that while you were talking about Christians and their God that you drop with seizures… She said I can’t explain it but I won’t ever say anything about Christians again!!! not on stage not any where!

Listen to me, I Love the Lord and you aren’t going to ever be able to make me talk negative about God. Elijah said to the Israelites How long halt ye between two opinions If baal is your god serve him But If the Lord God Jehovah is your God serve Him. Brothers and sisters the world will make you think that you can serve all kinds of gods and that all roads lead to heaven.. That a lie from the pits of hell. There are other so called false gods yeah 3x Let me make it clear they are false paganistic made up gods. verse 5 says for us to Love the Lord our God. WE have to love the Lord You can’t be a Christian if you don’t love the Lord.

Then verse 6 says And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: 7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

This is another principle to consider when we talk about the Summon Bonum.6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: 7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

The word of God is saying that it’s a commandment of God that His word be in your heart. I guarantee you that if a person don’t know the word of God that person will be more trouble than anybody else because there’s no holy standard to live by. The word of God is what teaches us how to live. And then look at verse 7 again because I’m sure this is what causing the most trouble in our youth in modern society. 7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

Parents the summon Bonum in your home is when you teach your children righteous living, when you teach your children what thus said the Lord. My children were taught the word of God right along side of their school lessons. It was mandatory in this house. Listen to me as for me and my house we will serve the Lord. And after they get grown, and they don’t precisely do things as you see fit, Parents you have to give your grown children the opportunity to grow through their own experiences and not just see life through the lens of your personal past experiences. The bible says Train up a child in the way that he should go and when they get old they shall not depart from that training. After you have raised them right, you might hear them say to you “Daddy momma you raised me right I’m a good person and I don’t need fixing I’m not broken....I don’t need constant fixing because I know the Lord in the pardon of my sins too. Jesus is my Lord and Savior too. Y’all raised us right so trust God!! I said well nah the summon bonum the highest good has been achieved let them live their lives.

Then I found this scripture and the Holy Spirit said include 1 John 4:4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. This is another summon bonum moment because scripture teaches talks and tells us that the Holy Spirit that’s inside of you is greater than the unholy spirits that are in the world’s system. And just because John uses the term little children does not mean he’s talking to children no no no John is talking to all believers in his church. John is speaking to his congregation. John is trying to give his folk that he pastors the place where he’s the under shepherd. John is trying to give them the proper ammunition to be an active Christian while participating in the world’s system. The late great Dr. Isaac Gregg SU Band Director told me over 30 years ago when he found out that I was a preacher. He said preacher “No man is an island all to himself everybody is a part of the mainland so we have to live with people in this world…And still be a child of God” I never forgot that Because..Greater is he (The Holy Ghost) in you than he ( the devil) that is in the world. Dr Greggs gave me several religious book when I first started preaching and I said Doc you missed your calling you should have been a preacher… He laughed and said don’t tell nobody that.. Then I realized that at Southern University I have been taught by great men and women who were believer in Jesus Christ.

Look at I John 4:5  They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them. 6 We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.

Let’s unpack that for a moment.If they are not believers, they are going to talk let people in the world. Rarely these days do you hear celebrities testify about giving thanks to God… they say stuff like I want to thank my fans my team mates coaches managers producers “everybody else!” but God!! If you’re a child of God you ought to be able to tell that everywhere.

Last Summon Bonum nugget 1 John 4:7  Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. 8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. Out of all of the Summon Bonum teachable moments we have to have Love one for another. And love is an action word. Love will make you do right when you want to do something un holy… When you’re born again when you have been regenerated and have had a change of heart you’ll be able to have love one for another… even if some people are un lovable.