As children of God, we have His nature within us. In the above verse, the psalm writer expounds on a characteristic of God that we should emulate as His representatives on earth.
God is good.
In the words of the Lord Jesus Christ:
...love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? (Matt 5:44-46)
God, in His eternal patience and long-suffering, has no pleasure in the death of the wicked (Ezekiel 33:11), and does not want anyone to perish, but that all, through the Lord Jesus, might be saved (1 Tim 2:4). He loves us with an everlasting love, and even when we are faithless, remains faithful (2 Tim 2:13). When we consider these elements of His character, we might find it a tall order to live up to His standards. One would have to be a veritable saint, you might say, to be as good as God!
But that, my dear friend, is who God says you are. A saint is not someone who has lived a full, godly existence before going on to a peaceful rest in the sweet by and by. Take a look at Paul's epistles to the churches of his day. They are addressed to the saints in Rome (Rom1:7), Corinth (1 cor1:2), Achaia (2 Cor 1:1), Ephesus (Eph 1:1) and Philippi (Phil 1:1) to name a few. A quick study of those letters will show that those Christians were by no means free from the issues we deal with today. In fact, most of the epistles were instructional manuals to help them be holy and faith-filled in a godless world. Our goodness is nothing apart from God, but through Christ, we have received all we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3).
As you consider your ways and deeds today, remind yourself that you, the son or daughter of God Almighty, are just like your Father - good and always seeking to do good. The same was said about our brother and model, Jesus Christ:
And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. (Acts 10:38 NLT)
From the above scripture, it is clear that the Holy Spirit was the power behind the miracles and every good thing Jesus did. Also, God was with Him. Your ability to make a difference in someone else's life does not depend on what you know or have, but on the truth that the Spirit of Him who raised Christ from the dead dwells in you (Romans 8:11).
So as you go about your business, keep your heart tuned in to God's voice and your eyes open to His people, and let the good God work His goodness through you!
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