Song of the Day
“Goodness of God” by Bethel Music
Scripture to reflect upon
- Lam 3:22-23 (ESV),
- Ps 103:8,
- Ps 145:8-9,
- Ps 23:6,
- Ps 34:8,
- Ps 119:68,
Devotional thought
The problem with mankind is that all of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We are all tainted with the depravity that our ancestor Adam passed down to us. Our inclination to sin and bent toward evil is our nature. There is no good within us. Here is a good explanation from Romans on the condition of humankind:
What then? Are we better off? Certainly not, for we have already charged that Jews and Greeks alike are all under sin, just as it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one, there is no one who understands, there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, together they have become worthless; there is no one who shows kindness, not even one.” “Their throats are open graves, they deceive with their tongues, the poison of asps is under their lips.” “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.” “Their feet are swift to shed blood, ruin and misery are in their paths, and the way of peace they have not known.” “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
Romans 3:9-18
This is completely contrary to the nature of God! God doesn’t know what it means to operate out of anything other than goodness! The very core of His being is good. There is no shadow of darkness in Him at all! That is what makes Him so holy (set apart), completely other than humanity!
His actions are rooted in goodness all the time. Our God’s motives are always pure and good. Why would we ever question Him then? What is it in us that compels us to challenge His goodness whenever trials come our way? O’ Lord, forgive us!
The Psalmist says that God’s goodness follows us all our days (see Ps 23:6). His goodness pursues us all the days of our life! What a picture of our Lord, the same God that leaves the ninety-nine to find the one that went astray. His compassion compels Him, His love drives Him, and His goodness rescues us from our evil ways.
The great news is that this goodness of God is the very thing that drives out the wicked ways in us! His goodness gets imputed into our spirit when we receive Him as our Savior. He changes our nature! The nature of humanity that I began this post with doesn’t have to define us! We can become, and have become if we know Jesus as Lord, new creations in Christ, who came to show us the goodness and love of the Father! Hallelujah.
Prayer
Good and gracious God, I praise You for Your pure nature that is altogether good! Thank You for being good and loving towards me, God. Please forgive me when I doubt Your goodness. In Jesus’ name. Amen
