The Goodness of God

Big Idea: God is the source and standard of all goodness, overcoming all that is wrong and offering his goodness to us through Christ.

There are some songs that are so simple, and yet so profound, that it would take a lifetime to unpack them. I'm going to sing one right now, hoping that you'll join in: God is so good; God is so good; God is so good; He's so good to me. I counted, and there are seven different words in this chorus, none of them over a syllable. It's hardly a difficult song to understand, and yet, have you thought about what it means?

Psalm 119:68 says, "You are good, and what you do is good; teach me your decrees." Over and over in the Bible you read about the goodness of God. You might never have thought about the goodness of God, so I'm going to do it for you. Let's discuss five important truths about the goodness of God.

Important truth number one is this:

God Sets the Standard of Goodness

Does anyone enjoy good food? I thought so! Who here thinks fried chicken is good food? What about filet mignon? Sushi? Haggis? That's the problem in describing "goodness." Who decides what's good and what isn't good? Good according to whom?

Jesus addressed this issue one day with a young, successful man:

And a ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. (Luke 18:18-19)

Jesus knew that the man needed a quick theology lesson. He didn't recognize who he was talking to, and Jesus revealed to him—and to us—that only God is truly good.

Jesus could very well have said, "I'm either no good or I'm God, because only God is good." In other words, everything that is good finds its source in God. God is the ultimate standard of goodness. Who decides what is good? God does. God is the one against whom all things are measured; he's the ultimate standard of goodness.

I'll put it simply: God is good. Who says so? God does. What makes God the final arbiter of goodness? God does. Because there's no higher standard of goodness than God, we can measure all things against him. That's one of the problems with human beings. We think we're pretty good, but who do we measure ourselves against?

We rationalize that we're pretty good people, as opposed to those who kill people. But that's the problem: God doesn't measure us up against Hitler or Paul Bernardo. He measures us up against himself, and we all fail the test. Romans 3:23 says, "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Nobody measures up to the standard. I might be good some of the time, but let me tell you: there are lots of times when I'm not so good. My goodness might look impressive to another person, but my goodness doesn't impress God very much.

Isaiah 64:6 says:

We have all become like one who is unclean,
and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment.
We all fade like a leaf,
and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.

I'll say it again: God is the ultimate standard of goodness. That's truth number one.

Truth number two is this:

Everything That God Is and Does Is Good

Even the most patient person can lose their patience. Even the kindest person occasionally loses his temper. That's because we all have dark sides – we're not consistent. God is unlike anyone else. Everything that God is, and everything that God does, is good.

James 1:17 says, "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." God never changes.

With him, there is no "shadow of turning." There's no evil in God – never even a hint of darkness in him. God is not only good, he's consistently good. God doesn't know how to be anything but good.

God is so unlike us. God can't be improved upon. There are no defects in his personality. He doesn't need to improve his character or smooth out his flaws. God is perfect in every detail – impeccably perfect. We could spend weeks discussing God's goodness—his love, patience, mercy, and grace. Everything about God – everything he is and everything he does – is good and perfect. That's truth number two.

The third truth is equally important:

Everything That Is Good Comes From God

I'll read James 1:17 one more time: "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows."

I want you to think of something good for a minute. It could be anything: the most beautiful sunset you have ever witnessed, the most fragrant smell, the best-tasting food. Think about the richest color you've seen, or the most pleasurable experience you can think of. James 1:17 tells us that God is the source of all good in the world. Everything good that you can think of comes directly from God. If something isn't good, it didn't come from God.

The problem is, we attribute a lot of good things to Satan when they are properly attributable to God. There's no such thing as a decadent chocolate cookie, or something that's sinfully delicious. That's giving Satan credit for something that is good. God is the author of our taste buds, and the richness of the foods that we can enjoy. Satan didn't invent good things – God did!

For too long, we've let people think that Satan created the world of sexuality. But listen: Satan didn't design us as sexual beings; God did. Every good thing you can think of comes directly from the hand of God. He is the author – he is the one worthy of praise. What's more, God's intention is for us to enjoy what he has created.

Listen carefully to 1 Timothy 4:1-5:

Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer. 

Do you understand what Paul is saying? It's a sin not to enjoy the goodness of God! Everything God has created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving. One author says: "Where does it say that sinners get to have the most fun? Many of us were taught that becoming a Christian means leading a boring life while sinners enjoy all the fun things. That is a doctrine from hell. It’s a sinister belief that equates being a Christian with leading a monotonous, aimless life devoid of excitement or fulfillment. As Tony Evans puts it, God is telling us, "Everything that I created is good and meant to be enjoyed by those who know the truth."

