God is Good

And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone." - Mark 10:18 (ESV)

Referenced Scriptures: Mark 10:18, Romans 8:1 

 

In this portion of scripture in the narrative of Jesus and the Rich Young Ruler we see where Jesus is called "good" by the Rich Young Ruler. Jesus in all his his humility corrects and redirects all glory and goodness to God the Father. There are many powerful lessons we could obtain from this exchange. One that really stands out is the goodness of God and that God is so good that even Jesus knew that while he was here on the earth among mankind he knew that God and God alone was only entity that could truly be good. The word "good" here that Jesus used is "agathos" which can be translated using words such as; pleasant, agreeable, joyful, happy, excellent, distinguished, upright and honorable. When we see it in these terms then yes, truly, Jesus was speaking the truth no one on this earth can honestly measure up to these standards. The only Man that ever came close (Jesus) quickly deferred this notion back to God the Father. 

Lately the goodness of God has been at the forefront of my devotional time and He has been faithful to reveal some things about it. I believe that most true Believers (Followers of Christ) do in fact strive to please God; however, in the process our motives and actions can become clouded and/or non-existent. Recently, I missed a couple of days of my one-on-one time with the Lord and the enemy seized this opportunity to come in with some heavy condemnation. I praise God that this attempted attack was so obvious that I was able to quickly discern what he (the enemy) was attempting to do. As I went before God in prayer I quickly repented for putting other things above God and I internally realigned my priorities. During this time God spoke and what He said was so comforting and I believe He is telling you the same thing today, He said, "My mercy, grace, love & goodness is not dependent on you; remember, it's not about you?" 

This is something that I can say I think we've all known or have had God reveal it to us at one time or another in our walks, but when God takes a truth like this and brings a fresh and new revelation it's truly an awesome thing. This revelation was followed by such a peace and joy that I was overwhelmed by Him all over again. I found myself just thanking God over and over that His goodness is not measured by my actions or lack thereof. Regardless of what I do or do not do; God is still God and He is still good. Can you imagine if this were not the case? We'd all be eternally doomed.

You see the enemy would love us to believe that when we do mess up God's grace, mercy and goodness certainly could not rescue us and we end up being covered in a blanket of condemnation (see Romans 8:1). This is a very real tactical weapon for the enemy to use against God's people, and if we're not careful we can quickly begin to believe it; but we have to expose this LIE of the enemy. This is not at all how God operates. Our short-comings and failures are exactly what God's grace, mercy and goodness are meant for. Now, this is not a "get out of jail free" card or a free pass to sin it up; God knows our hearts and He will rightly judge those that abuse his Grace. But for those that are honestly attempting to live their lives in line with God's word to the best of their ability; His grace, mercy & goodness is more than sufficient.

As I drove into work the below track randomly came across my iPhone, so don't tell me that God doesn't confirm His Word anyway He chooses to?

Take care and God Bless,

-E