God is Good, But…

Nahum 1:7
The LORD is good,
a refuge in times of trouble.
He cares for those who trust in him,
Nahum 1:8
but with an overwhelming flood
he will make an end of Nineveh;
he will pursue his foes into the realm of darkness.

God is good, all the time, and all the time, God is good. This has become a modern-day greeting among Christians. This greeting affirms the goodness of God. The most basic belief about God among Christians is that He is good. This is why we pray to Him and trust Him.

Other religions have powerful gods, but never good. They have gods of death, gods of fertility, gods of success, etc. But these gods are never known to be good. These gods are ruthless and merciless and only act after being appeased by sacrifices and whatever else they demand. These gods only save you if you work towards it by meeting their laid-down expectations. These myriad of gods are powerful but not good!

The God of the Bible is good. The God that Christians worship is good. This God is much more real and powerful than all other gods. This God manifests Himself as greater than any other gods. He is the God of gods. Yet this most powerful God is not just great but good.

The God of the Bible is good because He offered forgiveness to human beings, His creatures who offended Him. He offered forgiveness before anyone apologized. He is good because He has tolerated our foolishness. He is good because He is patiently waiting for us to repent our sins, 2 Peter 3:9. He is good because while we were yet sinners, He made a great sacrifice to ensure that our forgiveness is possible, Romans 5:8. This God is good!

This God who took a human body and died on the cross to save ingrates is a good God. This God who accepted shame and humiliation in order to save us is good. This God who is symbolized by the father of the prodigal son would accept us back even when we know we are so bad we shouldn’t be accepted back. This God is good!

Other gods do not care to explain their plans and will to their subjects. The God of the Bible gave the Bible to us so that we can know His plans and His will. To avoid all doubt, He states clearly that His plans for us are good, Jeremiah 29:11. He plans to destroy sin and live with us in eternity. This God is good!

A God you can pray to anytime is a good God. A God so powerful yet so good. Our God is good!

Our main text today tells us that God is particularly good to those who have chosen to belong to Him. God is so good that even though we all belong to Him by virtue of His creative work, He has allowed us to choose whether to relate with Him or not. Therefore to those who have chosen God, He is indeed good to them.

Nahum tells us that God is good. He is good because in times of trouble we run to Him. A friend in need is a friend indeed. When trouble comes and fake friends and family run away exposing us to shame, God avails Himself as a place to run to. When trouble shows up, God shows up. When you get into trouble, you find God waiting for you in trouble, to make it bearable or to deliver you. A God who helps us in trouble is a good God!

But to those who are enemies to God’s people. But to Nineveh that has troubled Israel for many years. But to Nineveh that repented during Jonah’s time and then went back to sin and got worse. But to anyone who ignores the will of God, God will not be good to them. God is good, but to the evildoer, God can be seriously bad news to their career in sin. God is good, but…

God is good but when we reject all His offers of salvation, He will stop making the offers and now punish our wrongdoing. God is good but when we abuse His goodness by persisting in sin, He will punish us in the most severe way. God is good that is why He forced Jonah to go and warn the people of Nineveh. Even though Jonah wanted Nineveh destroyed, God was good to Nineveh. However, Nineveh abused God’s goodness and went back to their evil way. God had been good, but now, enough is enough. God is good but He will not be patient with us forever, we must respond to Him now!

Nahum tells us that God is so good that when He pursues His enemies, the enemies of His people, He will not just scare them away. To scare them away means they remain to pose a threat. Nahum tells us that God pursues His enemies deep into their hideout in darkness and destroys them so that they never rise again Nahum 1:9. When God stops anything and anyone who threatens us, they will never rise again. No problem will remain a continuous threat, yet our good God is on our side. God is good to us, but not to our enemies. God is good to us, but not to those who have rejected Him. God is good, but…

May I experience the goodness of the LORD God all the days of my life, in Jesus’ name, Amen!

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