The Goodness of God
Dearly beloved of God, God our Father is only good toward us. He would have all to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. The goodness of God leads a person to repentance.
Romans 8:28 Nestle-Aland Greek-English New Testament
We know that in everything God works for good with those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose.
It was the good pleasure of His Will to bless us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm. He loves His children, and we are highly favored in His sight.
Our adversary the Devil, who is also called Satan, is evil, and there is no good in him. His will is death, sickness, oppression, darkness, poverty, and destruction. He is the thief that comes but for to steal, to kill, and to destroy.
The book of Job makes this unmistakably obvious.
Job 1:9-12
9 Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought?
10 Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.
11 But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face.
12 And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord.
God blessed Job. He put a hedge about him, his house, and about all he had, but Satan tempted God to hurt him.
God said, “All that he hath is in thy power….” This truth is repeated in 2:6: “Behold, he is in thine hand [Satan’s].”
Satan wreaked havoc on Job. Satan had Job’s children and servants killed. His herds were stolen. He smote Job with boils covering his body, and his wife tempted him to “curse God and die.”
Satan used his power to hurt Job, but God turned the captivity of Job, and blessed him with twice as much as he had before Satan's attacks.
How did the adversary obtain this power? Before Adam transgressed God’s commandment, he had dominion over the earth. Consider this direct confrontation that Jesus had with the devil in the wilderness.
Luke 4:5-8
5 And the devil, taking him up into an high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.
6 And the devil said unto him, All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it.
7 If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine.
“All this power” was delivered unto the devil when Adam made the willful decision to transgress, to disobey God’s direct command given to him in the garden. All the kingdoms of the world are under the devil’s power, and he can give this power and glory to whosoever will worship him.
Had it not been true Jesus Christ would have confronted him about his statement. All Jesus Christ had to do to obtain this power was to worship him.
8 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
Jesus Christ did not succumb to the adversary’s temptation as Adam did. He always did his Father’s Will, and he did those things that pleased Him. He was an obedient Son even unto death.
Philippians 2:8-11
8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Jesus Christ obeyed God, and God rewarded him for his obedience. Ephesians 1:19-23 reveals more about this to us. Consider what Jesus Christ accomplished by obeying God.
Colossians 1:12-14
12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
Jesus Christ delivered us from the power of darkness. He redeemed us from the consequences of Adam's disobedience. We no longer belong to the kingdoms of this world; God transferred us into the kingdom of His beloved Son.
Today we live in this world, but we are no longer of it. God transferred us from the power of darkness into the kingdom of His beloved Son. We entered his kingdom when we were born again. This first phase of our redemption is an accomplished reality, but there is much more to come.
II Peter 1:11
For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
In the future, when the Lord Jesus Christ returns to gather the Church together, an entrance into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior shall be ministered unto us abundantly. When the Lord returns we will physically enter his kingdom. We will enter, and be like him, having new bodies like Christ’s glorious body that dies no more. We will acquire the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Lord Jesus Christ made salvation available to all people. He justified us from Adam’s sin, and the condemnation of death he brought upon mankind.
Thanks be unto God Who gave us the victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. God’s Will toward us is only good concerning us. We will live in the presence of His goodness forever.
When Christ returns we will have everlasting life, and be glorified together with him in the ages to come. Rejoice. He is coming!