“Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you and worked for those who take refuge in you, in the sight of the children of mankind!” Psalm 31:19
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.” James 1:17
During the last few years, a recurring topic with my Bible Study Girls revolves around sharing the gospel with our kids and grandkids. More so with our grandkids because all of our children grew up in the church although many didn’t become believers in their adulthood. We fear overstepping boundaries or damaging relationships.
Recently one of my friends shared a discussion about God with her adult granddaughter. The younger woman stated, “How can I believe in a God that allows so much evil?” At the time, my friend was unsure of how to respond to this question – one which many of us may have also been asked.
Origins of Good vs. Evil
Now, we can go down a deep C.S. Lewis-type philosophical hole (which if you want to, then read his Mere Christianity) but in this blog I’ll be short and sweet. God is good. He is the essence of good. He created good and all things He created are good. He did not create evil. Evil is the absence of good. Lewis tells us that you can have good without evil, but you cannot have evil without good. Why? Because without good you wouldn’t actually know that evil is well, evil. It just is. Evil is not something God created; it is the absence of good—much like darkness is the absence of light. Where God’s goodness is rejected, brokenness naturally follows.
I like to ask people this question in return: “If everyone believed in the Christian God and followed His precepts then how would the world look different?” Of course, to be a complete answer they would need to know the truth of God’s Word.
Unfortunately, biblical knowledge is no longer what it once was in the wider culture. Most would be shocked to know that basic, accepted ethics and morals came from the Bible, not as “just basic common sense.” Because we all can look around and see there’s not much of that going around anyways!
But back to God’s goodness. When God created the garden and all that was in it, everything was “good.” He also gave Adam and Eve free will to submit to God or not. And we know how that went. God did not create the sin. We humans created sin by turning away from God.
God is perfectly good. During tragic times that fact may be hard to accept. God weeps over his creation when evil enters our hearts and minds, causing death and destruction. When we truly believe, however, in God’s goodness we can see either in the moment or have expectation for the future that everything does work out for the good of those who believe (Romans 8:28).
See Him In Hard Seasons
This truth became deeply personal for me during one of the hardest seasons of my life.Four years ago, when my mother-in-law was dying from cancer, I struggled with anger toward God. But when I remembered that God is good, my perspective changed. God was calling her home to eternal rest. My grief was real, but trusting in His goodness helped me surrender my selfish desires to His loving plan. Our Good God wanted to bring her home and rest in His arms for eternity.
“Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!” 1 Chronicles 16:34
In this reverence series every characteristic of God is a good one. Even when God is wrathful as we read so often in the Old Testament, it comes after years of patience and warning. But most of all it is rooted in the desire to bring His children back on to a good and perfect path. His love for us is truly good.
Friends, really believing that God is good and has good plans for you, and I mean really believing that, changes our outlook on life. It brings new perspectives to bad situations. It carries us through some of the most difficult times of our lives. It leads us to seek out God rather than turn our backs to Him. It causes us to see the blessings in the midst of the hardships. Some might call that being a “positive person.” As a Christian we call that being a believer.
Christians, Join To Sing by Christian Bateman (1843)
Come, lift your hearts on high;
Alleluia, Amen!
Let praises fill the sky;
Alleluia, Amen!
He is our Guide and Friend;
To us he’ll condescend;
His love shall never end;
Alleluia, Amen!
Praise yet the Lord again;
Alleluia, Amen!
Life shall not end the strain;
Alleluia, Amen!
On Heaven’s blissful shore
His goodness we’ll adore,
Singing forever more,
Alleluia, Amen!
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