"Leaning into the Lord's Goodness" - Henry Knapp

Who hasn’t heard the encouragement to “grow up to be a good boy/girl”? My guess is that most parents either say that directly, or imply it over and over again in their parenting. After all, the alternative is pretty silly—“I hope you grow up to be evil and wicked.” You certainly do not have to be a follower of Christ to have a desire for “goodness.” We are all pretty much raised to pursue goodness, and it certainly appears to be a desire built into us as humans by God Himself.

But, what do we mean by “good”? What, after all, does it mean to be a good boy/girl? What does
“goodness” look like?

On one level, this calls to mind the old adage, “I know it when I see it.” We all have some innate sense of what goodness looks like. When we see something wicked or evil, we have a visceral reaction. When we see something good or beautiful, we just know it. We don’t define “good” or explain it because it is self-evident.

But what if it isn’t self-evident? What if there is more to “goodness” than what we can just assume? After all, sometimes the Bible makes it clear that we are to be “good,” and at other points that only God Himself is good. Sometimes “goodness” in humanity is applauded. Sometimes “goodness” is beyond our grasp. Perhaps we need help in understanding what “goodness” means.

The Bible uses the word “good” in various ways, often similar, but not always identical. To do that which is “good” often means something like “helping-the-old-lady-across-the-street.” Is that a “good” thing? Well, of course it is! When we treat one another as we should, we are acting in good ways, doing good things. These are evident and clear to us as humans. Our common humanity calls for responding to one another in ways that are morally acceptable. These actions are deemed “morally good.”

When we say, with Jesus, that only God is good (Mark 10:18), are we implying that only God can do a morally good thing? Of course not. Hundreds of times a day (hopefully) each of us acts with moral goodness toward one another. But God is indeed the only One “good” in terms of “saving good.” Here we are measuring “goodness” in terms of meriting God’s favor. Do our morally good deeds save us? Do they make God respond to us? Do they put God under obligation to treat us well? NO! All our “moral goodness” does not merit us “saving good.” Only God is good in that sense; only God is perfect in goodness.

There is one more sense in which the Bible uses the word “good.”: First, to speak of the way we should relate to one another (moral good); second, to describe the kind of life that merits salvation (God’s saving good); and, third, a kind of goodness which arises from a faith in Jesus. We are called in this Christian life to respond in ways that please our Lord, in ways that come from our faith in Christ, to honor and praise our Savior. These are deemed in the Scripture as “good.” Arising from a life of dependence upon the cross, these actions are “spiritually good”—a way of living which comes only from the new creation, only from a life given to the Lord. Do these “spiritual good things” earn us God’s pleasure? NO! This is by grace and grace alone. Rather, these are actions, deeds, thoughts, attitudes, which are produced by trust in Christ. If/when we trust in Him, our lives are transformed, and what we do from that transformed life is pleasing to our God, they are “spiritually good.”

This week in worship we will be looking at the goodness of our Lord, and the goodness we are called to by our Good God. I look forward to exploring Psalm 34 with you!

In preparation for worship this Sunday, please read Psalm 34.

1. Verse 2: “my soul makes its boast in the Lord.” What might this mean? Have you ever done this? What would this look like?

2. Verse 3: “magnify the Lord with me.” What might this mean? Has this become part of your daily life? Can you express this yearning today?

3. Verse 8: “taste and see that the Lord is good.” What does the imagery of “tasting” imply? How does one “taste” that the Lord is good?

4. Verse 15: “the eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous.” The author intends this as comfort, encouragement. Why so? How is that good news for us?

5. Verse 22: “none who take refuge in Him will be condemned.” Why does the psalmist come to this conclusion at the end of his psalm? What condemnation is he seeking to avoid?