A.W. Tozer says, God’s goodness is not the same as His holiness or righteousness. Because of His goodness, He is kind, cordial, benevolent, tenderhearted, quick to sympathize, and full of good will toward men. God’s goodness is a foundation stone for all sound thought about God. The cause of His goodness is in Himself. Divine goodness, as one of God’s attributes, is self-caused, infinite, perfect, and eternal. Since God is immutable (never changes) He never varies in the intensity of His loving-kindness. He has never been kinder than He now is, nor will He ever be less kind. Your life will be changed if your view of the God of Heaven includes the understanding that the unmerited, spontaneous goodness of God is underneath all His acts.
That God is good is taught or implied on every page of the bible. I Chron 16:34 – O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His mercy and loving -kindness endure forever. God’s name is good; what God does is good; He satisfies your desires with good things; His will is good, perfect, and pleasing; He gives good gifts; and no one is good except God alone.
Gen 1:31 – “God saw all that He had made, and it was not just good but very good.” Eph 2:10 – “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” His purpose for us is to honor Him as a good God and to do good works.
Life is not neutral and God is not neutral. There is good and evil. God is one or the other, not good sometimes and not evil ever. He gives us daily blessings because of His goodness. The recipients of His goodness don’t deserve His goodness and we can’t pay Him back for His goodness.
The gospel means Good News. Luke 2:10-11 – The angel said to the shepherds, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord.”
John 10:14 - Jesus said I am the Good Shepherd. I know my sheep and my sheep know me. If you have seen Jesus, you have seen the Father. One reason Christ walked with men on earth was to show them what God is like and make known the true nature of God.
What things get in the way of you seeing God as He truly is? One thing is our expectations. We have expectations regarding how we believe a good God acts. Do you anticipate significant good things to happen from God, maybe mild or mediocre things to happen from God, or maybe no action from God. Where are you on that scale?
Sometimes we dictate to God how He should perform in a given situation. There is no flexibility to allow God to do it His way in our expectations. God does not have to perform out of our expectations of Him. He performs out of who He is. And He is good. He will do what is best for you and those around you and what will bring Him glory. Rom 8:28 – And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. Working out things for my good may mean I come out stronger, more mature, and better prepared to take the next step.
Can you dare to believe that all His ways are good? Trust that He is good and will lead you in the path He has prepared for you. God’s purpose in a hardship is plainly stated in Rom 8:29, God’s good work in you is to conform us into the likeness of His Son. He cares about that more than anything else on our prayer list. We can worship Him because He has a good purpose for us and He promises to be with us in it and work it for our good.
God does not ask you to say the situation is good; but you know you have a right view of God when you can say He is good regardless of the circumstance. Thank God for His goodness every day and you will see His goodness in every area of your life. God’s goodness should be the basis of our expectation of Him. Expect to see God’s goodness.
