The Goodness of God

Exodus 33:12-23; 34:1-7

The Goodness of God is one of the moral attributes of God. By attributes of God, we mean the distinguishing qualities or characteristics of the divine nature. These are not different parts of God’s nature; rather, they are an analytical and closer look at it. They reveal the fullness, depth, and variety of His nature. God’s attributes answer questions like “What is God like?” and “How might we expect Him to act?”

In one of our previous sermons, we learned that knowing God starts with an understanding of His attributes from the Bible. It is then accomplished when our understanding of God is so deep-seated and integrated into ourselves that it expresses itself in ethical, altruistic, and righteous behaviour. If we will continue to be strong and do exploits for God, as a church, then we need to know God as a good God.

What does the Bible say about the goodness of God? If you want to see God for Who He really is, here’s a good starting point:

“Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good” (I Chron. 16:34).
“Taste and see that the Lord is good!” (Ps. 34:8).
“Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise! Give thanks to Him and praise His name! For the Lord is good and His love is eternal, and His faithfulness endures to all generations.” (Ps. 100:4-5).

When Moses boldly pleaded with God, “Please, show me Your glory,” he was asking to see God for who He really is. “Show me as much as I can stand, Lord.” So what did God show him?

Exodus 33:19-20 gives us God’s response: “I will cause all My goodness to pass in front of you and I will proclaim the name Yahweh before you.” Moses wanted to see God’s glory. God showed Him something so wonderful and accessible that it caused the skin of Moses’ face to glow with the radiance of God’s presence. He showed him His goodness.

The Bible defines God’s goodness in two ways. One has to do with His character; the other focuses on His actions. Psalm 119:68 captures both when it says of God: “You are good and You do what is good . . .”

The first half of that verse focuses on the fact that God is by nature good. That is, He is “morally excellent, extraordinarily beautiful, deeply glad, and extravagantly bountiful.” But since this is God we’re talking about, this goodness ascribed to Him is raised to the highest possible levels.

Think about it: God is the original definition of good. He is good in and of Himself. For us, goodness is an added quality. But it comes naturally for Him. God is not just the greatest of beings; He is the Best. That’s exactly what Jesus meant when He said, “No one is good but One – God.” (Mark 10:18).

We call all kinds of things good – “This steak is good. He’s a good friend. That was a good movie.” But all that we call “good” on this earth is tainted and imperfect. God alone is goodness itself.

But how do you see the true character of a person? By his actions. So the second strand of definition for God’s goodness concentrates on what He does. And the Bible is replete with descriptions that point to His kindness, His mercy, His steadfast love, His generosity.

God is disposed to give to human beings beyond all deserving, all the time. Have you ever thought of God as generous toward you? Can you believe that when He looks at you with all your baggage, all your junk, all your hang-ups, He says, “I want to be generous to you. I can’t wait to pour out on you that which will make you happy – not because you deserve it, but because there’s something about Who I am that loves to overflow in extravagant ways upon you.”

The Bible says those are actually God’s thoughts about you. God is for you. He has your back. He is there, plotting to do you good. You are the object of His affection, and because of His divine nature, all that He expresses comes from an expansive, overwhelming, God-sized generosity toward you.

There are three specific ways by which God reveals His goodness to us.

One, through natural blessings. This is the lowest level at which He expresses His goodness and the one we tend to overlook or take for granted. But David saw it clearly. He was moved by God to write Psalm 145—a hymn of praise that celebrates God’s goodness expressed in the created order.

In verses 3-4, he shouts out, “Yahweh is great and is highly praised; His greatness is unsearchable. One generation will declare Your works to the next and will proclaim Your mighty acts.”

And verses 7-9 describe what the older generation will say to the younger: “They will give a testimony of Your great goodness and will joyfully sing of Your righteousness. The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and great in faithful love.”

Notice verse 9: “The Lord is good to everyone . . .” Who is included in the word “everyone”? You are. In case we missed that, he repeats the idea in the next phrase: “His compassion [rests] on all He has made.”

That means there’s nowhere in the universe you can go where God won’t be good to you.

Down in verses 15-17, we read more about His goodness: “All eyes look to You, and You give them their food in due time. You open Your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing. The Lord is righteous in all His ways and gracious in all His acts.”

Every relationship, every job, every tree, every taste of food that pleases us, every birdsong, every friend and flower and field are a reminder of His compassion for us. Look in every corner of this world and every part of your day and you will find the overflow of His generosity, if you will only begin to look for it.

Two, through His kind interventions. Psalm 107 is totally devoted to this theme and opens with joy: “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His faithful love endures forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord proclaim that He has redeemed them from the hand of the foe . . .” Then the psalmist describes four different scenarios where God graciously steps in to reveal His goodness. I don’t have time to unfold each one, just touch on it:

God comes to the rescue of people who are frantically searching for something or someone that will satisfy their soul. When they cry out to the Lord, He will deliver them and their soul will find its true home.

