It was the relationship between the Lord and Moses that first gave us the glimpse of the power, significance, and importance of the goodness of God. Moses request to see God’s glory thrust him into an encounter with goodness that opened him up to all the claims of God about who he essentially is in himself (Exodus 33: 18-34:8).
The glory of God is that he is unending, relentless goodness. His goodness must cover the earth in the same way that heaven is filled with his goodness. God’s goodness was so powerful that Moses had to be placed in a cleft of a rock and then covered by God’s hand to protect him from the fire, the heat, the passion, and the power of the goodness of God.
When God walked in front of Moses and proclaimed himself, the attributes he used are all a part of his goodness. Compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and removing wickedness, rebellion, and sin. But not entirely acquitting, charging iniquity of fathers on children, and on children’s children, on a third generation, and on a fourth.
Goodness follows us all the days of our life (Psalm 23: 6). His goodness is the antidote to despair (Psalm 27: 13) and the nature of God leads us to repentance (Romans 2: 4). He stores his goodness up for each of his beloved children who fear him (Psalm 31:7-9). Jesus went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil (Acts 10: 38). The power of God’s goodness was so legendary that all the nations would revere it and worship him and the enemy would tremble because of it (Jeremiah 33: 9).
Goodness is involved in everything that God is and does. It is one of the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5: 22) and it is the fruit of light in our lives (Ephesians 5:9).
The goodness of God is the hallmark of every true disciple. A good man reveals his treasure of goodness to the world (Matthew 12: 35) and walks in a manner worthy of God’s nature because goodness pleases God (Colossians 1: 10).
Goodness is critical in times of opposition and warfare. We are to love our enemies and do good to them (Luke 6: 27-35). We never hinder the power to do good in any circumstance of life. Goodness has extraordinary power for the giver as well as the recipient. We overcome evil with good because it is the source of true power.
True disciples prove what is good (Romans 12: 2) because they see goodness as the only lifestyle that can truly represent God. They have chosen to abound in goodness. To overflow, flourish, be extravagant, lavish and profuse. This is what makes us Christ like. All love, gentleness, grace and mercy, patience and kindness are acts that are rooted in the goodness of God. We need to be careful to maintain acts of goodness throughout our life. God does not give us an option here. He commands goodness as a practical Kingdom lifestyle.
Every situation and circumstance is to be used to express the goodness of God. Therefore, everything that happens is a challenge to the father of his goodness in us and through us. We are not therefore being challenged by life; oppositional people, circumstances and the enemy. We are only ever challenged by God’s goodness.
We are challenged to live, think, speak, and act for the good in every circumstance. The challenge is for us to be so filled up with the goodness of God that our lives would be as radiant as Moses’ face! We are encouraged by the Lord to be prepared for every good work (2Timothy 2: 21) and be equipped to do good constantly (2 Timothy 3: 17), ready for any good deed that is possible (Titus 3: 1) and an example, a pattern for goodness in the earth (Titus 2: 7).
True disciples represent the fullness of God’s nature. They are not worldly people. They do not repay evil with evil, but they always seek after that which is good for one another and for all people (1 Thessalonians 5: 15). Seeking everyone’s good is the real challenge of our spirituality, this is God’s perspective. To have a reputation for doing good (1 Timothy 5: 10) and to be so rich in goodness that it becomes our prime passion to be generous and share not only who God is but what he has given (1 Timothy 6: 18).
No one is safe from the power of goodness. People will repent when they taste the goodness of God. Will we be taken for granted? Almost certainly. Will our goodness be abused? Count on it. Will people think we are foolish? Definitely. Here’s the truth behind this request: And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good? (1 Peter 3: 13).
The truth is that it doesn’t matter if we are criticized. We are not doing it for man’s approval, but for God’s glory. We are being challenged to look at life through the lens of God’s goodness. To see everything and everyone in the light of God’s great heart. We are God’s visual aid to the earth. Through our lives, people get to taste and see that the Lord is good. We are at the physical, tangible evidence that God is brilliantly, incredibly, astonishingly full of goodness. God is good all the time , and all the time God is good. There is no higher truth.
It’s time for a fresh revelation of goodness. It is time for an encounter with God’s goodness. It is time to change our lifestyle to an ongoing expression of God’s goodness.