Let’s be honest: sometimes it can be hard to believe that God is good.
Life is hard.
We encounter trials of various kinds, some minor, some heartbreaking.
When we find ourselves wading hip-deep through the rivers of sorrow, it’s hard to hold fast to God’s goodness.
That’s why we need to be regularly reminded that God is good. That he is always faithful. That he’s on our side. That he is 100% for us.
Thankfully, Scripture gives us abundant proof of God’s glorious, overwhelming goodness. We need to remind ourselves of these things on a constant basis.
Here are 5 unshakeable proofs that our God is good.
God Is Good Because He Gave His Son For Us
He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:32)
Ponder this staggering truth for a moment. God gave up his son…
…for us.
To pay for our sins. To rescue us out of darkness. To cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
He didn’t have to do this. We certainly didn’t deserve it. After all, we were enemies of God. Children of wrath, as it says in the book of Ephesians. We willingly, joyfully followed the ways of the world and Satan.
And yet, in spite of all this, God still gave up his son for us. God wanted us to be part of his family so badly that he was willing to give up his precious, only Son to die in our place.
Is there any greater proof that God is good? Is there any greater evidence that God loves us like no one else?
I could never comprehend giving up one of my children. It’s simply unfathomable to me. And yet in God’s infinite wisdom, he gave us his son to rescue us from our sins.
God’s goodness is simply overwhelming.
God Is Good Because He Adopted Us
…he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will (Ephesians 1:5).
If God had simply forgiven our sins, that would have been more than enough to prove that he is good. But he has gone so staggeringly far beyond that.
Not only has he forgiven us, but he has adopted us into his family. We literally are sons and daughters of God, with all the rights and privileges that entails.
We can call the omnipotent, omniscient, everlasting God, “Father.”
Isn’t that absolutely
We can pray about everything to him. No prayer is too small. No care is too little. No burden too big or small. We can cast all our anxieties on our Father, knowing that he cares for us.
I love how Tim Keller puts it:
The only person who dares wake up a king at 3:00 AM for a glass of water is a child. We have that kind of access.
We know that God is good because he has adopted us as his precious children.
God Is Good Because He Provides For Us
Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (Matthew 6:31-33).
Because we are valued children of God, we can be absolutely sure that God will provide for us.
I am 100% committed to providing everything I possibly can for my children. I’ll do whatever is necessary to ensure that they have all that they need to thrive in this world.
If I long to be generous to my children, how much more does God long to be generous to us, those he has bought with the blood of his son?
I love how Psalm 84:11 puts it:
For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.
If something is good for us, God absolutely will give it to us. He is generous and provides more than we can possibly imagine.
God is not some tight-fisted miser who can’t bear to part with any of his riches. He’s the complete opposite. We come to him with our needs and he provides for us out of his abundant, overflowing wealth.
Philippians 4:19 puts it this way:
And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
God is good and he will provide everything we need according to his glorious riches.
God Is Good Because He Guides Us
He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. (Psalm 23:2-3).
Not only does God provide for all our needs, but he also guides us in every step we take.
Ponder this…
There is never a single moment when we are walking alone. We are never wandering. Rather, we are always being led by our good, faithful, loving Shepherd.
Because God loves us, he is always leading us to green pastures and still waters. He is always guiding us by the hand, even when it seems like we don’t know where in the world we’re going.
I love how James 1:5 puts it: “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.”
If we need wisdom about anything, we can ask God for it and be absolutely confident that he will give it to us. God never leaves us on our own, never abandons us to our own devices.
Just as an earthly shepherd carefully watches over and protects his sheep, so our heavenly Shepherd carefully watches over us.
If you find yourself overwhelmed by your circumstances, know this: God is not overwhelmed at all.
He knows exactly what he’s doing. He is walking with you every step of the way, leading on sweet paths even when it seems like you’re walking in the dark.
God’s goodness is seen in his guidance. We can know that God is good and that even when life is hard or confusing, he is going before us.
God Is Good Because It’s In His Character
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).
The ultimate reason that God is good is because it’s in his character. In other words, he is inherently good. You might say that goodness is woven into the very DNA of God (he doesn’t really have DNA, but you get the point).
Put another way, God can NEVER be not good, not even for a split second.
This reality should absolutely fill us with joy.
Our God is infinite and almighty. He rules the universe and keeps the planets in orbit. The oceans stay within their boundaries because God commands them to do so.
And God is also infinitely good.
When you combine God’s infinite power with his infinite goodness, the result is a God worthy of our deepest worship.
God is good because that’s simply who he is. And because God is good in his very nature, we can be absolutely sure that he will pour out goodness on us for our entire lives. His goodness will never end.
As Psalm 23:6 says:
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Isn’t that such a sweet verse? God’s goodness and mercy will literally pursue us all the days of our lives. We will never come to the end of God’s abundant, overwhelming, rich goodness.
Let Us Rejoice In God’s Goodness
How should we respond to these truths?