As Christians, we ought to enjoy nature more than unbelievers. We should strive for more meaningful and profound relationships. When we sit down to eat a meal, we should enjoy it more than those who don’t know God. We should value flowers and sunsets more. We should enjoy creation more than anyone else because we know the Creator. It’s a flat-out lie that Christians can't enjoy things, because every good thing comes directly from God!

God provides wonderful things for even the unbeliever to enjoy. Matthew 5:45 says, "He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." You don’t have to be a Christian to get rained on. God has ordained that some of his benefits get shared with atheists as well as his own children. But certain aspects of God’s goodness can only be appreciated by believers.

No good thing does he withhold
from those who walk uprightly.
(Psalm 84:11)

He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things (Romans 8:32)

If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! (Matthew 7:11)

That’s God’s inclination—to give good gifts to his children. As a Christian, you can enjoy God’s goodness in ways not even imagined by the unregenerate. That's the third truth about God's goodness – every good thing comes from God.

There's a fourth truth I'd like to communicate:

God's Goodness Transcends the Negative

God is so good that his goodness transcends all that is negative. You don't have to be a genius to realize that there are a lot of negatives in the world. We could all list things that are wrong with our lives and the world. We might ask, "If God is so good, why is there so much that is bad in the world?"

That's a tough question, but ask yourself: Who brought the bad into the world? It certainly wasn't God. Imagine if you had your house all clean, and then had people come in and mess it all up. It's still a good house, but it's a mess because of the guests who have invaded it. That's what this world is like. It was completely good when it came from God's hand, but it's been contaminated by sin – our sin. And that sin has introduced many bad things into the world.

The real miracle is that God's goodness transcends all the bad in the world. That well-known verse, Romans 8:28, says: "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." God's goodness means that even when bad things happen, he transforms them for his glory and our benefit.

The real miracle is that God is able to take the bad things that happen to us and bring eternal good out of them. Paul continues in Romans 8 by stating:

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38–39)

Paul says that when tribulation, distress, persecution, or famine, nakedness, peril, and sword come along, we're still overwhelming conquerors. Even when bad things happen to us, we still triumph because of God's goodness. If God can make everything in our lives work for our good, then everything that happens to us is ultimately good. For believers, there are no true tragedies, as everything ultimately benefits us in the long run.

If you are a believer in Christ, the great news is that God's goodness transcends anything negative that might be in your life. When we understand God's goodness, we don't focus on the negatives in our lives. We're so filled with gratitude for God's goodness that we forget what we lack. One day a Puritan sat down to a meal of bread and water. Most of us would grumble, "God, what is this? I've only got bread and water." But this Puritan looked down and said, "Bread and water and Jesus Christ too! What more can a man ask?"

The final truth about God's goodness:

God's Goodness Can Be Your Goodness

You are facing a challenge related to goodness. God is good and you're not. It's what we call sin, and the only known cure is forgiveness through Jesus Christ. Romans 3:24, the next verse after the one that says that we all fall short of the glory of God, says this:

Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. (Romans 3:24-25 NLT)

We are made right with God when we believe that Jesus shed his blood, sacrificing his life for us.

God has solved our goodness problem, by transferring Christ's goodness to our account. If you believe in Jesus Christ and come to him in faith, your problem is solved! 1 Peter 3:21 says: "Baptism is not a removal of dirt from your body; it is an appeal to God from [or rather for] a good conscience."

During my marriage, I expressed my love for Christ in various ways during the wedding ceremony. The giving and receiving of rings. The taking of vows. My wedding was an acting out of the inner reality of my love for Charlene. 1 Peter 3:21 tells us that baptism is an acting out of something that is happening internally. It is, if you will, an acted prayer – a prayer that is acted out physically and visually. And what is this prayer an appeal for? It is a prayer for a good conscience.

This morning, if you decide to follow Jesus Christ and show your commitment through baptism, you can receive all of Christ's goodness. "We are made right with God when we believe that Jesus shed his blood, sacrificing his life for us."

God is good. Psalm 34:8 says, "Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him." It's not enough to believe that God is good. I invite you to begin tasting God's goodness. Experience it for yourself. God is saying, "Try my goodness – I know you'll like it." As we grow in Christ, we increasingly learn how good and kind he is. We experience it for ourselves. Psalm 37:4 says, "Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart."

This morning I invite you to delight yourself in God and his goodness to us.