Is God good? (Part 2)

Some people try to deal with the problem of senseless suffering by abandoning belief in God. But that leaves some big questions: If there is no God, why should we be outraged when bad or unjust things happen to people? Violence, cruelty, and injustice happen all the time. On what basis can we say that they are wrong?

When the German philosopher, atheist, and foundation to post modernity Friedrich Nietzsche heard that a volcanic eruption followed by tsunamis had destroyed Java in 1883, he wrote a friend: "Two hundred thousand wiped out at a stroke—how magnificent!" Nietzsche was just being logically consistent. Because he didn't believe in God, he concluded that all value judgments are arbitrary. All definitions of justice are based on your culture or temperament—not objective morality. The late Dr. Tim Keller writes… “If there is no God or higher divine law, then injustice is perfectly natural. So abandoning belief in God doesn't help with the problem of suffering at all.”

And we continue this week this very topic. Again I want to make it very clear as to how the image of God works and how we just cannot get away from it. It is unavoidable… you have to believe in God before you can make a case to prove that He does not exist. The only way any of your judgements have any and I mean any value and or meaning you have to presuppose God. That is the insanity of walking away from God when we suffer. The minute you walk away and abandon God, you lose any value to anything you would call suffering. Anything you will call suffering you can make a case that it is not suffering. Why do you call it suffering? How can you call it suffering? Why do you call it suffering? Like Nietzche said… how awesome that all of these things are happening to you. But many cannot live here. So the unbelief is that God is not good not that He does not exist. The Israelites could not at any point deny the existence of God, how could they deny the existence of God while looking at the pillar of fire by night? The unbelief that they were condemned for was unbelief that God is a good God. And biblically, it is really the only unbelief that is given by the scriptures.

Remember I said that in Romans chapter 1 there is no such thing as an atheist.

Romans 1:18–19 NLT

But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness. They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them.

So ALL unbelief is unbelief that God is a good God. And the reason for much of this stems from circumstances and suffering. And the reason for this is because our real standard of morality or right and wrong comes not from the Bible but from society and culture. Let’s be honest with ourselves today. There should be no issues ever… if we really believe the Word is true and is foundational to all that we believe then we must conclude that God is good and does only good. Thus says the Word of the Lord. Lets check it out...

Psalm 119:65–72 NLT

You have done many good things for me, Lord, just as you promised. I believe in your commands; now teach me good judgment and knowledge. I used to wander off until you disciplined me; but now I closely follow your word. You are good and do only good; teach me your decrees. Arrogant people smear me with lies, but in truth I obey your commandments with all my heart. Their hearts are dull and stupid, but I delight in your instructions. My suffering was good for me, for it taught me to pay attention to your decrees. Your instructions are more valuable to me than millions in gold and silver.

The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.

Whose Report Will You Believe

More Precious than Millions

The first thing we want to look at today is our propensity to listen to lies from the world instead of the truth from scriptures… whose report will you believe. The second point of interest is the declaration of the living God that His Word is more precious than millions in gold and silver because it contains the greatest message ever heard.

Thesis: Though sin, the flesh and the pattern of this world cause us to doubt the goodness of God due to circumstances, it is the power of the Holy Spirit and the truth of the Gospel that will cause us to see that the Lord is good and does only good and that is good news.

I. Whose Report Will You Believe

- We shall believe the report of the Lord.

A. The arrogant smear the psalmist with lies. They speak against him, not with truth, but the image is that of forging. They had crafted lies. But a closer look at this will shows something a bit more sinister. What is the common thing that is forged on an anvil? And what is ever worse… what is that which is forged on the Devils anvil? What kind of weapon would that be? This is what the arrogant does. This is the behavior of those who are acting in a way to be severely punished. Not only are they arrogant, but they are unfeeling just like fat.

B. Now I have a bit of new found experience with this… since I started taking insulin. Fat cells have no feeling. This is a picture of communicating the fact that these people do not care. What he is saying is that these people do not care. They have no feeling. And it continues today...

C. The arrogant and the unfeeling continue to craft and forge lies against us. We have probably experienced stuff like this… people lying on us. Lying about our character. Making us look bad. Lies used as weapons against us. It is shots against our character. Against what we are. Against how we are. Against where we are. But here is the most devastating of lies coming from the arrogant and unfeeling… Against WHO we are.

D. The arrogant and unfeeling tells you that there is no God and you are just a random autonomous event in the universe. The arrogant tells you that your purpose in life is to achieve and experience all that you want. Grab all you can in life. Don’t let anyone tell you what to do. There are no eternal consequences and no hell so don’t worry about it. Make your own reality. Create your own destiny. You decide. And how is all of this working out? Its just making people angry.

