HOW Is God GOOD?!

Someone asked me recently, ‘how is God good?’ and I don’t blame them.

It’s no secret that this pandemic has ravaged our economy. It’s no secret that Christians are being crucified in Afghanistan in broad daylight in front of their families. It’s no secret that women are being sold to sick criminals like merchandise. It’s no secret that debilitating mental disorders are taking lives now more than ever…

So it’s easy to stop & wonder… HOW is God good?

Let’s stop & recall Genesis. God literally designed the perfect life for us. Adam & Eve had a perfect life in a lush garden… They didn’t even have to wear pants!

God gave us freedom from day 1 – but He also gave us free will. If God forced us to believe in Him, that wouldn’t be true freedom – also God didn’t just want robots, He wanted real people who could REALLY choose to love Him. Eve didn’t use her free will wisely and since God is just, there were consequences. The tragic consequences of their bad choice, their kids’ bad choice (Cain killing Able), and sin, spread throughout our race.

But we’re not alone, God will put an end to suffering and evil… God even became man to suffer with us. He wants us to know Him, but He also gave us that choice.

God is responsible for the fact of freedom.

Humans are responsible for their acts of freedom.

It is difficult for us to understand how human tragedy can possibly be good, and we may never fully understand it. God’s ways are higher than ours and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts (Isaiah 55:8-9), therefore we’ll never have all the answers. We do know, however, that God is not the author of sin (Habakkuk 1:13 ~ James 1:13 ~ 1 John 1:5).

Let’s take it out of the context of getting our wishes granted. It is always wonderful when our prayers are answered, however, His goodness doesn’t start and end there.

First of all, God is the ultimate judge of what is good. He was the first one to declare something as good in Genesis 1, after He called creation into being. Before we can label something good, we have to look to God. God’s definition of good isn’t something we can fully understand.

Instances in history tell us He hardens people’s hearts to do wrong (Pharaoh enslaved the Israelites/Judas helped send Jesus to the cross) – and that seems unfair. But something we just have to accept is that God is God. He does what He needs to do – and though we can’t see how, it always works for the good of His people.God did free the Israelites & all of Egypt saw God’s power through the plagues. Judas did send Jesus to the cross – but that granted us the greatest gift of all time… Eternal life!

God is abundant in that He cannot be held within the bounds of space and time. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills (Psalm 50:10). His love is infinite, and His mercy endures forever. He is and always will be more than we need.

God is perfect in that He needs nothing else to be God. He is complete in and of Himself.

Is He morally right? Of course. God literally wrote the book on morality. He put it in our hearts – even children know when they’ve done something morally wrong.

Whether we are rejoicing on the mountaintop or wallowing in the valley – He is good. And His goodness is a foundation solid enough to build your faith upon.

Just remember when the next storm comes your way (which it will), ask for His help to interpret those circumstances by His love instead of interpreting His love by those circumstances.

Click this link & read more about what we’re called to do in difficulty in "Why God Allows Suffering"