Monday, July 14, 2008

God is good, God is love

God is good.
19 Jesus answered. No-one is good- except God alone. Luke 18:19

His will is perfect
2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is- his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9

God's will is that none would perish but all may have eternal life.
God knows what's best for us and this is why He tells us not to live according to our own sinful nature- it will lead us to death.

For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, Rom 8:13

I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. Rom 7:18

God is Love
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 1 John 4:7-8

So if God is love you can replace His name with the word love in this passage:
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails.1 Cor 13:4-8

If nothing good lives in us, then the good that we do must be from God...because God is good and God is love.

The next thing I'm going to ask God is: If we are all sinful by nature and the good in us is God, then how come there are good/moral people who aren't Christians? What's the point? Anyone have any insight?

2 comments:

Emily said...

Here's a thought: God is most certainly Love, but Love is not God. Is it possible that we worship Love and not God. Love is good, often moral, but not God. God is Love, but not only love. What happens when we stop with God is love and don't add holy, or just?

Ponderous.

ElanorJoy said...

If we are all sinful by nature and the good in us is God, then how come there are good/moral people who aren't Christians? What's the point?

The Bible says that God has placed eternity in the hearts of men and it says that we are made in God's image.

Lewis' novel Mere Christianity begins by talking about how humanity's recognition of 'right' and 'wrong' is proof of God's existence because the idea of 'good' and 'moral' is only understood as a truth that exists above the individual.

So when we recognize that someone is 'moral' we are saying that their life is governed by an overarching concept of 'right.'

The reality of 'good' of 'right' of 'love' are all aspects of God that are built into us as beings who are created in His image; they are meant to lead us to an awareness of the undeniability of God. But some people stop at 'good' 'right' 'love' instead of continueing on. They worship the attributes of God while denying God. It's a pretty rough way to live because we can't attain God's perfection, we need grace.

However, because these people don't recognize they have recieved grace they often strive even harder to attain these Godly attributes than Christians who may start to rest on their laurels and not feel compelled to strive to emulate God because they know that they won't achieve perfection so they are content to accept mercy without making the effort they should.