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What is good? I imagine if you asked 10 different people for the definition, you'd get 10 different answers. When I looked the word "good" up in the dictionary, I was overwhelmed by the endless definitions listed. The word "good" had almost 30 different definitions based on how it was used in a sentence. With so many definitions to choose from, I believe part of our problem in knowing what "good" is, arises from our difficulty in defining the word and applying this term to God.

I think without realizing it, many of us have this belief that if God is "good" then He would reward each person according to his or her deeds. When asked, I've heard many people say the reason they should go to heaven when they die is because they are a "good" person. But how "good" is "good" enough? Gee, we can't even define it… much less understand how to BE it.

It's obvious when you look at the tragedy and triumph in life – being "good" isn't what matters most. The fact that rewards and punishment seem to be handed out without any logic in this life drives many of us to question the goodness of God and His power.

But consider this… would God be "good" if He were to deal with each person according to his or her own behavior? What would that mean in your life?

If we turn to the Old and New Testaments – as a whole - we can see that God's goodness is not only evident in His justice, but also in His love, grace, mercy and kindness. We should all be so thankful God does not reward or punish us based on our own deeds. If He did, I'm afraid we'd all be in big trouble.

It is my observation that most of us believe happiness is the greatest "good" in life since we spend so much of our lives seeking it and searching for it. In this context, I believe we are looking at happiness in terms of our comfort. But true happiness is something deeper and more profound that just a fleeting enjoyment of the moment. God is infinite in His wisdom. And much to our dismay, God knows there are things to be accomplished in our character that can only be brought about through suffering. If God were to shield us from this suffering, would certainly rob us of a greater good.

I know when I recently lost my job I asked all those questions, wondering where I went wrong. I love Jesus so much, my desire to know Him is greater than anything else in my life, and yet this job I loved, working in a field that promoted HIM, it was taken away from me, not because of any wrongdoing I did at my job, but because the company eliminated my position. I still couldn't help but wonder did I do something to cause this to happen.

After reading stories in the Old and New Testaments, it's easy to see why we may assume suffering is the judgment of God. But there are many times when suffering is totally unrelated to personal wrongdoing and an automatic assumption of guilt is totally unwarranted.

Here are some examples of an evident connection between suffering and sin. In the Old Testament God afflicted Miriam with leprosy for challenging the authority of Moses. He also took the life of David's child, born out of his adulterous relationship with Bathsheba, whose husband David had killed. In the New Testament Ananias and Sapphira were struck dead for lying, cheating, and hypocrisy.

Although there are times when the connection is evident, it is not always clear. The disciples apparently agreed with the correlation of suffering to sin. One day they saw a man who had been blind from birth and wanted to know WHO had sinned to cause his blindness – the man or his parents. Jesus made it clear that neither this man, nor his parents were responsible for his condition.

So, sometimes it's hard to understand why bad things happen, when we can't trace it back to something. And of course, so many of us wonder, if God is so "good" then why do bad things happen. It's a vicious cycle of unanswered questions.

I know many people wonder if God is "good" then why does He send people to hell? The hard truth is… God doesn't send anyone to hell. Each person sends himself or herself. God has done all that is needed for us to be forgiven, redeemed, cleansed and made fit for heaven. All that is required of us is to receive this gift. If we refuse, God has no option but to give us our choice. Let me say that again – OUR CHOICE.

I suppose one of the greatest difficulties in having faith is to believe God is good. There is so much we don't understand. But we are not left to guess about the goodness of God from just bits and pieces. God clearly revealed His character and dramatically demonstrated it to us in the Cross.

God never asks us to understand; we need only trust him. Knowing this…

"Point of Reference" from Fred Price

In His Glorious and Awesome Name Deut. 28:58