God's Goodness

“Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness while I am here in the land of the living. Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.”
Psalm 27:13-14 NLT

How confident are we pilgrims about seeing God’s goodness? David expressed a confidence that he would see the Lord’s goodness in his natural life, “the land of the living”. Promises were declared over David, not the least being that day when he was anointed as the future king of Israel in front of his father and his brothers. But he spent many years being chased by Saul, in fear of his life, forced to live as an outcast in places where he would rather not be. Did he find the Lord’s goodness in those difficult years? Looking again at verse 13 in our text today, David said “I will”, implying that the Lord’s goodness was to come at some time in the future, while he was still alive and well. So perhaps his glimpse of the future came at a time when he was under attack from his enemies and feeling pretty desperate and depressed about what was happening to him. David was confident, though, that whatever his circumstances, God would come through for him before he died. 

Back to our question though. What about us pilgrims and our confidence in God? In our natural lives there is much that we are confident in. It could be simple things, so small as to be almost laughable, like making a cup of tea, or taking a shower. Perhaps we are confident enough to do a weekly shop or sign up for a package holiday to warmer places. But these are all things that human beings do in the 21st Century, and they are unremarkable in their scope. But confidence in God? What does that look like? As believers we have a relationship with the Lord, and day by day we live our lives His way, receiving encouragement through prayer and reading the Bible. We mix with God’s people and fellowship with them, all the while sharing our experiences about our journeys through life. Do we share David’s confidence in the Lord’s goodness, applied to both our natural and spiritual lives?

Being confident in God however, has some caveats. We have to work at it because it involves faith instead of our human efforts. Philippians 3:3, “For we who worship by the Spirit of God are the ones who are truly circumcised. We rely on what Christ Jesus has done for us. We put no confidence in human effort”. Because Jesus died for us at Calvary, in propitiation for our sins, we are confident of what will come. Early in His ministry, Jesus said why He had left the comforts of Heaven and had come to Planet Earth as a human being. “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). And by faith we pilgrims believe that one day we will pass from this life into life everlasting, at last in the presence of the Lord. Our bodies may die, but our souls will live forever, demonstrating God’s goodness to His children, believers everywhere.

But what about experiencing God’s goodness in this life? That involves faith as well, with an expectation and hope that God will do us good. Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope”. That verse wasn’t directed at a future life after death, but instead to a people who were in distress, a people exiled to Babylon. If we pilgrims look back on our lives, can we see times and occasions when God’s goodness was manifested, and not just in times of distress? I can. Many times. And I’m sure many of those who are reading this can say the same. Yes, some will disregard God’s goodness by claiming a coincidence or some other reason for something good happening to them. But in faith we know otherwise. 

David experienced God’s goodness at other times in his life, and Psalm 16:5-6 reads, “Lord, you alone are my inheritance, my cup of blessing. You guard all that is mine. The land you have given me is a pleasant land. What a wonderful inheritance!” Our lives too can form a psalm of similar sentiments, as we reveal how the Lord has blessed us. The trouble is that we get familiar with what we have or have been given, and forget that it is often God who has blessed us. God brought me together with a wonderful woman who has been my wife for many years. He blessed me with two wonderful children. Such things as these are examples of God’s goodness. And that is just a start.

Of course, bad things can happen to good people because we live in a world riddled by sin, evil and wickedness. So we pilgrims will get sick from time to time. We may be involved in an accident of some kind. A loved one may be in distress, sickness or even death. In other parts of the world, believers are being persecuted for their faith. But in it all we are confident that God’s goodness will prevail. Why? Because He loves us. A couple of verses from Paul, “And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39). Paul wasn’t just confident in God when he wrote this. He was convinced. An ultimate confidence. But we can’t leave this assurance of God’s goodness without reading the last verse of Psalm 23, “Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever“. David wrote that God’s goodness has pursued him all his days. Not just followed him, but God in His love pursued him and if we stop to think for a moment, that is our faith experience as well. Can we feel His goodness just behind us this morning? Well, it’s there – reach out for it and enjoy it. We won’t be disappointed.

Dear Lord, You have been so good to us and continue to show us favour and mercy in this season of grace. You love us and we respond in expressing our love for You. We worship and thank You today and every day while we have breath. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”
Romans 8:28 NLT

This is one of the most quoted verses in the Bible, and many claim it with an “everything will be alright in the end” attitude. But there are two important provisos in Paul’s writings. Good will only come to those who love God and who are aligning their lives to God’s will, not their own. So, obviously, if we turn this around, God will not necessarily bring a good outcome to rebellious, God-deniers, who are hedonistically-inclined, and who live their lives to satisfy their own selfish desires.

Examples of God working for the good of someone in apparently impossible circumstances can be seen with the life of Joseph. In Genesis 37 we read of how Joseph was badly treated by his brothers and ended up sold as a slave in Egypt. Genesis 37:28, “So when the Ishmaelites, who were Midianite traders, came by, Joseph’s brothers pulled him out of the cistern and sold him to them for twenty pieces of silver. And the traders took him to Egypt“. There, Joseph was sold as a slave to a soldier, but was then falsely accused by the soldier’s wife, and ended up in prison. But all was not lost – the prison warden liked Joseph. We read in Genesis 39:21, “But the Lord was with Joseph in the prison and showed him his faithful love. And the Lord made Joseph a favourite with the prison warden“. Through all these ordeals, Joseph still stayed close to God. We of course know the story, and how Joseph ended up interpreting Pharaoh’s dream about an impending famine, and how he was appointed to be in charge of all of Egypt. Joseph carefully and skilfully managed the impact of the famine in Egypt. The story ends with Joseph being reconciled to his brothers and he made the following astonishing statement, “God has sent me ahead of you to keep you and your families alive and to preserve many survivors” (Genesis 45:7). Through astonishing and negative circumstances, God made all things in Joseph’s life work together to bring about the salvation of his family.

What about us pilgrims today? We can all claim, I’m sure, to have experienced negative circumstances. The loss of a job. A broken relationship. But do we trust God enough for Him to bring good out of bad and difficult times? We may not know why God is allowing us to experience trials and challenges but He can see the big picture and knows what is best for us. Perhaps the loss of a job, or failure to get a new one, is best for us in the long run. Some years ago, I was offered a job in a different part of the country, and it involved moving house. How was I to know that this was the first step in becoming a Christian, because the new house was located just around the corner from a Pentecostal pastor and his family. God is working behind the scenes for each one of us, and all we have to do is love Him and follow Him. We trust Him with our future, leading to that day when He calls us home.

Dear Father God. There is much more to say on this verse. But we know it’s a significant statement of your love for us. We thank You for working for us behind the scenes. we’re deeply grateful. Amen.