God's Goodness

Psalm 34:8 " O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him."

Perception is everything:

* What we think people think of us determines our response to them.
* How we think about God determines how we respond to God.
* What comes into your mind when you think about God means more than what you say about Him.
* Worship is as pure or base as our thoughts about God.
The gravest question for all of us is always God himself: it's not what we say or do but what is our belief about God in our heart!

The Goodness of God:

In Exodus 34 Moses meets with God on the mountain, he has seen all the miricles of God, the protection of God, the provision of God and Moses wants to see God himself. God's response to Moses in Exodus 33:19-20 was "I will make all my goodness pass before thee . . . thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live." And then in Exodus 34:5-7 the Lord "passed by before him, and proclaimed, . . . gracious, longsuffering and abundant in goodness . . ." Of all the qualities that God could have shown Moses He chose to reveal all His goodness!

What is goodness? It is defined as having a disposition to give to others not with a motive nor limited by what they deserve.

How is His goodness revealed to us?

1. Through His nature: "They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness. The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy. The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works." Psalms 145:7-9

2. Through His Deliverance:

* From Enemies: "Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;" Psalm 107:2

* From the shadow of death: "Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron; Because they rebelled against the words of God, and contemned the counsel of the most High: Therefore he brought down their heart with labour; they fell down, and there was none to help. Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses." Psalm 107:10-14

* From diseases: " Their soul abhorreth all manner of meat; and they draw near unto the gates of death. Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses. He sent his word, and healed them" Psalm 107:18-20

*From the storms of life: "They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters; These see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep. For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof. They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit's end. Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still." Psalm 107:23-29

**when you have tried it all and failed, turn to God.

3. Through His Son: "And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God." Mark 10:18

*Undeserved goodness: "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

* Promise of future goodness: "He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?" Romans 8:32

* The source of all goodness: "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.
18 Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures." James 1:17-18

Our Response:

1. Repent of our unbelief and ingratitude: "Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?" Romans 2:4

Repentance is like this: say I want to go to Oklahoma City and get in my car, drive to and get on interstate highway 35; after an hour I see a sign that says Waco 1 mile ahead. I then realize that I'm going in the wrong direction, I exit the interstate, turn left to go over the bridge, turn left again and get back on the interstate going now in the correct direction: I have repented of the direction I was going and am now going in the right direction. Repentance is realizing your direction is wrong and you turn your life around so that you are going in the right direction. Repentance is a changed mind leading to a changed direction which results in a changed life!

2. Rest in His goodness when in adversity: (bad things does happen to good people)
"Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee before the sons of men! Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy presence from the pride of man: thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues." Psalms 31:19-20

3. Risk it all, step out in faith! " For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly." Psalms 84:11 (the sun is energy and the shield is protection)

* Walk uprightly in your marriage:

* Walk uprightly in your job:

* Walk uprightly in your parenting:

* Walk uprightly in your finances:

Overcome Satan!

The Ambassadors provided great music to the New Beginnings class today along with their personal testimonies. The Lord brought to me Revelation 12:10-11 that speaks about a testimony overcoming the devil. My thoughts throughout the week were about our need to have a testimony! When you have a testimony you are speaking about something you witnessed, to something you know as a fact or to something that you have experienced. I am so glad that I have a testimony to tell others about on how God has seen me through situations throughout my life. I am so glad that as a young boy I accepted Jesus as my Savior, that my sins were forgiven, that I have a home in heaven, and that I have an advocate speaking for me before God as that great accuser accuses me before God!

I am reminded of the recorded story in Mark 1:40 – 45 where a man full of leprosy called out to the Lord requesting healing and the Lord reached out and touched him and healed him of his leprosy. Following his healing the healed leprous man went about the country telling others how once he was full of leprosy and now he was clean; healed by the touch of Christ! Oh, to have a testimony! Has Christ reached out to touch you, to heal and cleanse you?

The one who bring disease and troubles is that great liar, Satan. God allows him to do this for several reasons: to shape us, to test us, to strengthen us to give us a testimony. Why? To glorify God; to be an encouragement to someone else! After you have gone through the trial; after God has brought you through you will have a testimony of God’s provision to help another who is going through the same problem. God will bring these people across your path, it’s up to you to fulfill your purpose and testify! Have you had a job loss and are now employed? Find someone out of work and tell them that God will see them through. Have you been through an illness; encourage someone who is in the illness about God’s healing hand. Have you been through a death? Encourage some one who is in grief!

God gave you these experiences to help His children and to receive glory for His blessing bestowed! Hebrews 4:16 speaks to this “. . . we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in the time of need.” God’s desire is to be merciful and to meet your needs.

There is a great day coming spoken of in Revelation 12:10-11 “. . . Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony.” The devil is overcome by the shed blood of Jesus Christ and our testimony! I am so glad that we can overcome the devil today by these same two things.

You can help a brother or sister in Christ to overcome the attack of Satan on their lives by your testimony. Praise God for seeing us through our trials and troubles! Use this victory to help another to achieve a victorious lift – Share your testimony today!