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Is God Good?

Have you ever heard or thought to yourself "I'm a good person?"  Words of course have meaning, so what does "good" mean in this context?  I would suggest something like: "I take care of my family", "I don't do drugs or rob banks", or "I'm basically nice to others."  What we think of ourselves is frequently what we would also like others to think of us.  In essence these are moral and ethical qualities we believe we demonstrate and try to live by.  But where do these moral qualities come from?  In today's secular world morality loosely defined resembles the state of apostate Israel in the book of Judges where "Everyone did what was right in their own minds."

Let's take our discussion to another level and ask what does it mean when we say "God is good?"  Too often the "goodness" we ascribe to God becomes a close reflection of the attributes we ascribe to ourselves.  God becomes nice, a caring Father, someone who meets our felt needs.  This God becomes at best too meek and mild and at worst our head butler.  If this is our "good" God then it is the God described in J. B. Phillips' classic "Your God is Too Small." 

What then is God's "goodness?  Moses was our "gold standard" of someone who had an intimate relationship with God until the Advent of Jesus.  Moses always sought a deeper knowledge of God and on Mt. Sinai he asked God: "Show me your Glory", meaning reveal to me your being, the essence and presence of who you are.  God responded that "no one can see me and live", so He shielded Moses while His "goodness", His glory passed by.  When we declare that God is "good" we are affirming that God is Holy.  He is infinite moral purity, power and unfathomable love.  How can we know what the moral qualities, and the true "goodness" of God are if we like Moses unable to "see" God due to our sinful nature?  God in mercy and grace has revealed those qualities to us in Scripture, but we "see" God in the face of Jesus. God fully divine and fully human who stood before us as sinners so that we could "see" the glory and holiness of God.  By Jesus sacrifice we  can come into God's holy presence in our lives today through prayer and worship having the assurance that our sins are forgiven, and we are covered by the blood of Christ.  We can know, "see" and live in the "goodness" of God because we can affirm along with John Newton: "I am a great sinner and Christ is a great savior."  Our God is good!

Advent Reflections

This advent season has been a special one for my wife and I.  If you our familiar with our story you would know we have waited a number of years for our family to fill out.  We were blessed beyond measure with Abbie in 2015 but still longed for another. On October 11th, 2017 we added our sweet Olivia to our flock and a rush of peace entered our hearts. Olivia's mere existence settled my heart in such a way where I felt I was really able to pay attention to the state of my soul and connect with the Lord in an unhurried fashion. We had our girls and all felt right in our world. 

So this Advent season I was intentional about working through an advent reading plan. For those curious, I used this book as a scripture and prayer guide to follow along with. I have always found it help to enter into someone else's written prayers to see what prayers may surface from my own heart.

One of the scriptures that has been churning in my heart all season long is Psalm 85:8-12 which reads: 

Ps 85:8   Let me hear what God the LORD will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his faithful, to those who turn to him in their hearts. 9 Surely his salvation is at hand for those who fear him, that his glory may dwell in our land.  

Ps 85:10    Steadfast love and faithfulness will meet; righteousness and peace will kiss each other. 11 Faithfulness will spring up from the ground, and righteousness will look down from the sky. 12 The LORD will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase.  NRSV

Verses 10 and 11 are absolutely captivating to me. There is a mystery here  that I think we need to pay attention to, at least I know I do. There is something beautiful about the union of these words that seems to unlock some of the mysteries of the Kingdom for me. 

Let's look at these verses a little bit more closely. What does it look like to have steadfast love fused with faithfulness? In my heart, it begins to paint a picture of commitment and covenant that far supersedes our flighty emotions but shows us a love that will remain regardless of our circumstances. It shows a love that we can actually trust. For me, love that I can trust is one of the most precious gifts I can receive - so a pretty big deal. 

Continuing on the psalmist writes, "righteousness and peace will kiss each other." Pause, and let you imagination wrap your mind around this picture. Kissing is very intimate action to incorporate here as the two words our intertwined with each other. So how/why are the concepts of righteousness and peace knit together?

The idea of righteousness can be broken down in simple terms as "right" living or holy living; meaning, we live in such a way that considers others first, where our words hold weight and kindness/sincerity mark our interactions with one another. We move towards others with grace, because we hold a deep awareness of God's love for us. It is with this type of "right" living that peace is able to overwhelm our hearts in an intimate way.  Personally, when I am peaceful I feel confident, secure, trusting and easy. I am not second guessing or looking over my shoulder - I am confident that the Lord is for me and with me. So our promise here is we would choose to live "rightly" in this world the gift our Father gives us is peace. 

As we think about what it means to Form our Character, I think we need to reimagine what righteousness is really all about. On the surface, Forming Character looks like we should do a whole list of things that we don't really want to do, but reluctantly do, because - well, we are Christians and all - so we should. This outlook paints the  Christian life as just being filled with drudgery and burdens. If we are stuck with this mindset, you missed the boat.  The fruit of faithfulness is covenantal love and the fruit of righteousness is peace. Both things our souls are desperate for!

My prayer for you as you enter into 2018 is for you to consider how well the ideas of faithfulness, covenantal love, righteousness and peace mark your life. There is a better way of living available to  each of as we embrace the values of the Kingdom