God is Good

*(This blog is actually a sequel to the previous entry so I suggest you read that one first. I mean, you could go ahead and read this one but it would make a lot more sense if you started from the beginning. If you’d like to go back then just click HERE…if not then just read on.)

As I’ve read and reread my last journal entry I have realized that I’ve barely scratched the surface of such a complex topic as the goodness of God. This is a topic that I’ve wrestled with for quite some time; in some ways I think I’ve struggled with it all my life.

Through some review of my last entry (and after receiving some feedback) I realized that in my attempt to come to terms with evil and the volatile statement, “God is good� I actually ended up with even more questions. But not to fear, I’ve always enjoyed questions more than answers.

The two biggest questions that I felt were birthed from the text were as follows:

First, if we cannot base God being good on our experiences then by what basis can we make this claim? How do we know that God truly is good in the midst of seemingly bad circumstances? If this truth is meant to anchor us, if it is the only thing we can hold to in the midst of pain and disappointment, then we must be sure of its origin and its validity.

The second burning question is probably more “philosophical� and the only conclusion I can probably reach is one based on opinion. Of course, I will try my best to support my opinion with fact but I suppose you will be the ultimate judge of whether or not I am successful. So here it goes: Is God good because of what He does, or is what He does considered good because it was God who did it? I know, I’m confused and I’m the one who wrote it! But it is the ultimate “chicken or the egg� scenario and I hope you will humor me as we go in circles for the next little while.

Who said God is good?

Well, first of all Jesus…and He is God so He should know! “No one is good — except God alone.â€? (Mark 10:18). So our first supporter of the “God is goodâ€? concept is Jesus. He not only believed strongly in the goodness of God but He went so far as to say that only God is good (an important fact to remember as I am sure it will help us as we discuss the second question). Now one might wonder by what authority Jesus makes such statements. But my friend, this is not a question I can answer for you, it is merely one that I can pose. In fact, Jesus Himself did not answer such questions regarding His authority. Instead He asked more questions, such as, “who do you say I am?â€? Each of us must answer this in our own time and in our own way. Once you have found your answer you’ll then be able to decide whether or not Jesus had the authority to make such a statement as, “God is goodâ€?.

Speaking of authority, the second basis for the goodness of God is found in scripture. Now I have the opportunity to use my Bible software to search for endless scripture references that will expound on the goodness of God (of course that is something that you can do as well and I’ll leave you to it…it’s a worthwhile endeavor). Yet all of this would be an exercise in futility if one does not accept (or believe in) the authority of scripture. So this is another decision that you must make my friend. The resources are there and given some time and a little effort any individual can come out on the other end confident that scripture is accurate and authoritative.

The third such evidence of the goodness of God can be found in His creation. If God truly did create all we know and see then one could come to no other conclusion than the fact that God is indeed good! The order, the structure, the beauty, the purpose…God’s goodness is witnessed in every raindrop, every butterfly, every sunset. Each star shines as a testimony of the goodness of God. The laughter of a child, the warmth of an embrace; even the sorrow of missing a loved one speaks of a good God that has given us good things. Now of course, one can find death and destruction in the midst of creation as well but was that part of its intended purpose? In its original form God called this creation good. At each step in the creative process God said, “it was good� and then He crowned creation with man, “and it was very good.� The origin and end result of death and destruction are topics for another time and another place, but at least for now one must concede that for the most part creation is good. That being the case, the Creator that brought it about must also be good.

The final piece in this puzzle of goodness is us. I truly believe that all of us desire or need God to be good. There is a part within us that longs for something bigger, something more powerful, something “gooder� than all of us. We want God to be good, we may not really believe it, but we want it. Do you want to know how I know that this is present within us all? Simply put: we see or experience it everyday. Whenever someone says, “that’s not fair� they are really saying that they believe in a good God and what they’ve just experienced doesn’t line up with that belief. Whenever you question the death of a loved one, whenever you shake your head in disbelief as you watch the evening news, whenever you feel cheated or ripped off you are confirming the fact that somewhere deep inside you believe that there is a good God and what you’re experiencing doesn’t line up with that belief. So reject Jesus, disbelieve scripture and close your eyes to creation, but will you not listen to the witness that is found within? Think about it…but later, let’s move on.

To save myself from rewriting the awkwardly worded second question stated above I decided that it could probably be summed up as follows:

Can goodness exist outside of God?

When we say that something or someone is good what are we really saying? I guess we’re saying the things they do are good; therefore, they are good.

How do we know that their actions are good? Obviously, each of us has different experiences and opinions so our perception of what is good must differ also. This begs the question “is there such a thing as ultimate good?� Some standard that exists outside of opinion or conjecture: objective goodness. I propose in our search we will not find something but someone.

Although opinions on goodness may differ I don’t believe it is to that great of a degree. Most cultures prefer women and children, most people are against murder and most people enjoy generosity. As we dissect the way that goodness is expressed we’ll find that these are all concepts found within the very nature of God. So when we say, “hey Tom, you’re good� or, “that was a good thing you did�, what we’re really saying is that we believe that person or action is in line with (or similar to) our perception of God’s nature. We are holding them up to this inner standard, this revelation of the nature of God. So we differentiate between good and bad by using God as a ruler or point of reference. If it’s something we think God would do we call it “good�, if it goes against our concept of God, we call it “bad�. The term “concept of God� here is very important because this is what basically allows people to do bad things “in good conscience�. Their concept of God has been warped or damaged and they truly believe that their actions line up with God’s nature. Whether it is murder, theft or lying, they have deceived themselves in order to satisfy their own selfish desires.

So this being the case, when we say that God is good what we’re really saying is that God’s actions are lining up with His nature…a somewhat redundant statement. Since there is no standard outside of Himself by which we can compare Him what we really should be saying is, “God is goodness.� In a sense, God doesn’t really have characteristics because He embodies them. We can not really “describe� who He is because He is who He is (or perhaps I should phrase that “I am who I am�). God isn’t merciful, He is mercy. God isn’t just, He is justice. God isn’t faithful, He is faithfulness. And of course, as scripture tells us, God isn’t loving, He is love (as clearly stated in 1 John 4:16).

The nice part about this whole situation is that God cannot go against His nature; no easier than you can go against yours. You can’t fly of your own volition or breathe underwater because you are human; He can’t lie because He is truth.

All this being said I think we can conclude that if He is goodness then all He does is good (or some may wish to say “good is all He does�). So we can rest assured that in the midst of any circumstance, if we know it is from God, then it must be good. And beloved, what is permitted to happen that is not ultimately from God? Yet perhaps this is a topic for future discussion (if you want to get a jump start on that one read the book of Job).

I wish to leave you with a verse that I feel is even more powerful in light of this revelation:

“If we are faithless,
He will remain faithful,
for He cannot disown Himself�
(2 Timothy 2:13)