God Is Good

Let all that I am praise the LORD; may I never forget the good things he does for me. [Psalm 103.2] 

Good things are God's business. 

God is good. 

Heaven is good. 

Everything God plans and does is good.

Because God is good, no evil can reside in or around Him. This includes heaven. Evil only exists as the manifestation of no good just as cold only exists as the manifestation of no heat or darkness only exists as the manifestation of no light.

If only God's people would focus on (never forget) His goodness instead of the evil all around them. This problem evidently pre-dates Psalm 103.2. It requires intentional effort to remember the goodness of God and this is first seen in the Garden of Eden.

There is a reason Satan wanted Adam and Eve to partake of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He used, "You will be like God..." as the enticement, but his nefarious main intention was for them to know evil because knowing evil introduced them to fear which is the opposite of faith.

Without faith it is impossible to please God.

Satan accomplished his pawn-like task as evidenced in Adam and Eve hiding out of fear because they "saw" they were naked. Their disobedience revealed "evil" (because it was in disobedience) instead of "good" and therefore Adam and Eve found themselves deceived and shamefully vulnerable (naked).

This all factors into God's plan (from the beginning) to have fellowship with mankind (that could only be achieved) through mutual relationship (decidedly desiring one another). Man's choice to "be like God" put him in the unique position of separation from God thus requiring an act of his decided will to be restored (or not) to relationship with God. In other words, God does not want relationship with robots created without freewill. Instead, God wants to be loved back by the explicit will of the one whom He loves creating a mutual relationship of fellowship. 

In short, everything that took place in the Garden of Eden, by design, set the stage for Jesus to pay the penalty for disobedience so that the evil and good man became acquainted with upon eating the forbidden fruit could provide the platform from which man could decidedly submit to God in faith because He is good.

If we forget the good things God has done, we are left only to remember the evil things spawned by sin that lead us to fear. And, here is where we need to be particularly leery of idols that promise to do (at a price) what God Himself, in all His goodness, promised to do for us freely. It is fear that drives man to the idols of debt, insurance, medicine and technology, circumventing every opportunity for faith in God alone that declares, "The LORD is my Shepherd - I shall not want!"

Jesus, the Good Shepherd, died for our sin so that from our decided will to submit to God, we might believe in Him enjoying everything the "Good News"  of His life, death and resurrection provides.

We must never forget the good things God does for us!

Father, may I never forget the good things You have done for me. You are good and Your mercy endures forever! May my eyes constantly see and recognize all Your goodness in Jesus Christ and may my will be found decidedly believing in Him as the Way to get to You! So be it!