It’s not complicated. We should respond with great rejoicing and with reverent worship.
Our God is good. He proves it by giving up his son for us, adopting us, providing for us, and guiding us. Goodness is part of God’s character, and because of that, we will never be outside of the goodness of God.
As the classic Christmas hymn says, “O come let us adore him.”
Thank You…Thank You…For these words of encouragement…
It made me think ecrn the more sbout how God has been good to me and so many others,it reminds of this song lyrics ” when I think of the goodness of Jesus my very soul crys out hallelujah for all He’s done for me”
You made me think on today…
Thank You… “God is good all the time all the time God is good”a little something I hear in church from the seasoned saints…?
Excellent Word! Thanks for sharin!
Great is our God . Stronger in good deed and Love . May God shall continue to inspire you . I’m blessed with this word . Thank you Jesus Christ our savior.
I needed this today! I’ve been trying to walk close to God & immediately the obstacles have mounted up against me. Thank you!
God is so so Good! Thank you for your inspiring and truthful words.
Brother I praise the Lord for this message on the goodness of God. I am always challenge to know more about this character of God. In fact God has given me a message today through this sharing, as I have to speak in a cottage meeting of our Church. God bless you and use you to fulfill His plans and purposes through you.
God is good
God is good, for His mercy endureth forever and they are renewed every morning. Thanks for encouraging Stephen.
When I have no answers and feel my life is a failure, I read this and know that God is going to bless my living daughter and me, as I have to see he has blessed my daughter who is with him in heaven now. I pray I remember this and can teach it to my living child whom I love so dearly. There is a plan and I don’t need to fight it. God will reveal it in His own time. He will bless my living child and me.
Thank you so much for taking your time to post this blog/content. May our God almighty abundantly bless you through ALL SeAsOnS.
Thank you!, this website has been a blessing from God to me, God bless you brother
What a load of crap…. God only forgives your sins if you can overcome them. His love isn’t for those like me struggling to quit. What if I die tonight in my sin of the flesh? He predestined some of us go to straight to hell. I am so tired of the he predestined us. God Provides? does he really? how about those who are devout Christians yet end up homeless, or lose a loved one who is the provider of the home? This proves nothing more than the fact that you think your are such a good person filled with love and joy and hope…. Well good the hell for you, some of us were thrown out into the darkness by the likes of you pricks, and then unwelcomed again into the church because we are in the dark places you threw us in to the first place…. I think God is an arrogant asshole who blames us because he fucked up the human race… He created the sin so he could call us worse then dog vomit and throw us in hell because he want’s to…. There is no proof here other then to make you feel good about your damn self.
we should compare notes.
I’ve been having a severe spiritual crisis and each of your points for the goodness of God is exactly why he’s called evil. How many husbands who thrash their wives to bloody pulps are called good? But when God nearly destroyed Israel (old or new), his bride, time and again, only to twist her arm to not leave and find something better, we call him good. How many fathers who murder their children to save their pets are called good? Yet an innocent man, who happens to be God, is executed and we call it good. If we call God good, then parental and spousal abuse is not only good, but Godly, and the end always justifies the means. It becomes permissible to murder anyone for anything as long as it glorifies us, because that’s what God does and what God dopes is good. And this is what not only the Gospels, but most especially Romans and the Letters of John entail, and it’s even clearer when taken with Job. The Book of Job ends with God saying to Job (in paraphrase) “Shut up. I’m older and bigger than you so if I want to hurt you, you take it and you thank me for it.”
Please help. Big Bang cosmology plus modal logic dictate the need for a God, the Holy Trinity is the only logically self-consistent spatiotemporally transcendent creator, and no one discovered or hypothesised it before it emerged in history as a part of Christianity, which lends credence to the Church’s claim that it can’t be discovered, only revealed by God. I need to believe in the God of Christianity for this reason: reason. But I can’t because even though it’s ontologically necessary, it’s ethically indefensible for the reasons given by the poster Jef’s comment from 26 Sep 2020.
Someone please help me. This problem is literally killing me slowly and has been for years and no pastors around here want to listen let alone engage the question.
Hi Tony,
I am a Christ follower. I know that God is good. We live in a fallen world because of sin. Therefore, bad things are going to happen. But God will be that ever present help in time of trouble. Please call on His name to help you. Tell him that you need His help. Keep your eyes on Him and see what He does
God says there is evil in the world. God wants us to turn from evil and do good. The world on the other hand says there is evil in God. The world would have us turn from God (Why?).
I understand there is nearly unlimited profit in evil. However, once all that is good is consumed or destroyed, it would be miserable without access to truth, hope, or love which do not function well unless unfettered by evil. Best dispose of evil, bit by bit in your own life (the only one you can control) and allow love and truth to run amuck. Trust that God will not allow evil an eternity with you, and the exposure will only be for this lifetime. The world as it is will always have those that see truth, love, and hope as evil opponents to the worlds grandest schemes.