God Is Good... All the Time

2 min read

Good news or bad news?

I have good news and bad news
I’ll give you the good news first
God is good
All the time

Ok, now here’s the bad news
God is good
All the time

It is good news because
He is Holy
Blameless
Flawless
Not at all like me (thank God)

It is bad news because
He is Holy and hates evil
I perform evil acts daily
I am a sinner, a lawbreaker

It is good news because
He is Just
Impartial
Fair
(I love justice)

It is bad news because 
He is Just
He cannot wink His eye at sin
How can He both issue justice
And legally reconcile me to Himself?
I am a sinner, a lawbreaker 

It is good news because
He is Righteous
And has promised eternal life
To the righteous

It is bad news because
I am not righteous, I fall short
I am a sinner, a lawbreaker 

It is good news because
He is Loving
Who doesn’t love love?

It is bad news because
He is Loving
Would God be loving
If he overlooked
The evil in our world?
Even if you and I were the ones committing it?
I am a sinner, a lawbreaker

It is good news because
He has provided a way, The Way
For reconciliation and salvation

It is bad news because 
I often rely on my own “good works”
For reconciliation and salvation
I am a sinner, a lawbreaker

It is good news because
The choice is up to me
He will not force my hand

It is bad news because
The choice is up to me
How often do I make horrible decisions?
I am a sinner, a lawbreaker

It is good news because
God defines what is good
Jesus says that no one is good except the Father

It is bad news because
God defines what is good, and I do not
What is right in my own eyes is not the standard
I am a sinner, a lawbreaker

So yes. While it is, indeed, true that, “God is good, all the time,”
The more time I spend with Him, the more I realize that
I am good… none of the time.
And that realization hurts.

He will always be good. He is goodness itself.
And He will always work things together for the good of those who love Him.
But do we love him?
The real Him?
Or the version of Him
That we have fashioned
And formed to fit into our small, finite minds?

I am a sinner, a lawbreaker
For some reason God finds pleasure in renewing me.
God is good, all the time
He has offered us a free gift.
Acceptance of that gift by grace through faith
Will make His goodness the best news we’ve ever heard.
Conversely, rejecting that gift will make it the worst.

God is Good
All the Time
Good news or bad news?

-

“Teach me to do Your will, For You are my God; Your Spirit is good. Lead me in the land of uprightness.”

Psalm 143:10