Endurance for the Journey, Featured
The Goodness of God
You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession.
As a result, you can show others the goodness of God,
for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.
1 PETER 2:9 (NLT)
“The goodness of God is that which disposes Him to be kind, cordial, benevolent, and full of good will to toward men. He is tenderhearted and of quick sympathy, and His unfailing attitude toward all moral beings is open, frank, and friendly. By His nature He is inclined to bestow blessedness, and He takes holy pleasure in the happiness of His people … God created us because He felt good in His heart, and He redeemed us for the same reason” (AW Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy).
We all have some sort of picture of God in our minds. As AW Tozer says, “We tend by a secret law of the soul to move toward our mental image of God.” Some might picture God as just waiting to judge people. Like the Prodigal Son in Luke 15 who squandered his inheritance in wild living, you feel unworthy thinking “I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants” (Luke 15:18-19).
Oh but how surprising and shocking is the goodness and kindness of God. Consider the father’s response to his wayward son:
“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead. and is alive again; he was lost and is found'” (Luke 15:20-24).
This is God’s heart towards sinners!
REFLECTION:
Put yourself in the prodigal son’s shoes for a moment and try to imagine what he felt like and expected from his father on his way home. How did this expectation contrast with the reality of how his father greeted him?
(Excerpt taken from The Increase Discipleship Handbook published and given permission by Professional Athletes Outreach. Website – pao.org)
On the journey with you,
Jan & Dave Dravecky
