Who Is Good?

Do you want the good news or the bad news first? Ironically there really isn’t any good news unless we understand the very, very bad news first. All the ways the world tries to keep us pumped up with positive self-talk, and reasons we should love ourselves aren’t that helpful. When the world’s encouragement keeps us from the truth, it is actually very harmful!

It means very little to hear “the judge had mercy on you and you are now free”, unless you know the circumstances. Free from what? And what judge? And who cares anyway…I’m pursing my career and making money and doing my thing. I’m good. All good. Thanks but no thanks.

Luke 18:19 touches on the subject of goodness. A very religious man, very concerned with appearances and keeping rules, talks to Jesus and asks Him, the “good teacher” as he puts it, what he needs to do to inherit eternal life. Jesus knows the man’s heart already and knows he does not understand that He is God. To the ruler, Jesus is just a good teacher, helpful, an expert of the law perhaps. Jesus asks him, “‘Why do you call me good,'” not because Jesus isn’t good, but because He is THE ONLY ONE WHO IS GOOD. In this case, it is absolutely accurate and deserved, but the man does not even know what he is saying.

So…Who do I call good?

And what do I call myself? I’m sorry to say, since the fall of man, there is only one answer for what all people are: bad. Even in the womb, before I had a chance to do anything, I was a sinner. My DNA includes sin. Adam and Eve were given the chance to choose God, but they didn’t and neither would any of us had we been in their place. All people are born as enemies of the Almighty God. When we can admit that, we can finally begin to see the horrible situation we are in and understand the bad news, the REALLY BAD NEWS so we can get to the good news.

Before accepting Christ as my Savior, I wanted to be good. I made all sorts of efforts, for all kinds of reasons. But they only looked like filthy rags to God. Isaiah 64:6 says

All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.

Before I accepted Christ as my Savior, my heart was still as black as dirt. No matter what I did, nothing changed that until Jesus entered the picture. Jesus did perfectly obey God the Father and He died on the cross for us. This is where hope enters the picture, finally.

God found another way to satisfy His absolutely just nature. He was sinned against and that needed to be punished. His only Son, Jesus, took that punishment for us and He died for us. God brought Him to life again to end the tragedy with victory and hope. The payment was made and now we have a fresh start with God if we have the mind and heart to care!

We once again have the chance to choose to obey God, just like Adam and Eve so long ago

Will we submit everything to Him, give all we are to Him finally because He is our creator, our redeemer, the lover of very souls? He has wonderful plans for us in this life and the one to come. We still live in a fallen and broken world, but we are no longer alone in it. We have a constant companion, friend, counselor and Lord to spend our days with and for. And now, finally, we can be seen as “good” again to God Himself, the one that matters most. The precious blood of His Son covers over our sinful nature. God sees those who repent and submit to Him as good, righteous, and forgiven. We are adopted into His family and are now His children. Life will be different from now on, but good. We give our lives, hearts, souls to God and we find He is wonderfully kind, merciful and just. He is truly the absolutely just and merciful judge.

So I end this with the same question I began it with.

Who is good?

Are you good? Am I?

I can now actually say yes, I am good.  It’s amazing. But it’s all because of God, not me. I owe Him everything for all He has done for me. He has done the same for you. If you haven’t made things right with Him, do it now. Run to the judge of the universe and ask for His mercy and forgiveness.

Yes, it’s the end of your life done your way for your reasons.

But it’s the start of God’s life in you, done God’s way for God’s reasons.

And that is a wonderful thing.