Being Like Him - a 40 Day Lenten DevotionalSample

Goodness

God is good all the time because this is one of His attributes. Jesus was addressed as a Good Teacher by a person and Jesus asked him, “ Why do you call me good? No one is good, except God” (Matthew 18:19). So, does that mean we human beings cannot be good? Yes, we cannot be good enough when compared to who God is, but goodness is a quality of life that God wants for His children. Again this is part of the fruit of the Spirit. The fruit of the Spirit is displayed through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

When God created human beings, He declared His act of human creation as “very good”. It was not a compliment to himself, but human beings made in His image were truly a delight to Him. The Godhead family could see themselves reflected in the human being, which they declared as very good. Hence what makes us good is the fact that we bear His image and so God’s goodness shines through our life. But we know sin marred that image, and the goodness of God today does not naturally flow through unless we have yielded our life to Him fully.

God’s goodness is exemplified in His willingness to sacrifice His own son Jesus on the cross for us. The very goodness of God made Him sacrifice His only beloved Son for the goodness of humankind.

Now, the act of the Son being sacrificed did not look good when it happened. In fact, it looked gruesome and painful. The Son went through the deepest torture possible, but the greater good of human beings was always in focus when God planned this.

So for the greater good to emerge out of us and for the greater good for our generations, God allows unpleasant and painful situations. He is a good Father, whose heart cries out for His children, more than human parents do. He allows His children to go through the grind of discipline and hardship for their good. The children may not understand it at the time of disciplining, but they can trust the goodness of their Father.

To be like Him in goodness calls us to go through tough and unpleasant times, but to be good and to pursue His will is very important.

Prayer:

Lord, thank you for dying for me, to restore and make me good again. Lord, help me to pursue goodness even if I must face unpleasant situations, as you did on the cross. The greater good that you want to fulfill in my life and my situation is what I want to pursue, rather than the immediate goodness that I desire. Help me to be good in your sight today by the power of your Spirit. In Jesus name, Amen.