E. Common Shane these guys are experts. They are experts and they have experienced things you have not. They are the ones who have looked into this. They got the equipment. They are smarter than you. They got the knowledge they got the awareness. Their colleagues concur. They agree with them. they seen it all to. They have been where you have not. They have seen what you have not seen. They continue to research and the world continues to report. That’s all this is… they are the spies who went out into the land and came back with a report. You Christians are so gullible. Still believing in fairytales. Still believing is the sky daddy. Don’t be foolish… we have seen it. We have researched it. We have investigated. We looked at the evidence. The experts have concluded.

F. This is the report of the world. Whose report will you believe? Our psalmist declares that he will go to the Word of the Lord. He goes to the word of the Lord with all his heart. He actually delights in the word of God. He believes the report of the Lord. Will we stop listening to the culture? Will we stop listening the lies? Will we stop listening to the deception that was crafted and being used as a weapon against you by the arrogant and unfeeling? But why should I listen to the Word of God instead?

II. More Precious then Millions

- The Word of God is more valuable than millions in gold and silver.

A. Lies are forged against us. But the word of God is truth.

John 17:17 ESV

Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.

B. So how much is truth worth to ya? This is a very extraordinary thing being communicated by our psalmist. Now you and I both know that coming from me it might not say much… its easy to say that when you don’t have millions in gold and silver. What would those who have it say?

Charles Spurgeon… “If a poor man had said this, the people of the world without much understanding would have hinted that the author was jealous and that those without wealth are the first to despise it. However, this is the verdict of a man who owned thousands and could judge the value of money and the value of truth by actual experience.”

C. Now who we understand our psalmist traditionally as David, was not unfamiliar with wealth. And he shows just how awesome is the Word of God. How great is the Word of God. How wonderful is the Word of God. Yes we see that wealth is good in some respects but we see that obedience is better in every respect. The word is better in so many respects, but millions in gold and silver can be stolen and can easily run out, it can take flight, it can come up missing, it can be lost, it is absolutely worthless in the hour of death. The word of God cannot be stolen, cannot be lost, and is the comfort we need at the hour of death.

It is said, “It is a sure sign of a heart that has learned God’s statutes when it values God’s Word above all earthly possessions.”

It is also said by reformed scholastic theologians, “I buy books and if there is anything left I’ll buy food.” The hunger for the Word of God.

D. The Word of God is what we need. Many have sought riches and found it and realized it did not make life better at all. The more money people get today, the more discontent they will become. And look at our culture today… Everyone is just flat angry. Where else are you gonna go. Obviously the message today is not doing it. Where else are you gonna go.

E. The reality is that because of sin we do not want to hear the truth for we by nature love the darkness instead of the light because our deeds are evil. The reality is we reject the Word of God because we by nature believe that God is not good. The reality is that we see “God allowing good people to suffer” as the real problem, when the real problem is why does God allow evil people to prosper? Thats the real problem… but we don’t have an issue with it, because we are by nature ok with it. We all… no matter what or who, should prosper. We think this is what a good God does. Prosper everyone no matter how bad they are… all the while forget that the Word of God makes it clear that wealth could be judgement… those who are rich are always tempted with the “Who is God” issue.

F. I mean think about it… they get away with so much. They don’t think they need anything. Never put on church discipline. Pastors who are trying to build will never rebuke you if you are wealthy, people will not be honest with you. People are scared of you. Put you in positions you are not qualified for in the church. You don’t think you need anything. They wont tell you what you need to hear if you really need it.

G. This is the reality of sin… the lies and the deception are plenty. But the Bible makes it clear. We all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. There is no one righteous no not one. We are all by nature children of wrath. There is no one on earth who always does good and never sins. The wages of sin is death. The punishment of weeping and gnashing of teeth. Eternal darkness. Eternal fire. Outer darkness. And how much money do you think it will take to save you from this? How much money is needed for God to withhold judgement? In the end its will not matter how much you have, but what you know. And what will the Bible tell you.

H. It will tell you that Jesus died for our sins according to the scriptures and he was buried and he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance that Christ Jesus came into this world to save sinners. Jesus came to seek and to save that which was lost. He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed. God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.

I. Millions in gold and silver will never bring that kind of hope that can only come from the promises of God. Jesus is our Lord and He is our all and His Word is as awesome as it gets. He is good and all he does is good. As told to us by the very thing the living God says is more valuable than anything in this world. Heaven and earth will pass away but the Word of God will remain forever.