JANUARY 6, 2019 IS GOD GOOD ALL THE TIME ? part two
Romans 8:28 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”
Matthew 5:45b “for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”
In the previous blog we talked about the fact that God is always good even in the most trying times and the fact that He comforts us in such times. Today, we will dig a little deeper into this subject in hopes of gaining a greater understanding about the eternal goodness of God. First, as a foundation, we must know that the very essence and the very nature of God is that He is good. Many ask how can one believe that God is good when He allows bad things to happen-perhaps we have asked the same question. If you remember, in the last blog we talked about the fact that because we live in a fallen world, we are confronted with trials and tribulations, but we have the power to overcome the trials. There are different aspects of God’s goodness. In one sense, every human being experiences the goodness of God; all are blessed by the rain, the design of nature, the beat of the heart, the immune system of the human body, the growth of crops for food, and etc. It is clear that God desires to bless all of His creation, including mankind. We must be careful in how we define the goodness of God; what may look ‘bad’ to us may actually be a good thing in that it serves a greater purpose in deepening our knowledge of God. God is about transforming us and that process means some growing pain; the trials of life are a part of the process. Believers who are walking according to the ways of God as well as those believers who are not walking according to His ways will face trials-but there is a difference. For the believer who is living outside of God’s will, God allows difficulties to come as a means of drawing him or her back to Him. For the believe who is walking according to the ways of God, God uses difficult situations as a means of deepening our understanding of Him and a way of proving Himself strong on our behalf; also, when this believer endures a trial, God uses his response to the trial as a means of revealing Himself to all who observe the believer’s response and reaction to the trial. The big picture is that God is using the difficulties we face in this fallen world as a way of revealing Himself and demonstrating that in Him, we too can overcome the world, just as Jesus did. Part of the reason for trials is that trials test us; trials have a way of clarifying where our faith and trust lie. We do not live in a perfect world, and we live in a world that is hostile to God, so we should not be surprised or dismayed when we face difficulties-knowing that God is using the circumstances of this life to transform us and to demonstrate that He is sufficient. God does not expect us to be flippant or to be ‘happy’ when trials come our way, but He does want us to trust Him in the trials, to be confident of His goodness, and to know that He will use the trial for good. We certainly do not always understand how God is using for good what appears to be bad, but let us know deep within and let us confess with our mouth that God is always good. If we have any doubts about the goodness of God, let us ask God to give us a lasting awareness of His goodness in all circumstances.
2 Corinthians 4:17 “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison,”
1 Peter 4:1 “Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live the rest of time in the flesh no longer for the lust of men, but for the will of God.”
Blessings,
Buddy
Romans 8:28 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”
Matthew 5:45b “for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”
In the previous blog we talked about the fact that God is always good even in the most trying times and the fact that He comforts us in such times. Today, we will dig a little deeper into this subject in hopes of gaining a greater understanding about the eternal goodness of God. First, as a foundation, we must know that the very essence and the very nature of God is that He is good. Many ask how can one believe that God is good when He allows bad things to happen-perhaps we have asked the same question. If you remember, in the last blog we talked about the fact that because we live in a fallen world, we are confronted with trials and tribulations, but we have the power to overcome the trials. There are different aspects of God’s goodness. In one sense, every human being experiences the goodness of God; all are blessed by the rain, the design of nature, the beat of the heart, the immune system of the human body, the growth of crops for food, and etc. It is clear that God desires to bless all of His creation, including mankind. We must be careful in how we define the goodness of God; what may look ‘bad’ to us may actually be a good thing in that it serves a greater purpose in deepening our knowledge of God. God is about transforming us and that process means some growing pain; the trials of life are a part of the process. Believers who are walking according to the ways of God as well as those believers who are not walking according to His ways will face trials-but there is a difference. For the believer who is living outside of God’s will, God allows difficulties to come as a means of drawing him or her back to Him. For the believe who is walking according to the ways of God, God uses difficult situations as a means of deepening our understanding of Him and a way of proving Himself strong on our behalf; also, when this believer endures a trial, God uses his response to the trial as a means of revealing Himself to all who observe the believer’s response and reaction to the trial. The big picture is that God is using the difficulties we face in this fallen world as a way of revealing Himself and demonstrating that in Him, we too can overcome the world, just as Jesus did. Part of the reason for trials is that trials test us; trials have a way of clarifying where our faith and trust lie. We do not live in a perfect world, and we live in a world that is hostile to God, so we should not be surprised or dismayed when we face difficulties-knowing that God is using the circumstances of this life to transform us and to demonstrate that He is sufficient. God does not expect us to be flippant or to be ‘happy’ when trials come our way, but He does want us to trust Him in the trials, to be confident of His goodness, and to know that He will use the trial for good. We certainly do not always understand how God is using for good what appears to be bad, but let us know deep within and let us confess with our mouth that God is always good. If we have any doubts about the goodness of God, let us ask God to give us a lasting awareness of His goodness in all circumstances.
2 Corinthians 4:17 “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison,”
1 Peter 4:1 “Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live the rest of time in the flesh no longer for the lust of men, but for the will of God.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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