God intervenes in the lives of those who have rebelled against the Word of God and suffer for it. When they repent, He delivers them from their distress, breaks the chains of sin that bind them, and turns the night to day.

God intervenes on behalf of His goodness in the lives of foolish people who had given themselves to sin and find its death-bringing results touching their relationships and lives. When they cry to the Lord, He heals them and reverses the killing effects of sin in their lives.

God rescues those pounded by calamity. When the storms threaten to sink us and we’re at our wit’s end, we can call to Him and see Him command the storms to be still, because He is good. He’s been there for you, more than you’ll ever know.

No matter what situation you’re facing this morning, God is the best Person to take it to. There is no surer source of deliverance or blessing than Him, because He is good all the time.

Three, through God’s Son, Jesus. Colossians 1 reminds us that Jesus “is the image of the invisible God” (v. 15) and that “God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him” (v. 19). Jesus is God’s goodness in the flesh. He demonstrated God’s desire to pour out blessing and help and deliverance on us in three ways.

He took the judgment that our sins deserved upon Himself. Romans 5:8 says, “God proves His own love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us!” God’s extravagance flowed to us in the amazing substitution of His Son in our place on the cross. His death for us is the undisputed picture of unmerited goodness. You don’t deserve it. I don’t deserve it. In fact, we continue to do things that prove we didn’t earn this. But God is good. His nature drives a desire to do for us what we can’t do for ourselves. So He puts forward His Son on our behalf to take our hell and give all who believe heaven.

Two, He includes a thousand other things in the gift of Himself. Romans 8:32 says this of God: “He did not even spare His own Son, but offered Him up for us all; how will He not also with Him grant us everything?” In other words, God has already shown His goodness toward you in the biggest way possible. All the other little details to help you live a godly life through thick and thin are included in that gift.

Three, Jesus unlocks God’s goodness toward us in new ways. Second Corinthians 1:20 tells us that “every one of God’s promises is ‘Yes’ in [Christ].” That means all the good and perfect gifts of God come to us through our relationship with Jesus. If we want to understand and appreciate God’s goodness to us, we can begin and end with Jesus.

What should the believer’s response to God’s goodness be? The goodness of God calls for a response. There are at least three specific steps we must take to change our lives and begin to fully experience the effects of God’s generosity.

One, we must repent of unbelief and ingratitude. Romans 2:4 says, “Or do you despise the riches of His kindness, restraint, and patience, not recognizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?” Paul is saying, “Do you think that all these blessings that visit your days came because you’re just an incredibly nice person who made God’s special list? No, His goodness was meant to lead you to Him.”

Going through your life receiving what He has been giving without trusting in Christ is like saying, “God, I had all this coming. I deserve this and more. So keep it coming.” We want the gifts, not the Giver. Our ingratitude and greed for what He can do for us while rejecting Him is the height of sin. And one day, the gravy train will come to an end. Stop. Look around you. See the hand of the Lord in your life and turn to Him today. Put an end to taking from God and learn to thank Him.

Two, we must rest in His goodness when adversity comes. We live in a world where bad things happen to good people and good things happen to bad people. Sometimes, our circumstances argue with us about how good God is. Sometimes God’s good plan for us means going through trials and losses and heartache and death. But hear me: He is there for you.

Psalm 31:19-20 says, “How great is Your goodness that You have stored up for those who fear You, and accomplished in the sight of everyone for those who take refuge in You. You hide them in the protection of Your presence; You conceal them in a shelter from the schemes of men, from quarrelsome tongues.” God has great goodness stored up for you. Take your refuge in Him. Rest there. He is up to more than you know, and has hidden help that only comes when you give it up to Him.

Three, we must step out in faith. When you believe that God is good all the time, it frees you to take ever-increasing steps of faith. Jeremiah 29:11 reminds me of God’s intent toward me and my family: “For I know the plans I have for you”—[this is] the Lord’s declaration—”plans for [your] welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”

Believing that cuts you loose from fear about taking risks for Christ’s sake. Psalm 84:11 is fuel to the fire of daring greatly for Him: “For the Lord God is a sun” (He illuminates the path I should take) “and shield” (He protects me); “the Lord gives grace and glory” (that’s exaltation for those who follow Him). “He does not withhold the good from those who live with integrity.” You never miss out if you step out with God.

God’s goodness should draw His children to practice good works. Galatians 6:10 says this: “Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” As the opportunities arise, let us do good to all people, but especially to those who are saved.

Let us be zealous in our giving, let us be zealous in our praying, let us be zealous in acts of mercy because we have a Father who is always doing good. Let us, therefore, always do good as well.