You just found a great parking spot. Or maybe you made it to a meeting when you thought you’d be late. Or you found a major discount on a purchase you made. Your mind drifts to the celestial, and you breathe out, “Good is good!” But is it something you truly mean, or is it just the right platitude for the moment? Let’s stop and think about that.
It’s not uncommon to hear a happy Christian in passing just exclaim, “Good is Good!” As a fellow Christian, you probably smile to yourself and realize someone had a stroke of good fortune (knowing full well that fate was not involved at all – it was divine intervention). This is just what a person of faith does. We don’t believe in luck; we believe in God. Therefore, all good and perfect gifts flow down to us from the Father of heavenly lights (Jas. 1:17), and thus He must be praised.
But is that what we are actually doing? Is it merely a shout-out to the “man upstairs”? Let’s hope we have a little more respect than that. Truly giving thanks to our Creator for the blessings with which He has chosen to favor us may involve a bit more than a tee shirt slogan. Let’s dig a little deeper into the truth behind those three words, and understand what does it mean that God is good.
Where Does 'God is Good' Come From?
Obviously, the entire Bible alludes to the fact, even when not directly stating it, that God is good. It’s easy to track down many verses about God’s goodness. The first instance we see in Scripture of the proclamation of God’s goodness is in Psalm 34 (v. 8): “Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!” The song is attributed to David, praising God for defeating the Philistines.
This is generally the time we most often look to the Lord and find ourselves in awe – when He has just done something wonderful in our lives. And that is the most common time we hear the Christians shout (or even mildly comment), “God is good!” We might even hear the phrase that follows – “All the time!”
But do we ever stop to ponder if we truly believe that second part? If we do not, we can’t really claim the first part.
What Does “Good” Really Mean?
Although we first see man declaring God’s goodness in Psalms, we hear about goodness in general much earlier. Who is the first to apply that stamp of approval? God himself! In the story of Creation from Genesis 1, the Maker looks upon each of his designs and declares them each to be good. Of course, as we know, once He considers his finest product – the very reflection of Himself: man – He decides this masterpiece is very good. (emphasis mine)
What Does Good Mean in the Bible?
So, what did the Lord mean by calling each of his creations good? What is the spiritual meaning? The answer is in the descriptor. When God called man “very good,” He was saying this was the piece that most closely resembled Himself. “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” (v. 27) From this, we can determine that the meaning of “good” is actually “God-like,” or “of God.” Creation on earth was made of God; therefore, it was good. Man was even more like God, and so he was very good.
This statement, as with all things God made, did not crumble away over time as did the things man made. The goodness of God persisted through the years. Thousands of years after the week where God set the world spinning on its axis, Jesus Christ set foot upon that earth. In Mark 10, He is approached by a random Judean seeking God’s kingdom. Addressed as “Good Teacher,” Jesus asks in verse 18, “’Why do you call me good?” and answered himself, “No one is good—except God alone.” Jesus, who continually glorified the Father, acknowledged that God was the same good God He was at the creation of the world.
Understanding the Goodness of God in the Bible
When a Christian says that God is good, we need to step back a moment and use context. If a student in school gets a “good” grade, it’s usually considered to be just above average, less than excellent. It would be nearly blasphemous to consider the God of the universe and our Creator to be “just above average.” Therefore, a new context is necessary – one created by God Himself.
Since the word “good” is actually derived from the word “god,” it is fair to conclude that everything about God is good. Reflecting on the Bible as a whole, we are confronted with every work He has done that He has chosen to reveal to us. Such events include wars, murders, and even genocide. If God has orchestrated all things, including the very creation of beings who spiraled down the path of evil, can we really say that God is good?
Is God Good All the Time?
Absolutely. As we are told in Romans 8:28, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him” and then the part that often is glossed over, “who have been called according to his purpose.” And so, whatever God does is what is good in His eyes. We might only be able to see that goodness if we are called by His name and using His eyes to see it. He is the determiner of what is good.
Are we to then say that the evil in the world is good because God is good? Man, we know, is evil at the core. If man was created by God, and God declared him to be “very good,” how can we then say that God is good?
Because man, after Creation, fell into sin and thrust the balance of what the Lord had made into turmoil. However, God is greater than it all. God provided a promise that what man has done for the sake of evil, God could certainly work for good. But that is nothing we can do on our own, but only with God’s saving grace (Eph. 2:8-9). So then, yes, everything, by God’s own hand, is evil that He can change to good, because it is in His decree.
How Can We Celebrate and Trust in God’s Goodness?
Amazing, isn’t it? The very source of everything good and perfect has chosen to love and save us. Why wouldn’t that be a cause of celebration? We should be announcing this news to everyone we see.
They may not understand, since the world has reworked the word “good” to its own definition. But that is all the more reason to explain the true meaning of the word good, and why God is the origin.
So, throw on a hoodie with “God is Good” plastered across the front. Advertise it on a hat. Just be sure you know why you’re making the declaration (and be ready to explain it to the random person who asks). And now, after having read this article, you should have a pretty good idea, so get out that shirt or hat, and wear it with pride!
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