GRATITUDE TO OUR GOD WHO IS GOOD

November 12, 2023

Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His loving devotion endures forever.

Psalm 118:1 (BSB)

“Why do you call Me good?” Jesus replied. “No one is good except God alone.

Luke 18:19 (BSB)

These days, we have watered down the word good. Chocolate is good. Sunshine is good. The pastor is good. My best friend is good. All those things do reflect some aspect of goodness. However, God is the embodiment of every aspect of good: He is consistently and continually well-pleasing, fruitful, morally correct, proper, useful, pleasant, kind, benevolent, abundant, plentiful. God will never fail to be good. The only human that could make the claim of being good was Jesus Christ who knew no sin. In the verse above, He says “No one is good except God alone,” however, He never said, “I am not good.” In fact, in John 10:30, we read that Jesus asserted, “I and the Father are one.” No other human being has the right to say he/she is ALWAYS good. Because of His goodness, God’s loving devotion or loving-kindness as the King James Version renders it is everlasting. God does not and cannot cease to love His children.

Many times, people question God’s goodness and His loving-kindness. “How can a good and loving God let ___________ happen?” You can fill in the blank with the questions you have heard or perhaps even asked. As His created beings, we are incapable of understanding everything He is accomplishing in, through, and for us. However, we can trust His nature and His faithfulness and cling to His promise “that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose” Romans 8:28. We need to remember that the good He is working is that we become more and more like Jesus, “For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers” Romans 8:29. This is why we can thank God for His goodness, kindness, and love even when we do not understand our present circumstances.

We hope you are at a place in your life where it is easy to see the goodness and kindness of our Lord. However, even if you are struggling with the questions that arise during difficult days and have even questioned God’s goodness, know that God understands and will never abandon you:

 As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He is mindful that we are dust. Father, we are thankful You are consistently, constantly good, loving, and kind.

Psalm 103:13-14 (BSB)

Worship with CeCe Winans singing “Goodness of God”: