Devotionals on Goodness

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• And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bore fruit an hundredfold (Luke 8:8).
• Good ground are they who. . .

• The sense of His goodness removes the guile of heart that seeks to conceal its sin. -J.N.D.

• Nevertheless, the Prophet is the instrument of keeping the Lord's full thought alive, and of maintaining vision without which the people are doomed to disintegration.... The Lord needs that which really does represent His fullest possible thought, and not those who are just doing a good work.

• We may try to do a lot of things, but if we belong to the Vine we are no good for anything but to bear fruit; and that is to bring Life to others.

• Christ-like Qualities The thoughts God thinks are good thoughts – the very essence of His moral beauty.

• All things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28 ESV)
• To them that love God,to them whose heart is taken up with God and the fulfillment of His purpose, all things work together for good, even to them that are called according to His purpose.That is a definite statement showing believers are called into a Divine purpose.

• Most men will proclaim every one his own goodness, but a faithful man – who can find?Proverbs 20:6
• When the Lord returns may we all Him say these blessed words: well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.

• Gracious God Once He set His heart on redemption, it exploded into myriads of additional graces: Love; Joy; Peace; Long-suffering; Kindness; Goodness; Faithfulness; Gentleness; Self-Control.
• God’s Goodness That means that despite everything – God accepts me because of Jesus.
• And if this is good enough for God, then it's good enough for me, and good enough for you.

• Long-Suffering I believe, with all my heart that in the fullness of time we will understand why the Bridegroom ‘tarried’… for we know that all things work together for good to those that love God. All things – even things we don’t understand and the things that grieve us: all things; ALL things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.

• If this truth is not good enough for you, then you will never live victoriously.

• Perfect Man Each day of our lives the Lord is doing a good work is each one of us..

• Faithful Stewards The Holy Spirit calls to the witness stand a multitude of mighty men and women so that the church, which is His body, may be encouraged by their example. He calls to the podium examples of good and faithful stewards, who trusted God. He calls on church-age believers to unreservedly follow this example of faith – faith in the Son of God Who loved us and gave Himself for us.
• We may have to put down or subordinate what is good, in order to gain the very best.

• That may mean the breakdown of a lot; it may mean that a good deal of misconception will have to be set aside; it may be that a whole traditional system will have to be discarded.

• These FOUR Men In this world you will have tribulation, just like these three men – Noah, Job and Daniel – just like these FOUR men – Noah, Job, Daniel, and Paul, but be of good cheer – I have overcome the world.

• Sin’s reward for spiritual death is separation from God - separation from all that’s good.
• The Perfect Man Only God’s eternal Son was good enough to pay the incredible price for humanities sin, but God is Spirit and without the shedding of human blood – is no forgiveness of sins. He had to lay aside His glory, leave His heavenly abode and become the Son of Man. And so at God’s appointed time Jesus was born – as the innocent and perfect Man. Only the blood of an innocent and perfect Man was sufficient to pay the price for sin.

• for good..
• plans for good and not for evil.
• When hearing her little catalog, he was open to the good news of Christ..
• all things DO work together, for good.
• For all things work together, for good for those that love and trust Him.

• His Good Pleasure Christ-likeness means God’s work carried out by the Spirit – through me, until it is Christ and Christ alone that lives in me – until it is God Who works in you, to will and to do of His good pleasure.

• Submissive Obedience Adam was to govern the earthly realm through God’s guidance in the heavenly realm. Later Israel was created to teach the nations the goodness of God. Israel was to demonstrate man living in submission to God – a son obedient to his Father.

• but Adam didn’t thwart God’s plan, for God uses all things to forward His purpose. God uses all things, (both good or evil) – to move forward His ultimate goal – that Christ is all in all.
• He is using the Church and the evils of this time to bring about His planned design, and He will work Satan’s schemes and the coming tribulation together – for His good.
• Gospel of Truth We must rightly divide the GOSPEL of truth – the good news from God:-  the gospel of the kingdom points to both a heavenly and earthly rule..  the gospel of the grace of God points to Christ’s perfect sacrifice..  the gospel of the glory of Christ points to His coming Kingdom – the everlasting gospel points to grace before judgment, justice, and mercy.

• Focussed Attention Are your affections too easily taken up with the froth of this world system? Are you preoccupied with the goods that chain hearts to this realm? Are you choked with the junk and wares that demand your affection? It is true that all good gifts around us are indeed sent from the heavenly Giver, and we thank Him for the day by day protection and provision that He affords us.

• Give thanks in all things knowing that all things work together for good. And Paul says that if you do this… the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

• Doubtless he was a good man, a sincere man..

• Praise Him that He makes all things work together for good..

• Religious rituals and deceptive doctrines have flooded the Church and an empty trust in our own good works, has flooded Christendom.

• Whether an unbeliever does good works or evil actions – whether he shows kindnesses or behaves wickedly, all he does emanates from the old sin-nature.

• He will take your life’s circumstances; your hurts; your disappointments; your joys… and He will take your life-span and your life-situation to complete His good work in you – and you know what, He will do the same for me!

• And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work (2 Cor. 9:8)

• Come not in terrors, as the King of kings, But kind and good, with healing in Thy wings, Tears for all woes, a heart for every plea— Come, Friend of sinners, and thus bide with me.

• Our eternal security is not dependent on our good works, but on Christ’s work alone.

• God’s Abstract Goodness One salty saint of God explains it this way: he wrote:- This is how the Holy Spirit reasons: He shows us what we are – and that is one reason why He often seems to be very hard, and does not give peace to the soul, as we are not relieved until we experientially, from our hearts, acknowledge what we are.
• The soul has to go on until it finds that there is nothing to rest on except the abstract goodness and grace of God; and then… 'If God be for us, who can be against us?'” Romans 8:31?
• and it may be true for all good gifts come from the Lord.

• While Ephesians 1:5-6 tells us that:  Having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.
• God’s Goodness J.N.
• From God to Man The Holy Spirit always reasons down from what God is, and this produces a total change in my soul. It is not that I abhor my sins; indeed I may have been walking very well… but it is ‘I abhor myself. Until the soul comes to that point He does not give it peace – He cannot for it would be healing the wound slightly. The soul has to go on until it finds there is nothing to rest on – but the abstract goodness of God; and then, ‘If God be for us, who can be against us?'”
• You are accepted in the Beloved. Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, Who has loved us and given [us] everlasting consolation and good hope by grace, comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work. 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17. For you are accepted in the Beloved.

• Thou, therefore, endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ (2 Tim. 2:3).

• Our Father has many reasons for administering trial - all good.

• This ‘love motive’ is a good motive, but it is not the correct path to spiritual maturity, for this path of devotion can lead the old-self trying to live for God, by being good, and the consequences of this path is often in living the self-life instead of the Christ-life.

• Should not I who have been predestined to adoption by Jesus Christ to Himself – should not I rejoice in Him, according to the good pleasure of His will?

• And God IS able to make all Grace abound towards you; that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.2 Corinthians 9:8

• And thus it makes the one in whom it operates free from the law of sin and death.' It gives the consciousness that divine goodness is an unfailing resource for our hearts, and that all the treasures of that goodness are stored up in Christ Jesus, that we may learn them there, and find the life of our spirits in the growing knowledge of Him. -C.A.C.

• Good Works Some consider that living godly is through service to God or ministration to mankind. Indeed, Christ was One, Who went around doing good – serving God and others, but unless administered in the power of the Spirit, our works are filthy dross to God.
• The good works and service we consider so vital to godliness are not necessarily so.
• Good works can ONLY be done in the spirit of Christ – in submission to His Spirit.

• Yes, all things work together for good….
• We may be acclaimed and honoured by man, for our great and good works – but unless implemented from Christ, such acts of His body produce nothing..

• There is much wise counsel and good teaching which is not applicable to the moment and to the need.

• Life more abundant requires that what He did for us shall be made good in us.
• In His Cross He dealt with our sins, and He also dealt with ourselves; but that is something which has to be made good progressively.

• As that held good in His case the spiritual resources of sustenance, maintenance, strength, and energy were supplied.

• Multitudes of believers are sick and tired of trying to be good.
• Paul rests our feet on the right path to goodness.
• He had learned from experience that goodness is not caught by pursuit but by association; not by struggling to obey laws and rules, but by living in the Lord Jesus' presence.

• The soul has to go on until it finds there is nothing to rest on but the Cross-proved goodness of God; and then if God be for us, who can be against us?'' -J.N.D.

• You might be secretly attempting to correct and improve yourself, and suffering a good deal of private vexation and disappointment on account of the futility of your struggles.
• My Father was not looking for any good in me, and had the Lord Jesus Christ before Him, the perfect and infinitely acceptable Object of His heart.
• And I, in my nothingness, had ceased to look for good in myself, and began tasting the deep joy of being in Christ, and free to have Him as my Object; while as to life, I entered in some degree into the blessedness of knowing that it was not I, but Christ liveth in me.' -C.A.C.

• Channels of Peace We who have been given the mind of Christ should be peacemakers. We who are called children of God should become channels of His peace – channels of His blessings and peacemaking, channels of our peace to others: finally, beloved, be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind – live in PEACE. 2 Corinthians 13:11 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Now the Lord of PEACE himself give you PEACE always by all means Amen.

• If you desire to be fruitful... to bestow on others His gentleness and grace; His compassion and mercy; His long-suffering and goodness; His love - you must learn through tribulation and trial.

• Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God. Romans 12:2
• 2 Opposing Natures The more we feed one of these two bitterly opposing natures, the more it grows and develops – and the stronger it becomes the greater its capacity for good or for evil. The new life in Christ, we received at salvation, is the very life of Jesus Christ, that was breathed into us by God’s Spirit, so we could grow in grace and spiritually mature.
• Old Nature and New Life The old sin nature we received from Adam is at enmity with God and kept us in bondage and condemnation, but it was crucified with Christ, and its power was severed at the cross – freeing us forever from the bondage of sin and death.This new life in Christ is His sinless life – which was imparted into our very beings. The old sin nature is our terrible Adamic heritage – which keeps us in bondage to sin. Unsaved men can only function under the power of the old sin nature, and whatever they do, whether good or ill, is worthy of nothing more than God’s utter condemnation.
• New Life in Christ The new life in Christ should be nurtured, while the old sin nature must be subdued, and though all Christians are positionally sanctified, (set apart unto God), we must also grow in our Christian life to be practically sanctified – and it’s all by grace. Whether we are talking about our sanctified position or the sanctifying process that continues throughout life – our spiritual growth, our growing in grace, our maturing in the faith and the good works that God has prepared for us to do, are ALL by grace.
• Then we will learn to know God’s will for our lives, which is good and pleasing and perfect. We are not to copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform us into a new person – into the likeness of Christ, by changing the way we think.
• Then we will learn to know God’s good and pleasing and perfect will for our lives.

• Matthew Henry: Matthew Henry writes: “It is good for us to be reproved, and told of our faults by our friends.
• Humility is born from the Supreme Good – LOVE.  Humility is the Garment of Grace.  Humility is the Adornment of the Heart.  Humility requires us to submit to the Spirit to search out our Secret Sins.

• Faith is not a 'good work' done for God, nor does faith have any merit or reward.
• More Simple Facts Biblical faith does not take the gospel and repackage into a feel-good programme.

• We are the workmanship of the Spirit – created in Christ to do good works through Him.
• His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him, Who called us by His own glory and goodness. 2 Peter 1:3
• We have the fruitful Spirit of goodness and grace – of truth, of power, and of UNITY.

• Man’s Need of Acceptance Satan has robbed many believers of their full ASSURANCE of eternal salvation, and many crave for reassurance of spiritual life here and eternal life to come. Many seek through good works and spiritual activity to confirm their acceptance..
• JESUS is all you need:I Am the bread of lifeI Am the living breadI Am the light of the worldI Am the door of the sheepfoldI Am the good shepherdI Am the resurrection, and the lifeI Am the way, the truth, and the lifeI Am the vine and ye are the branchesI Am Alpha and Omega,I Am the beginning and the endI Am the first and the last.I Am the root and the offspring of David,I Am the bright and morning starREST IN ME : ABIDE IN ME : FEED ON ME

• Dearly Loved Bride God betrothed Himself to Israel so that she would be His own satisfaction and joy, but Israel failed and was set aside for a time so God could complete all He purposed – and Christ is betrothed to the Church as His dearly loved bride, for His good pleasure. She is the city of the living God; the golden candlestick – the house of God.

• That is a very good thing indeed if only they find reality and do not go in for the substitutes that are today being retailed so lavishly, the substitutes which seem to be real and are an illusion.... While we are going to be joyful in the Lord, sometimes there is a large gap between being happy and joyful.

• That is the good news of the all-captivating Christ.
• This is the gospel, the good news that when Christ really captivates, the kind of thing that is in this letter happens, it really happens.

• Growing In Grace - STUDY in this world we will have tribulations but be of good cheer, He says, I have overcome the world.John 16:33
• Jesus reminded us that: in this world we will have tribulations but be of good cheer, He says, I have overcome the world.

• well done good and faithful servant..

• Lord and God He was not permitted to forego the painful growth from childhood into adulthood, nor was He exempt from the hardships that accompanied His simple life in Nazareth. Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?

• If He did, you would not be free from your self-confidence; you would not learn to fight the good fight of faith and thus obtain the victory which the Master has won; you would not learn to say the Lord Jesus only,' but you would still continue to say Jesus and I.'

• It is good to know the truth, and it is good to rejoice in it, but it is just possible that even truth may get us into trouble.

• The truth is that Christ shall be All, and that we decrease that He may increase; that He should be the primary Personality, and that the impact and registration of any life and any service should not be: What a good man he was!
• or What a good woman she is!
• What Christ is can be made good in us!

• At the home of the sin-stricken paralytic in Capernaum, He graciously announces:- Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee, Matthew 9:2.
• He quiets His afflicted disciples - tossed about on Galilee's lake, with the words:- Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.

• A word about the religious, for the same thing holds good here adapted by the Deceiver to the realm in which he is working, the type of people with whom he is dealing, the religious.

• But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil (Heb. 5:14).

• You have an argument which you think is a very good argument.
• You have a reason you think perfectly good, so you are holding on.

• Thou, therefore, endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ (2 Tim. 2:3).

• Focus on Him And finally, beloved, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report – if there is any virtue, and if there is anything praiseworthy– meditate, reflect, ponder and think on these things Philippians 4:8

• Perfect Through Obedience Understanding that like Christ, we are being prepared, is similarly foundational, and that means that every circumstance of life is used of God for His ultimate good.

• The Source Rule A sturdy tree needs good roots, and a house calls for a firm foundation.
• Carnal and Spiritual The carnal is complete in Adam: for I know in me, that is in my flesh, dwells no good thing.
• We do not need to make any effort to place ourselves in good conditions.
• For the sun meets not the springing bud that stretches toward him with half that certainty as God, the Source of all good, communicates Himself to the soul that longs to partake of Him.”

• Growing In Grace - STUDY Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen, for by it the elders obtained a good report.Hebrews 11:1-2
• We are told that:– faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen, and by it the elders obtained a good report.
• A Good Report Unlike us, the elders listed in Hebrews 11, we have received the full canon of scripture and we have a precedent.
• But like them we too can gain a good report, by faith.
• Confident Assurance None of the saints in Hebrews received the promises, but they lived in the confident assurance that God is faithful: and these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise.

• There are many things which are not only harmless but good in themselves, which have, nevertheless, been allowed to take the place of the Lord Himself, and good things can therefore embody the principle of idolatry in the one in whom the devotion is found.
• The thing itself has become the end, the object for which you live, and when the Lord wants to get you moved on into something more of Himself, the obstacle is that good Christian work, association, institution, tradition, connection.
• Yes, and that is idolatry in principle, and we see from history how the Lord again and again has had to smite with smashing blows things which in themselves were good, in order to save His people unto Himself personally....
• To put that in the other way, if your appeal for moving on with the Lord seems to people to involve their having to move away from this or that or some other thing, then there is warfare; which shows that Satan in his eternal campaign of idolatry, has got a footing amongst Christians in relation to things which take the place of the Lord Himself, good things though they be in themselves; and you find, if you are spiritually sensitive, that you are not just encountering the established institutions, but you are encountering a terrific spiritual force.

• There has never been a heresy that has not had in it sufficient truth to deceive very good people.
• He did it with Paul all through his life.... A good thing can be made its own enemy, by being either confused, or taken out of its true meaning.

• It is He Who plants us in the earth – to live and to work to His good purpose.

• The dictator dominates; the hireling flees; but the good shepherd loves his sheep and is loved by them.

• The burden over the need of others develops our hunger of heart to be a vessel unto honor, sanctified, and meet for the Master's use, and prepared unto every good work (2 Tim. 2:21).

• LOVE:joy,peace,long-suffering,kindness,goodness,faithfulness,gentleness,self-control.
• commit ourselves under the hand of the almighty God, Whose purposes for us are infinitely wise and eternally good.

• Personal Choice I can allow the enemy to blind my eyes to God’s goodness.

• Greatest Wonder God used an angelic visitation to inform that motley crew of His greatest gift to man, and they heard and acted; they saw and believed – and they shared this good news, for all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. Luke 2:18.

• There is nothing good in anyone of us.
• We are all thoroughly corrupt before God and there is no good thing in us in the sight of God,  for there is none good..

• The divine counsel shall stand, and the divine good pleasure shall be accomplished.
• It is our privilege to be able, in our little measure, to thank our Father in view of everything, and take refuge in His eternal counsels, which must be made good despite all the unbelief of the Christian, and all the malice of Satan. -C.H.M.

• But solid food is for adults - that is, for those who through constant practice have their spiritual faculties carefully trained to distinguish good from evil.

• Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good... as to a faithful Creator.1 Peter 4:12,19

• The enormous wonder of the uniting of all His attributes for our eternal good is more than the human mind can fathom.

• Even good people who have been blessed of the Lord, to whom He has shown His favor and whom He has used very greatly, may in the end be involved in spiritual tragedy if for some reason compromise has entered in.

• Thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine (1 Tim. 4:6).

• He sends us forth with His goodness, and His mercy is strewn like rose petals along our way and He is returning to take us to be with Himself forever.

• Our Father has placed us in eternal and living union with His Son, that He, not we, may be.  Moreover, He has placed His Holy Spirit eternally within us that He, not we, may “do.” Further, He has given us the necessary faith and Scripture that we may rest in this wonderful reality, trusting Him “to will and to do of His good pleasure.” This is a far cry from futile struggle and frustrating self-effort!

• Be willing to suffer, knowing that He Who began a good work in you will complete it.

• for even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ. Colossians 2:5

• So be of good cheer..  the Lord has not only revealed Himself in Christ – the Lord is still revealing Himself by His Word and by His Spirit.

• It will be this natural life of ours cropping up in some direction or another, and as it crops up it will cut clean in between us and the all things which are of God, and we shall find that it is ourself which brings us up short, which creates the arrest.... If we look withinourselves to find more good, we are going to look in vain.

• Striving Service There are many believers who are so rich in Christian experience and good works..
• There may be good claims made – genuine reasons for engaging in the Lord’s work. There may be many who profess “we have done many wonderful works in Thy name”, but motives may fail to achieve His end and His desire and His will for our lives – rationale which is deficient in achieving God’s unique plans and purposes.

• good and bad, to conform you into Christ-likeness.

• Is it because you are a good Christian who reads the Bible and prays every day?
• Is it because you have done lots of good deeds and witnessed about the Lord?
• Is it because you have restrained yourself and tried to follow His good example?
• There is nothing too good or worthy that an unbeliever can do to gain acceptance – except: believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
• Many Christians find this total acceptance by God, very difficult to understand… and they spend much of their lives seeking to remain in His good books, by being 'good', ..and so their foot slips, or temptation strikes, and they think His acceptance of them is lost.

• God’s plan of salvation is good and perfect, it is pure and right – it is holy and eternal and it glorifies God's name.

• His deity equipped the Son of God to be good enough to pay the ransom price for the sin of world – but only His humanity qualified the Son of Man to become our kinsman-Redeemer, so that He could pour out His life-blood at Calvary, as the one and only perfect human Sacrifice for sin – the Sin Offering. Not only was He the perfect sacrifice that went to the cross as an obedient Son in submission to His Father – but He willingly walked the way of the cross for the depth of love He had for His Father.

• Shocking Truth The serpent said … your eyes shall be opened and you shall be as gods knowing good and evil.
• that Adam would know good – without the power to do it, and that that Adam would know evil – without the power to avoid it. The point where they tried to raise themselves to the pinnacle of moral existence, was the point they lost the very ground of elevation they had been given – innocence. Our first parents became degraded souls..
• through the manifold wisdom of God. Creation alone would never have brought out the nature and character of God. There was infinitely more than the power and the wisdom reflected in creation. There was LOVE, MERCY, PATIENCE, TENDERNESS and GENTLENESS. There was HOLINESS, GOODNESS, GRACE and LONG-SUFFERING.

• every blessing has been provided by the Father for His children in the heavenlies, for every good and perfect gift comes from the Father of light.

• Many are looking to find some good in themselves, and in most cases without being conscious that they are doing so.

• Prayer and devotion; Bible reading and preaching; alms-giving and obedience are all good – all are good, but any one can become an impediment if we see it as a means to an end.

• It is maintaining a responsibility towards the good of others.

• Steadfastness worketh experience, and if there is no experience, what is the good of anybody or anything?

• But the good news is that this slave relationship to sin is broken the moment we trust in Jesus: so that we would no longer be enslaved to the sin-nature.

• For indeed we have had the good news preached to us, just as they also; but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith, in those who heard.Hebrews 4:2
• Trying to do good works in our own strength and living under legalism, (under law) rather than being led by the Spirit, prevents spiritual growth, and sadly this blocks our fellowship with the Father.
• Growth is not dependent on how long we’ve been saved, nor is it connected with a religious lifestyle or good works, carried out in the flesh.
• We discover that Israel heard the good news but did not adopt a right response to His word – by faith.
• Israel’s response to God’s word was unbelief, and so the good news they heard did not profit them, as it was not mixed with faith.
• A Careful Check Let us look carefully at our own Christian walk, to ensure that we are not slipping into unbelief in our own, fleshly attempt to live a good Christian life!

• And so God uses the circumstances of life, both good and bad, to test our faith so that it grows strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.

• He ascended after He had given instructions, through the Holy Spirit to the apostles He had chosen, and they were to carry the good news to those in Jerusalem – in Judea and Samaria, and to the uttermost ends of the earth.
• Undisclosed Doctrine They were to face difficulties and death as they proclaimed abroad the Good News.

• The Lord make us good stewards.

• The fickle crowds so soon forgot the kindness and goodness of the Lord Jesus, allowing themselves to be carried away by base and false accusations, so that they cried out against the one whom they had formerly extolled and praised.

• My nature is deeply flawed and I am at fault if I question the veracity of His Word – for there is none that is good..

• Propitiatory Sacrifice Perhaps this is the epitome of the goodness of God, Who turns all evil to good.

• whether good or evil.

• A malingering student will make a poor servant; a diligent student will make a good servant.

• The Lord give us to be more personally attached to Himself; then we shall be useful according to His good pleasure.

• redeemed by His blood: and we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
• All that God planned had to comply with His righteousness; goodness; truth; justice.
• Glorious Plan In His love, He designed a glorious plan that was suitable for the good of mankind.

• Fix in your heart His purpose for you is to conform you into His image, and that He uses every circumstance of life, good or ill, for our eternal benefit.

• We know what is good but are unable to perform it, and we know what is evil but we are unable to avoid it.
• The creation was good, but it was cursed, for Adam’s sin affected the natural world.

• Good and holy and perfect as the law of God is, it is entirely powerless either to justify or sanctify.

• That our God may make you worthy of His call, and by His power fully satisfy your every desire for goodness (2 Thess. 1:11a, Wms.).

• For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace (Heb. 13:9).

• Nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine (1 Tim. 4:6).

• The believer's attitude toward the law is that it is holy...and just, and good (Rom. 7:12).

• So be kind and good.

• There are multitudes of good, honest, sincere Christian people who really are in the most awful fog as to what is of God and what is not of God religiously.

• A garden resplendent with all the lushness of living life – and everything that was good.
• Beauty and Sustenance Gathered up in this one plot was all the good from God’s heart; prepared for man: - beauty to behold; sustenance for man’s food; pleasantness to warm man’s heart.
• All that God created and all that God does and all that God is is good - very good.
• Sum and Sphere Is He not the river of Life - the One that is the only refreshment we need? Is He not the One with all knowledge and wisdom? And are not all the deepest secrets of God concerning good and evil bound up in Him? He is the sum, the sphere – the centre and the circumference of all things.

• And the truth of God and His tremendous goodness hides behind the walls of doubt..  and God’s Father heart of love is tainted by man, through self-imposed twisted thoughts.
• False Perceptions Such thoughts deny the goodness of God and prevent His abiding presence.

• Price for Sin So when the fullness of time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, to redeem us all, so that we might receive adoption as sons. To deny the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ renders Calvary as a sham and charade, for there is none good..

• These are obstacles that are strewn in your path, to perfect you in Christ. He who began a good work in you will continue until you are like Him.” Phil.1:6

• fame; applause; the good opinions of others; MAN.

• The sublime Creator saw all He fashioned and made and behold it was very good, and yet the federal head fell.

• God With Us He wrote of Isaiah who cried out to Israel – the Lord Himself will give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel – Immanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us – God manifest in the flesh. John called Him the Word made flesh, while Mark writes of the beginnings of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God – and Matthew calls Him Emmanuel.

• He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago. (Ephesians 2:10 NLT)
• Good works foreordained, afore prepared, that we should walk in them.

• In this life, we are to lay hold of Christ, the Anchor of our soul, if we are to be rewarded as a good and faithful servants. If we lay hold on anything else in this life we will find ourselves adrift.
• The hope set before us is to gain a kingly inheritance – the hope of reward that is given to that good and faithful servant.

• I have become an heir of salvation, purchased through Christ’s sacrifice – purchased of God – born-again in His Spirit, washed in His life-giving, atoning blood. Perfect submission, all is at rest. I in my Saviour am happy and blessed. Watching and waiting, looking above. Filled with His goodness, lost in His love. This is my story and this must be my everlasting song.

• STUDY - God, All I Need Bless the Lord O my soul… and forget not all his benefits. Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; Who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth my life. Who crowns thee with loving-kindness and tender mercies; Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; Who renews my youth like the eagles.Psalm 103:2
• He will provide all my needs, in Christ according to His great goodness.
• Cloud of Witnesses There is an extensive register of faithful men and women who are listed in the book of Hebrews, chapter 11, and each one obtained a good report from God because of their faith – even though that had not yet received His promised reward.
• Who forgives all my iniquities; Who heals all my diseases; Who redeems my life from destruction; Who crowns me with lovingkindness and tender mercies; Who satisfies my mouth with good things; Who renews my youth like the eagles. Bless the Lord O my soul… and forget not ALL His benefits. Psalm 37:14

• Do you strive, in your own way, to prove yourself to now be good enough? You foolish man – you silly woman, accept His forgiveness and be comforted.

• Study - GOD, All I Need The LORD said to Joshua, “Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, and go over this Jordan, you and all this people … as I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you…. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; be not afraid, neither be dismayed; for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:2
• Be strong and of good courage.

• I learned a lesson then, that self-vindication invariably falls on deaf ears, but God will filter misunderstanding and twisted truth through His own lens of absolution – causing all things to work to together for good to those that love Him… to those that are the called according to His good pleasure.

• That was good; but there was something that I have found out since – and it is that Christ sticks to me.

• Let your reflected light so SHINE before saved and unsaved men of the world (and so reflect the beauties of the Lord – the lovely Jesus Christ) Let your reflected light so shine before men that the people of the world may SEE your good works (not the works of your own flesh or the Law which are produced through self-effort) Let your reflected LIGHT so Shine before men that the people of the world may see your good works (the works which came from Christ)  Christ Who is the Light of the World and Christ, Who is the Hope of the ages…until CHRIST be formed in you……Let your reflected light so shine before men that the people of the world may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

• Study - GOD, All I Need Oh that men would PRAISE the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!Psa.107:8
• Why is it so good to praise the Lord and to sing praises unto our God.
• For all things work together for good to those that love Him – to the called.
• But it is no good thinking about it – it needs action- mine and God’s.

• Unless washed in that Blood there can be no peace with God, nor purity of heart – for there is none good – no not one.

• It is important that we have a good reason for all of life’s decisions and choices... but with your limited knowledge; finite experience and distorted perspective, you will falter and fail and fall – and so will I.

• Be STRONG and of a good courage… Have I not commanded thee – Be STRONG.Joshua 1:9
• God’s Eternal Strength The Psalms abound with references to strength and do we not rejoice with Joshua who cried, Be strong and of good courage … Be strong and very courageous, have I not commanded you – be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.
• Spiritual Muscle The spiritual muscle and might that He desires to be built up in our hearts..is love, joy, patient endurance, gentleness and goodness, meekness and mercy.
• Run the straight race through God’s good grace,Lift up thine eyes, and seek His face;Life with its way before us lies,Christ is the Path, and Christ the Prize.

• Falsifications of Truth Millions are sucked into the falsities of religions that turn good into evil..

• Good things... great things, had His choice been more humanly orientated – but He chose to do the will of the Father in all things.

• We read in Ecclesiastes 2:26 that God gives wisdom and knowledge and joy to a man who is good in His sight, and a man’s wisdom makes his face shine – the sternness of his face is changed.

• We know that for those who love God, that is, for those who are called according to His purpose, all things are working together for good. (Romans 8:28 ISV)

• Grace Thru Faith - STUDY Christian Growth Christian growth can often be stunted at rebirth without good ‘discipling’.
• Yes, all things work together for good… all things.
• God’s Precious Promise This wonderful open secret permeates through the pages of scripture like perfume. It is found in Paul’s letter to the Romans, as well as other confirmatory chapters, and we know that all things work together for good to them that love God – to those who are the called according to His purpose.
• The secret is to know and accept that God uses all things in life for good, and then to thank Him by offering up a freewill ‘burnt sacrifice’ of praise to the honour and glory of His name. For only as we recognise and Grasp that we’re being changed into Christ’s likeness will we be prepared to cry.

• This enormous wonder of the uniting of all His attributes for our eternal good, is more than the human mind can fathom.

• God’s Eternal Plan He has an eternal plan for Good, for your good and mine – you know the truth in your head – now apply the truth in you heart and the truth will set you free.

• He knows everything visible and invisible; natural and spiritual; good and evil – in time and in space and in eternity.  He knows the end from the beginning.
• God Incarnate It is good to learn what we can about Him, for it does give us understanding.
• And it is good to search the scriptures daily to find out all that God has told us.
• Many follow His teachings, thinking them to be good, moral standards to emulate.

• Groaning Creation Creation was one visible verification of the endless wisdom of God... and God saw everything that He had made and it was very good.

• He has promised that: all things work together for good, to them that love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose – even the bad things
• God can be trusted in all things, for His firm resolve is for the good of His children.

• Abhor what is evil and cling to what is good.
• Have regard for good things in the sight of all men – and if it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.
• Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

• There was no other good enough to pay the full ransom price for your sins and mine.

• And we know that all things work together for good to those that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.Romans 8:28Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:Ephesians 4:13
• How encouraging to call to remembrance the wonderful truths of the Word of God, knowing that all things work together for good to those that love God..
• to those that are called according to His good purpose.
• Refreshing Words It is good and wise for us rest on the truths in His Word, especially as we face the particular challenges of each day.
• Jesus Christ alone is the God of our Salvation – and He it is, that causes all things to work together for good to them that love God – to them that are the called according to His purpose.
• as a result He ensures that all things work together for good.)
• Yes and Amen In the meantime, in His grace – let us rest on the precious promises of God knowing they are all ‘yes’, and ‘amen’ in Christ – knowing that all things work together for good to those that love God..
• to those that are called according to His good purpose.

• Call to Repent Jesus was not sent to the righteous but to call sinners to repent – but what the pious Pharisees had not grasped was that there are no righteous men – except God’s Son. Jesus was not sent to save good people but to call sinners to change their hearts – and the whole life-philosophy of Nicodemus was being challenged to the core.

• They wandered in deserts and mountains, dens and caves of the earth, and all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith.” Heb.11:1ff.

• He alone is Eternally Faithful and Just and Holy and Gracious and Good and True – He alone is forever Love.

• Our Days-Man The Gospel is the good news that peace is possible and may be restored.

• Everything that God had made to support His son was good – so very, very, good. Every seed-bearing plant on the face of the earth – every fruiting tree, every seed and berry were to be his food….

• In this world, you will have tribulation, but be strong and of a good courage and take heart, for I have overcome the world.

• God uses everything whether it is good or evil to forward His plans and purposes.
• He knows ALL things, and He uses all things, whether good or evil, to forward His plans and purposes.

• And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” Rom.8:28.
• These are among the “all things” which work together for good.
• for good – for your good and for mine.
• Life’s Circumstances Life’s circumstances, whether instigated by Satan or caused by self, are used by God for good, but when we struggle to work things out on our own, He will wait and wait and wait.

• Unique Saviour He is not only the root and stem of David, but He is the good Shepherd that was born in humble circumstances so that He could save us from our sins and seat us together with Himself in heavenly places for He is our unique Saviour and God’s very Special Gift – so that all Who believe on His name will not perish but have everlasting life.

• Job demonstrated this in his own self-righteous attitude to his goodness, for there is none good, no not one – there is none good, only God but He graciously saves those who trust Him.

• His pure goodness..

• For it is God Who is working in you, enabling you both to desire and to work out His good purpose. Philippians 2:13
• One New Man God has made Himself responsible to carry out His good work in US.
• God has promised to live in the one-new-man in Christ (not the old sinful man) and that one-new-man is to live in a state of perfect dependence upon the Lord his God. God is working in you, enabling you both to desire and work out His good purpose. God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him.

• And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
• God’s Grace We think more bible-reading, prayer, financial giving or good works will gain us blessings, but somehow it seems to conflict with all that we understand about God’s grace.
• When we start to realise that grace is vaster than the weight of our good works, the love of Christ will constrain us towards striving to a godly way of living.
• When we comprehend that depth of the riches of His grace towards us, the love of Christ will constrain us towards the earnest pursuit of holiness... and so we will prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God..

• We should understand that all grace emanates from the infinite goodness of God.

• For they disciplined us only a short time, as it seemed proper to them; but He does it for our good, in order that we may share His holy character (Heb. 12:10, Wms.).

• A good deal of confusion comes in when you begin to think of things in the light of a work.
• That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God (Col. 1:10)

• It is our privilege to be able, in our little measure, to thank God in view of everything, and take refuge in His eternal counsels, which must be made good despite all the unbelief of man, and all the malice of Satan.
• Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life (Ps. 23:6).

• We must remember that the will of God is said to be good,'acceptable,' and perfect' (Rom. 12:2). -L.S.C.

• Say at once, I welcome it from Him; my first care is to glorify my Father - He will use it all for my good.

• For the fruit of the Spirit is … GOODNESS…Gal.5:22
• Desirable Characteristics Love is kind, and one very precious fruit of the Spirit of God is goodness.
• Kindness and goodness seem to be analogous qualities of the Spirit.
• Kindness and goodness run in tandem together.
• Kindness and goodness combine to affect our inner disposition.
• Gracious Behaviour Goodness and kindness amalgamate to influence our outward conduct.
• for He went about doing good and healing all oppressed of the devil… for God was with Him.
• Kindness and goodness are both such positive qualities.
• We should be quick to follow His blessed example if we were always good and kind.
• to be merciful and of great goodness..
• for Paul reminds us in Romand 3:10 that there is none good – no not one..and yet he reminds us in Philippians 4, that we can do all things through Christ, who gives us the strength.
• A Spiritual Gift It is not normal to allow the fountain of our goodness to fall on all that we meet.
• Ah, but in Acts.10:34 we read that  God is no respecter of persons, while Jesus tells us in Matthew 5 that: His rain falls on the just and unjust alike, Matt.5:45.  And so for us, we ought to be kind and good to all that we meet.  Goodness only needs a little opportunity to act.
• One delicious fruit of the Spirit is the conjoined grace of kindness and goodness..
• so that goodness and kindness be increasingly manifested in each our lives.
• much of the fruit of kindness and goodness, for herein in the Father glorified.
• John 15:8.  And when should we seek after the harmonious duet of kindness and goodness?   Well.
• in fastings.  By purity; by knowledge; by long-suffering; by kindness – by the Holy Ghost; by sincere, genuine, agape love; by the word of truth; by the power of God; by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left;  by honour and dishonour; by evil report and good report.
• So pursue after kindness and seek after goodness – in Him.

• Job knew God was good, but his full understanding of God’s truth was imperfect.
• Goodness of God God is good, but His goodness exceeded all Job’s understandings and expectations.

• God takes each evil attack of Satan, against His children, and uses it for good.
• Pride and Despair Pride in how good we are – or pride through an exhibited false 'humility'.
• Despair in how bad we are – or how we are never good enough for God’s purpose.

• All Good Things Both had elements of the truth – but both had elements of the untruth. God does indeed bless the righteous..
• but God also permits evil in the life of saints as well.  But ALL good that comes to man comes from a good and faithful God.
• But good and evil alike..
• The enemy seeks to distort the goodness of God, by distorting God’s truth.

• And most of us seek to avoid our heavenly Father's discipline, until we finally learn that He does it for our certain good, in order that we may become sharers in His own holy character (Heb. 12:10, Wey.).

• Song Of MARY - STUDY  He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away.Luke 1:53
• Can you argue that God is not good, or gracious to allow such physical deficiency?
• No, for God makes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, He sends rain on the just and the unjust.
• Can you argue that God is not good, or gracious to allow such spiritual deficiency?
• Believers’ Choices Is the onus on the minister or teacher? Not if Mary’s sweet words are to be understood! He hath filled the HUNGRY with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away,  she sings.
• Provision of God God spreads His table with great abundance – even in the presence of our enemies, and Mary sang, He fills the hungry with good things – pressed down and spilling over. For whoever hath, (hunger for the Lord) to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, (spiritual hunger) from him shall be taken away even what he hath.

• plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope, for He knows and He loves and He cares.

• Gracious-Shepherd In John 10:11;3 we read: Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd.
• The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” He calls His own by name… and in Psalm 23:1 The Lord is my Shepherd. Scripture gives us many pictures of God.
• Caring-Goodness Our God knows the deepest needs of our soul, and He cares about them.
• He is not just the Shepherd of the sheep but the good Shepherd.
• But the purpose of the Good Shepherd is to give life in all its fullness.
• He wants to feed and satisfy us with good things.
• Our Good Shepherd knows.
• Our Good Shepherd cares.
• Our Good Shepherd understands.

• It develops in us moral and spiritual qualities. It may not be the easy way; it may not be the happiest route; it may be marred by difficulties' it may be tinged with disappointments, but all things work together for good to those that trust Him – to those that are the called according to His perfect purpose.
• to give or to withdraw what seems so good to us, in order to achieve His best for us – if we trustingly follow His leading; if we quietly listen to His voice.

• God, Who from this vantage point directs the affairs of man, through His delegated rulers – good or evil.

• Words of Truth Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. Colossians 4:6.  And in Ephesians 4:29  Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.

• God’s Wider Purpose God takes and God works them all together for your good – as may be most beneficial for you in the eternal realm, and for His eternal glory.
• He hears and will answer at the best way for your ultimate good.

• He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness (Ps. 107:9).

• So that seeing the things above ensures every good thing for us in every condition.

• That which represents the testimony in its fullest and closest approximation to the ultimate purpose of God, then has to be shorn of much that has been good, necessary, and of God in a preparatory way, and must be shut up to what is ultimate.

• It is a child-like trust in a heavenly Father’s goodness, that He desired then, and it is a simple child-like faith in His Word that He wants from us today, for without faith it is impossible to please God Hebrews 11:6

• That is the motive behind a good deal of our praying.

• that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:16-17

• Heavenly Blessings It was His purpose, His plan, and His desire to bestow on us His heavenly blessings. He predestined us to be adopted as His sons according to His good pleasure, and this blessing in the heavenlies was purposed in Christ – and we are in Him,  for all blessings we have in Christ are simply blessings in heavenly places – and because we are in Christ we are blessed in the heavenlies – in HIM.
• He brought us out of darkness into the glorious light of the great gospel of Christ, for we are God’s handiwork and are created in Christ Jesus to do good works,  which God in His grace has prepared for us to do in advance.

• Jesus Himself told us that: in the world, ye shall have tribulation, but He continues: but be of good cheer for I have overcome the world. John 16:33

• “God works (in your new man) both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” Phil.2:13
• Your new soul-life is the new man in Christ, the spiritual man that works for good.
• His Will We’re not to approach God’s throne asking Him to help us and bless our plans. We are to seek Him to do His work in us – His will, His plans. We are to seek His will in our life, to live and do to His good pleasure. We are to trust His will, in all the decisions we make and the problems we face.

• And He is gracious and kind to all, and of immense goodness.
• He satisfies you with good.6.

• That is all quite good and right; but we are not so often asked to consider that behind it all there is a heart and more heart than anything else.

• even when we don’t understand, knowing that in Him all things work together for good – for whom?

• Oh that men would praise the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! (Ps. 107:8).
• For He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness (Ps. 107:9).

• His sinless life and perfect example demonstrated that in Him we too can live godly..  not in our own strength, for in ourselves dwells no good thing.  But in His strength and power and sufficiency we CAN live godly in Christ Jesus.

• Remember me, my God – for good.Nehemiah 5:19
• Everlasting Pledge God is pledged to do you good.
• Rest your soul on the loving plans He has for you, they are plans for good and not for evil,
• Testing Fires Rest your heart on His infinite goodness and wisdom – and rejoice.

• A person whose ancestors for three or four generations have all been Christians, may inherit their virtues; but although affecting his life for good, they do not count before God as righteousness, for they are not the fruit of the directly imparted divine life.

• Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.John 10:41-42
• Jesus Himself told us that: in this world, ye shall have tribulation… but that was not the end of the sentence, for He continues, but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

• This is not attained by our goodly works or human goodness. This is not gained through a striving heart, or struggling improvements. This is not won as the chivalrous knight of old won his spurs. This is not awarded through an act of gallantry. This is no olympiad wreath of plaited leaves, that fades into night.

• And the ‘baptism’ of His Bema seat judgment is when we are all tried with fire, for He is the Lord from heaven, and we must all stand before Christ to be judged, and we will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body.

• It is God Who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.Philippians 2:13
• it was God alone Who started a good work within you.
• He who has begun a good work in you will complete it in the day of Jesus Christ..

• That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God (Col. 1:10).

• Sometimes we balk at the very idea, that the way God chooses for us is His best for our lives – that  the path we tread, though often counter to our desires, is for our good!

• exemplified as ‘good‘ – demonstrating a life that denied self..

• God is Faithful And the church composed of a small faithful remnant of good, faithful servants is told by her Lord to hold fast..

• Source of Supply We should fly to the Word of God to seek out and discover the goodness of God. We should look only to Jesus for He is the One, and only source of all supply – but all too often we try to dig our own cisterns of water – to satisfy our own thirst.
• Many make a good start in faith but faint by the wayside and do not continue.
• Coming Quickly “Let us hold fast that which is good.” Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering, for He who promised is faithful Hebrews 10:23 Behold, I come quickly, HOLD FAST to that which thou hast, that no man take thy crown Revelation 3:11

• Being confident of this very thing, that He who has began a good work in you will complete it, until the day of Jesus Christ.Philippians 1:6
• Good Work God started a good work in Moses. He started a good work in Isaiah. He started a good work in Daniel. He started a good work in John. And He started a good work in you, beloved child of God and He started a good work in me.
• And every day of this life is a step forward from the things that were.. to the things that shall be hereafter, For we are confident of this very thing - that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work..
• Yes, He Who started a good work in you and He Who started a good work in me..

• Gabriel’s Visitation What secrets must have been exchanged and what joy must have filled both hearts as they talked together of the 2 visitations of the angel Gabriel, to tell the good news. When John emerged onto the world stage, he came in the spirit and power of Elijah. He was a voice crying in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord – get ready! Make His paths straight!

• I will visit you and perform ALL My good word towards you.Jeremiah 29:11
• I will do you good dear one and not evil.
• I AM meek and lowly of heart, long-suffering and of great goodness.

• So that at the appointed time His delayed gift will come – and it will come at our best time: for our times are in His hands Psa.31:15 and it is God Who works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.

• His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him Who called us by His own glory and goodness.

• Goodness and favour from God most high, Redeemer from heaven sent down to die.
• Letters of Grace Often a sermon on salvation is beautifully woven into the initial letters of GRACE, G – Salvation is a Gift of God – a Good Gift that is Granted to allR – Salvation is Redemption – Received by faith, Reuniting us with GodA – Salvation is Accepted by God’s love, Available to All, Accessible through faithC – Salvation Comes thru Christ Crucified Who paid the Cost at the CrossE – Salvation Ends in Eternal life and is an Everlasting gift – and an Escape
• for every good and perfect gift comes from above.
• James 1:17 – For God causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good.

• We have the Spirit of fruitfulness in all goodness, righteousness, and truth:- for the fruit of the Spirit consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth.

• But godly living and righteous acts are similarly gifts of God – through Christ Jesus – for it is God Who works in us both to WILL and to DO – to His good purpose.
• Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to Whom be the glory forever and ever.
• He planned and arranged to do good works through us, in the power of His Spirit – and then He plans to reward us for yielding to His Spirit working through us!
• The good we do; the works we perform; the helps we provide are not of us but of God.
• Total Dependency Good works or exemplary conduct, accomplished in our own power is certain to fail. Striving to please the Lord in our own strength, is inevitably a recipe for disaster.

• Heaven may be ready to come in, the Lord may be prepared to work for us, but it is not sufficient for Him - and it would not prove good enough for us - if that were all.
• Being confident of this very thing, that He who hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ (Phil. 1:6).

• LEVITICUS contains the Law, Holy and Just and Good;

• Many adopt His philosophy, seeing Him as a good man – a great teacher to follow.

• went about doing good.
• Are we ‘doing good’ by trusting in our own righteousness?  Or do we rest on His finished work? Are we following His example?
• Humility of Christ He asked not that they served Him, but that He served them. So He washed His disciples' feet, demonstrating that the Servant of all is the Chief of all. Jesus went about doing good – that’s all – just doing good.
• How to be merciful, compassionate, forgiving, loving, and good?

• Fully God His Deity is demanded, for there is no other good enough to pay the price of sin. His Manhood in mandatory, for no other Days-man could redeem His brethren. This is the God-man, Who clothed Himself in flesh – the perfect sacrifice for sin. As fully God – He is the everlasting Son of the Most High God –He is uncreated and without beginning – of one Being with the Father Almighty.

• In Everything In everything, commending ourselves as bond-servants of God, by weapons of righteousness, on the right hand and on the left; by glory and dishonour; by evil report and good report; regarded as deceivers and yet true; as unknown yet well known; as dying yet behold we live; as punished yet not unto death; as sorrowful yet always rejoicing; as poor yet making many rich; as having nothing yet possessing all things….

• people who will be awarded gold, silver, and precious stones – disciples who will one day hear Him: say well done good and faithful servant?
• created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
• There is nothing we can do of ourselves – our good works are as menstrual rags to Him.
• For it is God who works in you..both to will and to do for [His] good pleasure.” Phil.2:10.

• Should we not, for the glory of God – pray that all are good and faithful servants?

• but the shocking, appalling, scandalous, odious thing is that there’s no good in me. All that is of me and my flesh must go if Christ is to be all in all in my life.

• It corrects our faults and teaches us to do that which is good.
• The prophet Isaiah proclaimed the good news to Israel, “Clear the way through the wilderness for the LORD!

• Prejudices and Distortions Throughout Christendom, there are many good men that ‘clip’ and ‘cut’ the Word.
• Developed Distortions Some people do play ‘pick and mix’ with Scripture to resolve life’s experiences and throughout Christendom many good men ‘clip’ and ‘cut’ the Word of God.

• He prayed that they would be kept safe from savage wolves who would seek to scatter the flock of God, and he prayed that: He who began a good work in them would continue – until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6

• Holy, just and good' it is, but the Christian's rule of life is in Christ. . .
• The law is good if a man use it lawfully; and its lawful application is expressly not to form, guide, and govern the walk of the righteous, but to deal with the lawless and disobedient, ungodly and sinful, unholy and profane, and, in short, with whatever is contrary to sound doctrine (1 Tim. 1:9, 10). -F.W.G.

• For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13).

• Legalism and seeking to merit God’s favour by producing good works in ones own flesh is an impossibility for God is only pleased with one thing – the finished work of Christ, and that is apprehended by believers who live the grace-faith-promise way.

• The reason why we had to die to the law was, not at all because the law was bad (it, on the contrary, is holy, just and good'), but because we were bad.
• Our flesh was so powerless to do good and so ready to do evil, that the application to us of God's holy law only gave sin an occasion to involve our enslaved members in open rebellion against the law.

• He who hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ (Phil. 1:6).

• It takes a good many years of sin and failure in order to see through our own motives.
• The Cross separating us from everything Adamic both within and without is a good test of motives.

• How good it is to have a sovereign Father controlling all!

• deadness that shuts out so much that is fair and sweet and good and gentle – but Jesus came to give God’s light and He came to guide us into God’s peace.
• The way of His wisdom is the way of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.” Proverbs 3:17 But only those that follow His footsteps have quietness of spirit and amity with God. Only those who trust His love are in concord with themselves and with others. Only they who truly know how to die to self, utterly and completely  – only they are truly at peace with life’s circumstances. They find no strain within; no hostility without; no alienation from God. They have no pricks of an accusing conscience; no unsatisfied longings or desires, for they trust in His love completely – for they know that: “all things work together, for good…” Rom.8:28
• Walk of Life Take the hand of the One that knows how to lighten those that sit in darkness. Walk with the One Who will truly guide your feet into the way of peace, and you will have contentment in this age despite the hardships and disappointments – and in the age to come – the Millennial Age, you will discover joys unspeakable, for you will live 1000 years, in time – time recaptured from the today’s devouring locusts. Only put your hand into His and say:- order my walk; order my every moment… order my way and my life to your good pleasure – for whither Thou goest I will go. What you decide I will accept.

• As a Christian I am now in Him before the Father, as He is in me before men; and the Holy Spirit has been given as enablement to enjoy the privileges above and to make good the responsibilities below.

• By honour and dishonour; by evil report and good report.

• Thus He Himself has all the glory, whatever good thing there may be wrought in us by the Holy Spirit. -W.J.H.

• Romans 7:15), and, in consequence, he feels that the bottom has fallen out of his Christian life; and then perhaps the Devil whispers to him that it is just no good his going on, because he will never be able to make the grade.
• God takes all things and God uses all things, for all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.” Rom.8:28 And He takes time – He often takes a life-time to gently lead one into this truth.
• Some are occupied with good self.

• Numbers were still good in Galatia, activities well maintained and zeal unabated, but the Lord Jesus was being crowded out - and that is the greatest tragedy possible. -H.F.

• What is the good of a man being ennobled, made a prince of, if he feels he has gained no more or sensible acquisition by it?

• 4 Progressive Steps FIRST:- We are to strip aside every part of life that hinders our growth in our Christian life,  for a surfeit of earthly things, whether good or evil, will hinder our spiritual walk.

• And we work for Him as Lord in service: to will and do of His good pleasure.
• And so we work for Him as Lord in our service: to will and to do of His good pleasure.
• LORD → of your life, to will and to do of His good pleasure.

• ot one word of all the good promises the Lord has made to Israel had failed, all came to pass… And what more shall I say?

• Am I to travel the world and do good deeds to all I meet?
• All may be good and worthy causes and may be His call on a life..

• Our trials are not meant to do us harm, but good.

• make you perfect [complete, mature] in every good work to do His will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ (Heb. 13:20, 21). 

• God’s Purpose The power behind loving; obedient; thanksgiving, watchful; thankful; trusting prayer, is a heart that has learned in measure, and is continuing to learn to the full, that no matter what circumstances or trial we face, all things work together for good… and that means God’s good.
• All things in the life of all believers are working together for God’s good and for God’s end.All things are working God’s way to them that love their Lord – to those who are the called according to His purpose.

• To the lost He was the Good Shepherd. To the sick He was their Healer and to the disciples He was Christ, the Son of God.

• Time of God All He asks is that we trust Him in all things – put our total faith in Him, knowing that: 'ALL things work together for good to those who love God..

• Still He rules over all, and where evil cannot be turned to good, limits and forbids it: He maketh the wrath of man to praise Him, and the remainder of wrath (what would go beyond this) He restrains (Ps. 76:10).” - F.W.G. 114 “People may quarrel with the sovereignty of God, but I love it, because I know enough about my natural bent and will to be sure that if left to myself I should have gone straight to perdition.

• But the fruit of the Spirit is :-LOVE:- joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-controlGalatians 5:22
• For the fruit of the Spirit is love; joy; peace; patience; kindness; goodness; faithfulness; gentleness; self-control..
• He has promised to preach good tidings unto the meek.

• They are caught in things which limit things which may be good, that may have something of God in them, but which none the less are limiting things, and do not represent a wide open way to all God's purpose.
• The only way for us to come into all that the Lord means not only into what we have seen but into all that He has purposed is to be desperate, to be men of violence; to be men who say, By God's grace, nothing and no one, however good, is going to stand in my way; I am going on with God.

• The angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid, for look, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be to all people.Luke 2:10
• God’s Shepherd How curious that simple shepherds, who were so despised by the Jewish leadership, should have been the first to be told of the arrival of Israel’s long-awaited Messiah-King – for this tiny infant was also God’s Great Shepherd of the sheep – the Good Shepherd Who lays down His life for His sheep… and one day He will return to earth as the Chief Shepherd, Who will award the crown of glory to all the under-shepherds of God’s little flock, who have faithfully fulfilled the work that God has prepared for them to do.
• Christ the Lord How astonished that little band of shepherds must have been when first one and then a great multitude of the angelic heavenly host were seen rejoicing and praising God as they preached the good news of a Saviour – born that day in the city of David, Who would bring peace to men of good-will.
• sharing the good news with others… by the way.
• Should not we worship and glorify God for His grace and mercy as we humbly set about our daily duties day by day – sharing the good news with others that we meet… by the way?

• And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.Romans 8:28
• Good Fruit Good fruit will only be forthcoming from a good seed – and Christ is the First-Fruit. Fruit that is brought forth from Christ will produce more fruit and much good fruit - and herein in My Father glorified – that ye bear MUCH FRUIT.
• Source of all Good A third explained: a root that is set in the finest soil, in the best climate, and blessed with all that sun and air and rain can do for it, is not so sure a way of its growth to perfection, as every man may be..
• whose spirit aspires after all that which God is ready and infinitely desirous to give him. For the sun meets not the springing bud that stretches toward him with half that certainty as God, the Source of all good, communicates Himself to the soul that longs to partake of Him.
• God Works Within We are to put off the old and put on the new and then... we are just to rest in Him, for it is God who works in us (through the new life in Christ) Both to WILL and to DO of His good pleasure.
• Let Go and Let God Why do we have to live our life doing God’s will... and for God’s good pleasure?
• For all things in life work together for good, when we let go and let God… All things work together for good to those that are called…..
• that is to believers. For all things work together for good of the 'called believer', who is living according to God’s will – who are living according to God’s good pleasure Romans 8:28

• The closed door is as much His Providence as the open, and equally for our good and the accomplishment of His own great ends.

• Both came as messengers from God, proclaiming the good news about God.

• Some of our choices are good and some are bad, some are wise and others foolish.

• Spiritual Fruit This is the man that brings for the fruit of God’s Holy Spirit; Love in times of Hostility; Joy in times of Pain; Peace in times of Trouble; Long-suffering in times of Frustration; Gentleness in times of Oppression; Goodness in times of Evil; Faith in times of Testing; Meekness in times of Irritations; Temperance in times of Temptation.

• Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ (Phil. 1:6).

• Complete Identification No one in the earth below or in the heavens above has a power over me – except as He permits for my eventual benefit and for my eternal good.

• If He chastens us, it is always for our profit, that we may be partakers of his holiness.' And all things work together for good to them that are called according to his purpose.' What good?

• In Him welive, in Him we move, and in Him we have our being. And so I am fully persuaded that He Who began a good work in me, and He Who began a good work in you…  will be faithful to complete it until the day of His appearing.

• Attributes of God He alone is Divinely Omniscient, Divinely Omnipotent and He alone is Divinely Omnipresent. He alone is Faithful and Just and Holy and He alone is Gracious and Good and True and Loving – and He chose You to be His bride, before the foundation of the world…

• And yet, the eternal plans and purposes of God are being carried out by the few – the few who are prepared to 'hold fast' faithfully to that which is good – to hold fast to the end.

• Oh taste, weary wanderer… taste and see that the Lord is good.” Psa.34:8

• Paul tells us in Ephesians chapter 1 verse 9 that... having made known to us (the Church) the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times, He might gather together in one, all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth – in Him, Ephesians.1:9
• Well, like all good commanders-in-chief he lays out His strategy for his soldiers.

• Some good men who in grievous error would impose the law as a rule of life for the believer mean very well by it (for they strive to be pious); but the whole principle is false.

• It does us no good, but only discourages us if we see our failures and shortages and do not behold the beauty of Christ, and apprehend and experience our sufficiency in Him.

• and it is by faith in God that He performs this change – and He takes His time! God uses life’s circumstances, (good and ill).

• If you have a Cross and a grave in your experience, in your history, the Holy Spirit has got what He requires, and it is blessedly possible for you to have the abiding of this risen Life in which all these values are made good, and growingly good.

• perfect in the sight of God. Think of the most honourable, righteous, gentle, clean-living, pure individual. That one’s virtue and good deeds are polluted scraps before a holy God. Think of the rich young ruler and sweet Mary of Bethany, who sat at His feet.
• For their common lives exuded goodness and wisdom!
• Good and Evil Until we can acknowledge that all 'good' we claim to do is of self..

• His testimonies are steadfast and sure. His Law makes foolish people wise and the one who delights in Him is blessed indeed. No one could argue that God’s Law was anything but good – yet it is insufficient.
• Insufficient Law The Law may be perfect and man may desire to obey the perfect Law of God, but it is insufficient to save a guilty sinner – and we discover it to be a ministration of death – for it tells us God’s standard for man, but then shows us that we can only fail. The Law may be good and spiritual and the born-again life in Christ may desire to keep God’s commandments – but the old sin nature is carnal and in bondage to sin. This is why Paul failed when he tried to keep the Law in the strength of his old fallen nature, which caused him to cry out:- Oh wretched man that I am!

• Cursed Creation Everything that God made for man to richly enjoy was good – oh, so very, very good, but Adam’s sin caused the creation to be cursed and man lost His regal position.
• Perfect Sacrifice To receive Him as a good man of God or a religious leader is insufficient.

• We are to transformed by the renewing of our mind – by the spirit of our mind, then we will be able to test and approve God’s good, pleasing, and perfect will.
• Trying to 'be good' through the power of the old sin nature will never succeed.
• God does not want us to dress up the old sin nature to look good – by self-effort.

• The flesh is irrecoverably fallen and you and I make no real progress in the Christian life until we have learned in experience to say with the apostle: For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh dwelleth no good thing' (Rom. 7:18). -J.C.M.

• We shall then be able to testify, with Joshua of old: Not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the Lord your God spake concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, and not one thing hath failed thereof' (Josh. 23:14). -E.H.

• For He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness (Ps. 107:9)

• It was here, in the mind of the Father – it was here, in the heart of the Son – it was here, in the breath of the Spirit..it was here, through the interaction and interpersonal expression of divine love… it was here, in goodness, kindness, and person-ness between the persons of the Trinity..

• They are plans for good and not for disaster –to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11 So remember... ONE day at a time

• But when it is known that God's standard for us is His Son, all expectation of maturity must be placed in Him - for it is God which worketh in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure (Phil. 2:13).

• Only believe, and He will make good the guarantee in His word.

• Let us seek grace for any fiery furnace in the light of the explanation, that it is neither what is of Christ that is be interested in us, nor any good within ourselves, but that what is not Christ should disappear, that it should be Christ, only Christ.

• He said, Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?

• It is the wrong word to use, but nevertheless it would be a good thing if He became our obsession, our continuous occupation.

• Let my circumstances be what they may, if I can see them ordered for me unfailingly by One in whom infinite wisdom, power, and goodness combine, and whose love toward me I am assured of, my restlessness is gone, my will subjected to that other will in which I can but acquiesce and delight. -F.W.G.

• Good God “Goodness” is in the eye of the beholder and it means all things to all men, but the Word of Scripture tells us that there is none good..
• ot even one – that God alone is good, as Jesus, the God-Man reminded the rich young ruler.
• Eternal Attributes God’s goodness is one of multifaceted faces on the gemstone of His attributes. It is inter-twined and eternally-linked with all of God’s superlative characteristics. His goodness is infinitely perfect.
• His loving-kindness endures through all generations. Our ‘Good God’ is unfailingly kind, cordial, benevolent, generous and tender-hearted, yet this ‘Good God’ also becomes a blasphemy blare from mankind’s profane choir.
• God’s Grace Nevertheless God causes His Son to shine on the evil as well as the good. He sends His rain on the just and the unjust alike for God is very, very good..
• and the truth of the goodness of God is disbelieved by saint and sinner alike..  as they, through human reason try to come to terms with this evil-saturated world.
• Man’s Questions “How can a good God allow this to happen?” argue disbelieving religious skeptics. “How can our Father allow His children to suffer?” is questioned by confused believers.
• “Why?” is inquiry on the lips of many who doubt His goodness and debate His power..
• Man’s Logic If unbelieving saints or disbelieving sinners choose to use their own logic..  they will continue to question the goodness of God in the land of the living- they will continue in their agnosticism and unbelief in the goodness of God.
• True God Most of us have dared, on occasions, to question the goodness of this Good God. Some believers continue to rely on self-logic in their accusations of God’s goodness..
• Rom.3:4, for our good God is very good.

• Our Good Shepherd He is praying for us now, that our faith will not fail – and even when we become faithless, His prayers and pleadings on our behalf are honoured by the Father – for we are kept through His pleading prayers, so that when we do return into His arms of forgiveness, we will strengthen our brethren.
• He is praying as our good Shepherd for He knows each one of us by name.

• Contrasting Beings The more His perfection shines forth from Him – the greater I discover my flaws! The more goodness He displays – the deeper my inadequacies are exposed! The closer I move towards His pure light – the blacker my evil soul is painted.
• It is God Who works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.

• And God blessed all that He had made, and it was very good.

• His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him Who called us by His own glory and goodness. He has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world. 2 Peter 1:3

• Lamb and Lion He came to rescue us as our Good Shepherd, for we are sheep without a shepherd. He came as the perfect Lamb of God to pay the shocking price for sin – and He is coming as the Lion of the tribe of Judah – the victorious King of kings.

• It is not an attainable portion even for a 'just' or 'good' man.
• Amazing Grace Just as the justified sinner is made righteous through God’s good grace, so the sanctified saint is made holy and righteous through God’s good grace. And it is all; All, ALL, ALL through God’s amazing GRACE.

• Now this experience is the painful learning that we have no strength to make good what we would and what is right.

• Weare not speaking merely of such things as are sinfully personal,positively personal, but simply of independent action, actiontaken for the best ends, for a good motive, with quite a properintention.
• That creates an independent thought,however good may be the motive.

• He sovereignly overrules, and in the long run they are able to say, Well, I made some awful blunders, but the Lord marvelously took hold of them and turned them to good account.

• God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that ye, always having all sufficiency, may abound to every good work (2 Cor. 9:8).

• God has put everything under the Messiah's feet and has made Him the Head of everything for the good of the Church - and we are that CHURCH.

• God has put everything under the Messiah’s feet and has made Him the Head of everything for the good of the church – and we are that CHURCH.

• The believer can thus, and only thus, have freedom from the tyranny of sin as he reckons himself to have died unto sin, and to be alive unto God as one alive from the dead.' He presents his body a living sacrifice unto God, and proves what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

• Now you go down with this truth, down into the vortex of awful agony, right down to the gates of hell, your being is upheaved right from the very bottom, and all the time there is the question Will that truth hold good?

• Solid food belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil (Heb. 5:14).

• This is man chief end and chief good.

• One may have a great zeal in God's service, and may be used to influence many for good, and yet, when weighed in the balance of love, be found sadly wanting.

• He did not try to re-train us or to insist that we did lots of studying or good works.

• His sovereign work, and the Lord’s good pleasure, is strewn from beginning to end.
• He floods us to the fullness of His good pleasure for we are the fullness of Christ.
• He fills our laps with good things and anoints us with heavenly blessings and favour.

• An instrument for honorable uses, consecrated, useful for the Master, and ready for any good service (2 Tim. 2:21, Wms.).

• It is for Him to make good the glorious promise that sin shall not have dominion over you' (Rom. 6:14).

• The man in Romans Seven is occupied with himself, and his disappointment and anguish spring from his inability to find in self the good which he loves.
• The man of Romans Eight has learned there is no good to be found in self.

• This is a proud reliance upon self, instead of humble dependence upon the Father. Self-reliance excludes Christ-reliance – and God only sees us as in the Beloved. When we think our good works give us access to God, we deny the blood of Christ.

• As I wash the dishes I may reflect on God’s goodness and confess my insufficiency.
• Intimate Prayer It’s good to take quiet time alone with the Lord in intimate prayer behind closed doors – but it is also incumbent on us to pray without ceasing – in every part of our life.

• For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.1Timothy 2 :1,4
• Pray for Understanding How we need to pray for the good news of Calvary to take root in their hearts.. that Satan won’t be permitted to steal the precious seed of the gospel sown in their hearts – that God would open their hearts to understand the hope of Christ’s salvation: for when anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. Matt.13:19
• We need to pray that we will be effective in sharing the gospel: I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective or the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us, for the sake of Christ.

• He shall be a vessel unto honor, sanctified, and fit for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work (2 Tim. 2:21).
• Prepared unto every good work - especially prayer.

• For we are God's [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us, (taking paths which He prepared ahead of time) that we should walk in them - living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live (Eph. 2:10, Amp.).

• This negative processing of His, finally brings us into His positive promise of Philippians 1:6 – being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.
• It’s All of Grace God’s 'good work' in us is begun through failure.
• This includes our strongest points, which continues on into His success – by His performance, and not ours. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure. There is no question but that we all began in sheer grace.

• It is good to have amazement, but let us recognize that a certain amount of our amazement is because we have not sufficient faith.

• a people for His Name. But as understanding and illumination about the King of kings increases as time passes, so a wall of separation is being constructed between good and evil.
• rightly dividing good from evil – rightly dividing filth from righteousness.
• Men of Good-Will The Prince of Peace is the blood sacrifice of an innocent Victim, the Lord Jesus Christ..
• they promised peace – peace to men whose will is good and well-pleasing to the Lord.
• It was not peace on earth, goodwill to all men, but peace on earth to men whose will is good and well-pleasing to God.

• Every title traced a particular characteristic of the eternal Son and the perfect Man. It was Zacharias of the line of Levi that uttered forth his stunning prophecy of Christ, the coming Saviour – breaking God’s four hundred year long prophetic silence… and for nine amazing months Zacharias waited in silence to tell forth the good news.

• Indeed, they will sometimes call evil good.

• – this is not nice, and it is not how we like to think of ourselves, but it is true.  And at times it’s good to be brought face to face with the reality of what we were..

• I have known the moment very often come when the Lord,not in an audible voice but in what is as good, a suggestion, aprompting, has said, Lay hold of Life; lay hold of Me as yourLife!

• If one has a seeming leading' to do something that in itself is good, yet with the impulse there is a sense of nagging disquiet, and being driven in a certain direction, that is the Enemy's trademark; and his false leading is to be immediately recognized and rejected.

• What a delightful day it is for him when he realizes that in him, that is, in his flesh, dwelleth no good thing' (Rom. 7:18).

• Do you think that is good enough?

• Let it be remembered we are to fight the good fight of faith,' which consists of resting in our position of freedom, and not in obtaining that position.

• The fruit of God’s Spirit is to mellow into gentleness, goodness, and grace.

• good measure, pressed down, and shaken together and running over.
• God our Joy He stirs a confidence in you, that by His power, wisdom, and might, He implanted His good purpose in your soul, so that His good choice becomes the deepest yearning of your heart.

• Foundation of Hope Hope rests on the nature and name of almighty God. Hope stands on the promises and character of the Lord Most High. Hope believes in His fundamental goodness and eternal wisdom. Hope reflects back over His never-failing goodness and His immeasurable mercies. Hope looks steadily ahead to the promised fulfilment of His word of the Kingdom.

• Others may do evil against us, but our Father turns it into our good, for Jesus' sake.

• Now our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace (2 Thess. 2:16).
• Comfort your hearts, and establish you in every good word and work (2 Thess. 2:17).

• Supposing that I even found good in myself, if I expected the Father to look at me on that account, would it be grace?

• I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living Psalm 27:13

• The good fight is the fight of faith.

• He has created us through our union with Christ Jesus for doing good deeds which He beforehand planned for us to do (Eph. 2:10, Wms.).

• God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that ye always [not sometimes] having all sufficiency in all things, may abound unto every good work' (2 Cor. 9:8). -E.H.

• When you turn to the Corinthians... there is a good deal of trouble.
• And unless we go on to the something more, the good becomes the enemy of the best.
• And so, because of comparative values, we have to leave what is good for the better; and then later the better for the best.

• The Good Portion I have for many years contrasted Mary of Bethany with her sister..
• John 14:1 One thing is necessary, 
Mary has chosen the good portion, which will NOT be taken away from her. Luke 10:41.
• This is not an airy-fairy sugar-coated thought to give you a feel-good factor..

• teaching the good news of the coming Messiah and His coming kingdom rule.

• In the world ye shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer; I’ve overcome the world.

• It is sad to have to say that the present-day Church is so earthy that it is of little earthly good.

• Chapter 2: God is righteous and His laws are good, while man is unrighteous and his heart is evil.
• And this opens the floodgates to the beautiful revelation that when I am weak, then He is strong – for of myself I can do no good thing – But I can do all things through Christ Who gives me the strength.

• God Incarnate Were Jesus not fully God He could never have become our Saviour nor could He have imputed us with His own righteousness or given us the free gift of eternal life – for only God is good and perfect and sinless and eternal.
• were Jesus not fully God, He could not have been our Saviour nor could He have imputed us with His own righteousness or given us the free gift of eternal life – for only God is good and perfect and sinless and eternal.

• It is good to have exhortation; it is good that we should have testimony; it is good that from time to time the Word of the Lord should come to us in the fullness of a proclamation, but as the Lord's people we also need sound instruction, foundation in the truth.

• My pride wants to say I am a good person, but God sees me as I am – a sinner; born dead in trespasses and sins; born with an inherent sin nature; born in enmity with the Father; born in desperate need of a Saviour.
• Sinless Sacrifice God alone is good, so God alone could save – but God is Spirit and man is flesh, and only a perfect Man could reach God on behalf of sinful, sin-infected man.

• Imputed Righteousness We have no goodness of our own for all our righteousness comes from Christ.
• and all our righteous acts are prepared in advance for us to do - prepared by God, for we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ to do good works, which God prepared, in advance, for us to do.
• Righteous Acts When we abide in Him in spirit and truth, our righteous acts are acceptable to God..  for the spirit works in us, both to will and to do for God’s good pleasure – such are the righteous acts of the new man in Christ.
• Righteous acts don’t have their source in my old sin nature but in the new life in Christ: for in myself I can do no good thing, for all my righteousness is from the Lord… not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ – the righteousness which is from God by faith.” Philippians 3:9
• In Christ Alone For without Christ I can do no good thing. BUT I can do all acts of righteousness through Christ Who gives me the strength.

• Baptism One school of thought says that in order to be saved you must be baptised in water, Baptism is good!
• Making Jesus Lord of your life is good..  but not a requirement of scriptural salvation.

• Have you been a good and faithful servant?
• Search the Word to discover how to let His mind be in you – until Christ is kept at the very centre of your heart - Christ before me; Christ behind me; Christ beside me; Christ beneath me; Christ above me; Christ within me and I in Him – to live and to work and to do His good pleasure through me.

• God never means me to be able, with the Pharisee, to thank Him for the goodness that I find in myself.

• We can all do many things that are unholy and unacceptable to God – through Self, but even good, commendable works, done in our own strength are unacceptable to Him.

• For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them (Eph 2:10).

• I’ve fought a good fight, I’ve finished my course, I’ve kept the faith” 2Timothy 4:7  A man who can truly say, “I have finished my course,” is an entirely broken life.

• But the Lord Jesus made no parade; He would not have His good deeds blazed abroad.

• The man or woman who has no inner ear, no inner silence, no inner place for hearing the Lord is never going to be of much use in the service of the Lord, and mark you, it must be the Lord, and we must be very careful that we do not give even good men and good writers the place that the Lord ought to have.

• to live and work for Him good pleasure, to the praise of God the Father.
• and seek to recompense their former indulgence – by generous gifts to the poor, in the hope that God will be pleased with their good effort and kind deeds.
• Such considerate deeds may appear to be generous and done with all good intention, but this is not the good works that God seeks from His own.
• His Good Pleasure It should not be the service of the flesh, or the works of a guilt-ridden conscience.
• But it is His to will and to do, in and through you for His good pleasure.
• Your Service to God must reflect His only Standard of Good – the Lord Jesus..

• Only our born-again life can do the good works, which God prepared for us to do.

• The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and he delighteth in His way (Ps. 37:23).

• We cannot do good to others save at a cost to ourselves, and our afflictions are the price we pay for our ability to sympathize.

• Abstain also from claims of merit or pride of place: for there is none good, no not one.
• This is not because he hates us, for He knows the plans He has for each of us: plans for good and not for evil – to give you a promise and a hope of salvation.

• It is quite a good thing to be a babe while babyhood lasts, but it is a very bad thing to be a babe when that period is past.

• We find in Romans 8:28 a great marvel: All things work together for good to the believing lovers of God.
• This involves that billion billion control of God's providence - of the most infinitesimal things - to bring them about for good' to God's saints.
• When we reflect on the innumerable things' about us - forces seen and unseen of the mineral, vegetable, and animal worlds; on man at enmity with God; on Satan, and his principalities and powers, in deadly array; on the uncertainty and even treachery of those near and dear to us, and even of professing Christians, and of our own selves - which we cannot trust for a moment; upon our unredeemed bodies; upon our general complete helplessness in ourselves - then, to have God say, All things are working together for your good,' - reveals to us a Divine providence that is absolutely limitless. -W.R.N.

• He speaks to me of my faults, of my sins, but not of the good works that may be in me.
• Secondly, an entire confidence in the goodness of the Father; for He is love.

• Heaven may be ready to come in, the Lord may be prepared to work for us, but it is not sufficient for Him and it would not prove good enough for us if that were all.

• All are of the soul.... Spiritual death marks that realm, and while there may be intense emotions which make for resolves, high thoughts and desires, there is no genuine change in the nature of those concerned, and repeated doses of this must be taken to maintain any measure of soul-self-satisfaction which makes them feel good.
• All religions have this soulish feature in common, more or less, and it is here that the fatal blunder has been made by many religious people who contend that other religions, which are undoubtedly devout and sincere, should not be interfered with, but the good in them should be recognized and accepted.

• The carnal believer is unfaithful, unwise, and overcome.. 0vercome by Satan; the flesh; the world. The void between spirituality and carnality lies in the life-choices of the Christian, and you alone will stand before the judgement seat of Christ: for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. 2Corinthians 5:10

• After that confession he made good headway in the race because he was always ready to subject his thinking to the jurisdiction of his crucified Lord.

• For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.

• Solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. (Hebrews 5:14)

• This loyal, godly Old Testament saint, exemplifies a true man of faith, who pleased God. For he believed God; he trusted God, he watched, and he waited – and yet Simeon, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise. Heb 11:39 ..

• God Means It For Good Nothing that has happened to you is beyond His knowledge and His understanding.
• Old Testament Types Joseph who is a wonderful ‘type‘ of the Lord Jesus said to his brothers: you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.
• The Will of God And so Satan seeks his revenge on those who will keep faith in God – like Joseph and Job – and though Satan means it for evil against you – God will turn it for good.

• You see, the serpent said: your eyes shall be opened and you shall be as gods knowing good and evil.
• that Adam would know good without the power to do it and that Adam would know evil without the power to avoid it.
• There was holiness, goodness, grace and long-suffering.

• Not loyalty when the going is good or because it suits for the time being, but faithful, devoted, steadfast loyalty, right up to the very moment of death.

• it’s not good, nothing can save you now',  and like Job’s wife, some would say: 'curse God and die…'  But God would have us stand still and see the salvation of God.  Stand still for a while, if it is only to renew your strength..

• Barriers to Growth Sadly many new believers are left to ‘grow’ without good discipleship or sound teaching.

• Oh, today we fear that the appeal to become Christians is so often in terms of having an easy or a good time; being happy and enjoying yourself; well, thank God for ALL divine joy, but this is true to the House, to the City, that the first thing the Lord is working toward and seeking to work into His people is that substantial, steadfast, enduring faithfulness that is according to His own nature.

• I not only took you as a sinner, but I took you as being all that you are by nature; your good as well as your bad; your abilities as well as your disabilities; yes, every resource of yours.

• You are still a passenger, perhaps a parasite; not really in the good of it yourself.

• Some are preoccupied with good self and they pride themselves on their excellencies.

• All-Sufficient God For God is able to make all grace abound to YOU, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. 2 Corinthians 9 God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory, in Christ Jesus..

• good or evil, His great name will be praised through them).
• God Working For it is God that works in you, to will and to do for His good pleasure, until it is no longer I that lives in this body of flesh, but Christ that lives in me and Christ that works through Me.

• As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: 1 Peter 4:10
• Romans 6:16  All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, Who apportions to each one individually as He wills. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 2 Corinthians 12:11;7  Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful. 1 Corinthians 4:2
• for it is God Who works in you, both to will and to do of His good pleasure.
• The path may be difficult but if we know that we are in the place of His choosing, He will bestow on us a reassurance that He Who started the good work in us, will be faithful to complete it.
• Revelation 3:21 So be faithful in the big or the little task He has called you to do here and now – and you will hear Him say, well done good and faithful servant.” Matthew 5:23

• How many souls can you encourage to press on to the end?  In giving love and in sharing joy, you too will gain... good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over.

• The Spirit is working in us – first to will the good – and then to do the good.

• False Assumptions If like Eliphaz we reason that God blesses the good man but not the bad man, we are on dangerous ground, for we falsely accuse the character of God.
• Such false assumptions about God, can only lead to spiritual bigotry and religiosity. If like Job’s friends we believe that God sends evil on the good and bad alike as – we are still on a shaky foundation, for God’s name is charged with evil.
• Job 42:7.  God is good, and He may permit evil for the outcome of deeper and eternal good..
• Both theology and doctrine are good.

• to know and to do His good pleasure, which is not necessarily your good pleasure.

• Oh, God may permit sickness or loss, and will allow trials and disaster, but nothing will remove you from the protective covering of the blood of the Lamb, and nothing else is good enough but the protective covering of the blood of the Lamb.
• God is Sufficient When the accuser starts to point his intimidating finger in your face. Don’t try to answer his charges by means of your own self-effort. Don’t slip back into your old ways of penance and afflictions of the flesh. Don’t step out independently, thinking God can't work out your problem by Himself. Don’t answer his accusations by producing your own good works of righteousness. Don’t believe the accusers lies – that God is not sufficient for all our needs.

• And still more detail was poured fourth – streaming into the waters and flung far into the skies – Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth, across the expanse of the heavens, and God saw that it was good.

• Old Sin Nature He first teaches us what the old sin nature is capable of… as Paul reminds us:- I know that in my flesh dwells no good thing.

• Limited Perception Yet so many limit His goodness to their own earthly experience. They choose to view His love and grace to the limits of their understanding – to view it to the extent to which they themselves understand love. And they refuse to recognise His love if it is not what they expect – if it is not proffered in the way that they want or imagine.
• If our love were but more simple,We would take Him at His word;And our life would be thanksgivingFor the goodness of the Lord.

• His Heart Take to heart this good advice from C.S.

• He takes no notice of us, and it is only those people who get out the other end who say, hank God, He did not take any notice.In the meantime, we think He is anything but kind and good and doing the right thing, but as we get on under His hand, we begin to see and to sense that He is dealing with something.

• Good works: philanthropy, hospitality, reform, education, religion, relief, etc.

• And when they pray, they say, We are very glad to be in the house of God this morning; it is a good thing to be in the Lord's house.

• The point is, have I recognized that the Cross of the Lord Jesus was the smashing and ending of me, good and bad, so that I am not holding up before the Lord anything?

• We talk about our conscientiousness, we talk about our intentions; but you and I do not know what lies behind what we call our good motives.
• It is not to be a matter of your impulses, but of His urgings and leadings by the Holy Spirit; not your sitting down to reason out what it would be good to do for the Lord, what ought to be done, what needs to be done, but what He shows you, nothing more.... You and I must not bring over our old creation and give it to God, expecting God to use it.

• We can have no Easter and no Pentecost, until we have first had a Good Friday.

• Others perhaps thought it to be pretty good, but the crisis when listen to me, men and women who are in ministry, or contemplating it the whole turn came upon the recognition of this principle, this principle of the Cross when, with the door closed, I said to the Lord am finished in all ministry, I am never going to preach again unless You do something now.

• You will always find people coming in when there is blessing, not because they have God's end in view, but because a realm of blessing means personal good.... The Lord is calling us on to the fullness of Christ, and sometimes on the way He may let us see the working of His power, that He is with us.

• It just will not do to allow ourselves to be influenced by questions of comparative right or wrong, good or bad, permissibility, desirability, expediency, or policy.

• For no one is good enough to pay the high price of sin.
• God alone is good enough. If Christ is not divine, believers have been hoodwinked into believing a tissue of lies.
• None Negotiable Truth More shockingly still, if He is not a member of the triune Godhead and equal with the Father, His life was a sham and He a blasphemer, Who could never be seen as good!!
• All who deem Him no more than a good man or wise teacher – condemn themselves.

• It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.Lamentations 3:26
• Wait on the LORD: Be of good courage, and e shall strengthen thine heart: Wait, I say, on the LORD.

• In so far as human personalities, energies and all that kind of thing are the mainspring, we may be sure that in the end there is going to be a good deal that goes.

• A land flowingwith milk and honey, a good land indeed.

• He is the eternal Spirit of goodness and truth – comfort, love and grace.

• If however, He is God, every man who questions His divinity is a gross blasphemer, and all who deem Him no more than a good man or wise teacher condemn themselves.

• The eyes of the LORD are in every place, He is watching the evil, and He is beholding the good.
• His Sovereign Rule What a comfort that He sees everything that happens, whether for good or ill.

• To put that in another way: if we study the characteristics of the Lord Jesus in relation to His own when He was here on the earth, we have a good example of what family characteristics are in the thought of the Father.
• Their picture is painted true to life and all the difficult lines are there the bad and the good and nothing unpleasant is hidden from view.

• And most have been entrusted into the care of an under-shepherd’ Christ being the Chief Shepherd as well as being our Good, Great Shepherd.

• Baptism of Suffering We cannot do good to another, save at a cost to ourselves. The afflictions we bear are the price we pay to bear each other's burdens. He who would be the helper must first be the sufferer. He who would seek to help and save, must first bear the pain and the cross. We must drink of the cup that Jesus drank from.. and be baptised into the baptism that He was baptised in.

• ‘Oh no,’ you may argue ‘I am not that bad, I’m different, I couldn’t do that!‘ But you as good as held the nails that pierced His hands, and so did I.
• The air as good a rang with your piercing scream of ‘Crucify” – as of mine.

• Throughout time and eternity the God of circumstances has every situation planned for our good and for His glory (Rom. 8:28, 29).

• Everything of sin results in misery, depression, hurt, pain and disappointment, while all that comes from God is good, pure, holy, just, gracious, and loving. This truth permeates the warp and weft of scripture… from beginning to end. “If our faith were but more simple, we would take Him at His Word..”
• Fear not, the angelic messenger proclaimed, Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people..
• Good News This good news announced the eternal life penetrating the dying, terrestrial world. These good-tidings of great joy show us unequivocally, that God delights in mercy. This angelically proclaimed gospel message, announced deliverance..

• He’s our Good Shepherd.

• It is no longer the law dealing with me to try if it can get any good out of me.

• Ought we not to recognize these other words here associated with the calling: ccording to the good pleasure of His will,the Lord delight?
• Christ is the Land of God fullness, and it is according to the good pleasure of His will that we should come into that fullness.

• God has put everything under Christ’s feet and has made Him the head of everything for the good of the church, which is His body, the fullness of the One who fills everything in every way.Ephesians 1:22-23

• Then if you say thatis you or that is me you will have to abandon your doctrine oftotal depravity, and you will have to come back to the placewhere you say there is good in us, after all!
• You will have tosay there is good and bad in us, and the furnace of affliction isto get the badness out of us and leave the goodness!
• The furnace of affliction is not for the removal ofthe bad out of us so as to leave the good that is in us, andsecure it!
• It is the measure of Christ that Godis after, not to cut in between the good and bad in us, but tocut in between what is Christ, and what is ourselves.

• God’s Pleasure If we do not discern certain states of grace, and choose them – in Him… if we do not nourish them in our hearts in the power of His Holy Spirit, they never become fastened in our nature or behaviour.For we must choose of our own freewill to do of His good pleasure – not our own. Every advance step in grace must be preceded by first apprehending it.
• A shattering that wrings the depths of the heart and conquers the mind. There is a good deal of mere mental and logical sanctification nowadays, which is only a religious fiction. It consists of mentally putting one’s self on the altar.. and then mentally saying the altar sanctifies the gift..  and then logically concluding therefore that one is sanctified!
• for I know in me (that is in my flesh -my old Adamic self) dwells no good thing: For I know in my flesh dwells no good thing.

• The priests of the Lord were unable to enter the Tabernacle of God for the glory of the Lord filled the Temple, so that they fell down with their faces to the ground, worshiping and praising the Lord, saying, “He is good!

• a matter of doing good works.
• And without Me your works are dead, for works come through Him alone: for it is God Who works in you, both to will and to do of His good pleasure.
• You may have good works that abound,  but without Christ it means nothing.

• The Biblical Gospel There is the good news of the gospel, and there is the bad news of the gospel.
• The good news is for those that believe and the bad news is for those that do not. The biblical gospel teaches man in totally is depraved and due to sin we all have missed the mark, and as a result are alienated from God and separated from Him. The bad news of the biblical gospel is that all have sinned and are deserving of death.
• There are none who are excluded by God from the good news of His gospel of grace.
• The Good News The good news of the gospel is good news for all, and everyone is invited to be saved.
• The Bad News The bad news of the biblical gospel is that all have sinned and are deserving of death. All have missed the mark – all are separated from God – all are sinners to the core. All are spiritually dead – all are without hope and without God in a world of sin. But only when the bad news of the gospel is seen in its proper context – where sin separates man from God forever – does the good news of the gospel come into view. So what is the good news of the gospel of salvation that is open to every man? What is the good news for those that believe in Jesus Christ – the Son of God?
• This is the good news of the gospel of grace which centres on Christ’s finished work on the cross – and the fact that He rose from the dead to accomplish our full salvation.
• There is the good news of the gospel and there is the bad news of the gospel too.

• First Evangels It was an angelic throng who were the first evangels that proclaimed the good news of a Saviour, as they abruptly burst through the blackness of night with their joyful news – the Light of God was in the world to bring peace and life to all who would believe. The world needed to know that the Prince of Peace had come to earth to bring hope to a dying race and peace to men of goodwill…  peace to all who trust Him as Saviour.

• God’s Witnesses Israel was to tell the good news of salvation to all the gentile nations of the world.

• Now, while fellowship is always a good thing, and experience should always be used as far as available, when it is a matter of the Lord speaking to our hearts and making it perfectly clear what His way is for us, we must be very careful that we do not submit that to influences that would in any way limit our response and interfere with our obedience.
• If there is fellowship in the things of the Lord, let us use it, but let us be quite sure that we do not take things outside and submit them to those influences which are not in the Light, not in the Life, and not in the good of heavenly things, and take our direction from something less than that which is wholly under the government of the Holy Spirit.

• Sanctification is not achieved through zealous works, designed to please God, nor is it striving to be a good Christian or a great devotee of Christendom.

• He intends to break down what is of the old man, and then, in His own good time, He will pour in that which sweetens all.

• To hope in Him is to trust Him to finish the good work that He has begun – to expect, with full assurance, that He Who promised is faithful and true.

• The Lord will not meet you on the ground of what you are, whether it be good or bad; He will meet you on the ground of the Heavenly Man.
• There everything is adjusted and made good.

• It has a good deal of influence with us.

• In this way: that so many good Christian people are absolutely in bondage to a traditional system which is cutting clean across Divine revelation for them.

• Best Plans On a human level, our love for another may be real... so that my plans and my purposes be carried out and fulfilled for my benefit!!  But on Christ’s plane, His love may at first hurt and wound and sting and lacerate, in order that HIS best plans and purposes are fulfilled for your ultimate good.

• Give honor to whom honor is due, but never build your faith upon any man, however good he may be.

• His loving work is only for my highest good.

• Christ’s Duel Nature Unless fully human He could never have been our kinsman-Redeemer - our sin-substitute... for only a representative from the fallen race of humanity could pay the price for sin. Unless fully God, He could not have saved Himself nor could He have saved us – for only God Himself is good enough to pay His own required price for the sin. Indeed, denial of the true humanity is so serious in the eyes of the apostle John, that it he considers it to be the mark of an antichrist – and should be defended at all costs.

• As we look back over our various lives, not one thing remains unchanged. People come and go, and our hearts are touched for good or stained with pain.

• All well and good, for these are important matters; but, back of everything the Lord is more concerned about our knowing Him than about anything else.

• Sinless Life There’ve been many religious leaders, but all died, and their body remains in a grave. There are good teachers who teach God’s word, but only He is the Word of Life.

• We are the temple of God with the permanently indwelling Spirit of God as God’s deposit of grace. We were foreknown of God and chosen by Him – sealed and adopted forever, Amen. We were showered with the riches of eternal life – endowed with God’s spiritual gifts. We were baptised into Christ – made peace with God and given the peace of God. He started a good work in us and prepared good works for us to do in His strength – and then in His grace rewards us for the work He carried out in our lives – what grace. Thanks be to God for His unimaginable gift!

• Comparatively few are really in the good of God great, great purpose from eternity, i>Called according to His purpose(Rom. 8:28).

• Oscillating Faith And faith in God fluctuates between good and bad circumstances. And trust in God ping-pongs as emotions rise and then tumble. And life has no stability because we have not fixed God’s Word in our heart.
• Nehemiah cried: “remember me, O Elohim – my Strong Powerful God, for good” Neh.13:31.
• between good and bad circumstances.

• Our cup runs over and goodness and mercy will follow us all our days.

• Death’s Dept But sin has consequences and sinners have a debt to pay – and death is its due. Nothing but the shed blood of an Innocent can pay the required price for sin, and no-one is good enough, save the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
• But there was no one good enough to pay the price of sin, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God – for there is none good, not even one- for God alone is good.

• Adam even, pure and good before his fall, was yet of the earth, earthy.

• Wasn’t it good and didn’t it point to Christ?
• Unique Codes of Conduct Those living in Eden also had laws for living specific to that era:- be fruitful, multiply, subdue the earth, tend the garden and don’t eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil – but man failed.

• It is not to be the good works I do, but Christ, Who works through me.
• He will plant you in the place best for you, and we do not need to do things to ensure that conditions are good for growing.
• For the sun doesn't meets the springing bud that stretches toward him with half as much certainty as God, Who is the Source of all good, communicates Himself to the soul that longs to partake of Him.

• As the lighted candle is set ablaze within, He shines within and makes us His light: let your light so shine before men that men may see your good works, and glorify your Father, which is in heaven.
• Light in the World Ye are the light of the world. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven,

• These people at the end will be in the good of a great and wonderful revelation which has come by their fellowship with Christ in His sufferings.

• slow to anger and of great goodness; a God of grace and truth and abounding in great goodness; a God Whose mercy is everlasting; a God Whose love is eternal.

• Good and Gracious Even those who pride themselves on being intellectually superior to those who trust Christ as Saviour are happy to applaud the Lord Jesus as a good and a gracious man.
• Altogether Lovely But every good and perfect attribute is combined in the person of Jesus Christ.

• The question at the judgment will never be of how much good or bad, right or wrong, more or less, is in a man; it will turn upon this one point, Are you in Christ?

• Whatsoever things are good, think on these things. Philippians 4:8.
• Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true; whatsoever things are honest; whatsoever things are just; whatsoever things are pure; whatsoever things are lovely; whatsoever things are of good report – if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise – THINK ON THESE THINGS Philippians 4:8

• If the Lord has not given that back to you, have you not come into some spiritual wealth, some spiritual good, something more in a spiritual way that makes you say, 'Well, it was worth it!'?

• It is a good thing to be a Christian; God does everything for you if only you will be a Christian, and so you become rice Christians, as they are known in certain parts of the world.

• Examples of Grace It is grace that called us to be His children and gave us an inheritance as sons. It is grace that made us heavenly ambassadors and has planned every step of our life. It is the grace that will make us examples of His grace in the ages that are to come. It is grace that ordained us to every good work and grace that equips to do it.

• How can God use all things together for good if we do not feed on His manna?

• Perfect Reflections Sometimes in the hustle and bustle of life we need to stop and think. Sometimes in the hurly-burly of living we need to focus our thoughts. We need to think on whatsoever is good..
• Perfect Gifts Paul told us to concentrate our minds on what is good and perfect: every good and perfect gift comes from God James 1:17. And there is none good – no not one..

• There is none good no not even one, for all have sinned and all fall short.

• He alone is good.
• Only Jesus Christ was good enough to pay the price of sin and to die for you and me – and God has given all power and authority into the hand of the Lord Jesus Christ.

• We really only come into the good of things by being pressed out of measure.
• When I took you, I not only took you as the sinner that you might regard yourself to be, but I took you as being all that you are by nature; your good (?) as your bad; your abilities as well as your disabilities; yes, every resource of yours.

• A true knowledge of the Lord Jesus will reverse a good many of our ideas, and a good many of our procedures.

• He may combine the good in all, but that does not wholly mean Divine nature.

• We shall come to the place where Abraham came, who became the great type of faith which moved right into resurrection: He considered his own body now as good as dead (Rom. 4:19).
• That is the phrase used by the apostle about Abraham: as good as dead.

• The Lord says that if you really have a heart, that is going to mean spiritual understanding.... There are people whose good hearts are not rebellious to the Lord.
• But some good people have reservations.
• Some very good people say, Now if I go all out for the Lord, you know what my friends will think of me?
• Very good people, but they are influenced by policy.
• Very good people, very devoted to the Lord.

• However much the Lord may see good to use these other things for your help and enrichment, you have your own open heaven, your own clear way through, and no closed dome over your head.

• Well, it is not comfortable to say, Yes, but it is good that He should be faithful with every inconsistency, every contradiction, every falsehood, in the inward parts.

• Message of Grace What a glad errand of good tidings of great joy was carried by the angels.

• God and Man If Christ was not God, there could be no salvation, for God alone is good enough to pay the price of sin.

• Grace Thru Faith - STUDY Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Christ Jesus.Philippians 1:6
• For God works all things together for good to those that trust him, and God gives back the years consumed by the locusts of life – but it is a lifetime process of learning to trust God.
• The temptation to shortcut is especially strong, unless we see the value and submit to the necessity of the time element; in simple trust resting in His hands - “Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Christ Jesus.

• Tears Among Wheat The seduction of western Christianity has all but reached its fullness, as sheep of His flock feed on the bitter bread and toxic manna of its leavened meal. Christ’s kingdom parables outline in great detail the final condition of His church in Matthew chapter 13 – covering the time when the enemy started to sow tares into the wheat…up to today.. a time during which a little leaven was mixed into the 3 measures of God’s good meal.

• Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. (2 Tim 2:2,3 NIV)
• Now may the Lord give us the grace to take our share in the sufferings as good soldiers of Jesus Christ, to be strengthened with the grace that is in Christ Jesus, to bear the testimony of the Lord.

• Thanks and Praise It is good to praise the Lord.
• It is good to sing praises to the God of our Salvation, for His countless blessings.
• It is good to give thanks and to praise Thy name, O Lord – for praise is comely.
• For He Who started a good work in each of us will complete it to His glory.

• Blessed are they who wait – in silent, seeking, patient, persevering, watchful waiting. The LORD is wonderfully good to those who wait for Him and seek Him. We are told that those who wait for Me will never be put to shame, and those who wait on the LORD will find new strength.

• God is good to those who wait for Him, and seek Him with their whole heart – How good it is to trust the Lord the Eternal Father.

• Or are we mixed in, compromising, keeping on good terms with this world and its people under the devil hand?

• Warning Signs But how often we ignore His warnings and launch out into the deep ourselves – Thinking that our works alone can do the work of the Father: But motive, good intentions, enthusiasm, interest in your fellow-man is not enough – Giving, praying, encouraging, labouring is all insufficient.

• The Cross simply says that an order, though it be religious, well-motivated, or good-intentioned, but nevertheless proceeding from man in his natural state (not necessarily in defiance of God or in conscious rebellion against Him, but just the expression of man's natural state as he is), the Cross says that this entire order is set aside.

• May He produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ, every good thing that is pleasing to Him. (Hebrews 13:21 NLT)
• God is working for good, He is shaping His vessel.
• That is not good enough.

• My daily prayer for years has been: align my mind to the mind of Christ, because I know that in my own mind there dwells no good thing.

• Today’s Choices What we choose today will affect our life in the kingdom for a thousand years, for the millennial rewards in Revelation 2-3 – are rewards for the coming kingdom, and we will be judged by the works that we do in this life – for good or bad.
• These works must not be our own fleshly works that we should do: for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
• Many choices that I have made in my life have often been foolish and rebellious, but amazingly God works everything together for good, even our bad choices.
• I see Peter deny His Lord – but God in His grace took each transgression and turned it for good.
• Why – because God is gracious, long-suffering, and of great goodness.
• His Good Pleasure And then it continues….
• for it is God which works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.

• And God desires that we are transformed into the image of the Son of His love, but we can hinder His good transforming work in our lives, and grieve His Spirit – and so we are warned not to grieve the Holy Spirit: do not GRIEVE the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption… Eph.4:30.

• Reflection on Love Love explodes into a myriad of sparkling rainbowed gemstones, that make up the “Supreme Good“: Love is patient; Love is kind; Love is not envy; Love doesn't boast.
• Did He not display a good and a gracious temper?
• Was not the life of the Lord Jesus Christ the inspiration for Paul’s “Supreme Good”
• In Luke 6 we read:  “love your enemies and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the most High”.
• Consider His Grace Consider His good temper, for He said:  “suffer little children to come, and forbid them not, and then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put His hands on them, and prayed”.

• “The Supreme Good.” Yes, love is the greatest thing of all.
• Ripening of Love Pointing to love as the “Supreme Good'” is no prejudice on his part.
• But an observant student can detect a maturing tenderness as Paul gets older – a graciousness that grew and ripened and mellowed with his advancing years, for it was Paul that wrote that love is the “Supreme Good.
• Love is greater than charity and all good works, for charitable works or ‘helps‘ are only one face of a pure cut diamond..
• This polychromatic spectrum of love makes up the “Supreme Good”:-
• Patience : for love suffers long.Kindness : for love is kind.Generosity : for love envieth not.Humility : for love vaunteth not itself and is not puffed up.Courtesy : for love does not behave itself unseemly.Unselfishness : for love seeketh not her own.Good temper : for love is not easily provoked.Guilelessness : for love thinks no evil.Sincerity : for love rejoices not in iniquity but rejoices in the truth.
• The Supreme Good Peter says: above all things have fervent love among yourselves.
• “The Supreme Good.” – for love is the greatest thing of all.

• What a privilege and honour – what a ministry and yet what a responsibility… we have been entrusted to be that good, faithful servant, toward other believers.
• Education, politics, news – unrest, uncertainty disorder and chaos all combine..  and fear of the future and a loss of hope is the inevitable outcome – and lack of faith is the insidious bedfellow of hopelessness and despair… UNLESS… Unless we can hold fast that what is good – hold on to the promises of God.

• Indeed, He removes all, that we may not live by these good things but live by a Person instead.

• If other people point out something good about them, they had not realized it, they were not aware of it.
• They are surprised that anyone could say anything good about them; they are not conscious of that.

• And to us, He has is our Good Shepherd– that Great Shepherd of the Sheep: “I AM the Good Shepherd the Good Shepherd giveth his life for the sheep”.
• Jesus said:- I AM the Good Shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for His sheep.” John 10:11

• God’s nature If we have an understanding of God’s nature we will trust His word. Without an understanding of God’s nature we will oscillate with instability.. often based on the broken promises and shattered lies made by imperfect man: but hath He said, and shall He not do it, or hath He spoken, and shall He not make it good?

• However, a good friend heard of the poor woman’s dilemma and went to visit her.

• Religious man’s inflated opinion is that he is intrinsically good and can only improve, and the more he does FOR God, the more acceptable will he be in God’s eyes.
• There is none that doeth good, no, not one… they are all together become filthy.  Rom.3:12
• He spent His whole life in service and good deeds, but naught but His death and spilling of His sinless blood caused the Temple veil to be rent in two.
• Had Christ lived 2000 years His combined good works could not recompense for sin, for salvation is through the shedding of blood.

• Once we learn this great paradox of the Lord, all will be gain, our good, and His glory.

• This is for your eternal good, though it causes intense distress in the present time.
• God has decreed that all circumstances, both the positives and the negatives are used: all things work together for good, to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.” Rom.8:28

• am the good shepherd(John 10:14).
• am the resurrection, and the life; he that believeth on Me, though he die, yet shall he live; and whosoever lives and believes on Me shall never die.What I AM is made good when you believe.

• Some take comfort that, 'bad things happen to good men', and this is so..

• An experience that in time or in eternity will prove itself to be one of those things for which we say – ALL things work together for good to those that love God – to those that are the called, according to HIS purpose….

• Truths to Remember Jesus said: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. John 10:28.  While Paul told Timothy to: Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses. 1 Tim6:12 Job confessed: Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him.

• But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”   And in 2Tim.1:12 he wrote: But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until the Day of Christ.  While in Phil.1:6 he said And I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ
• Good for Best But to achieve this..
• we must renounce altogether some good things in the pursuit of the best.

• He willingly submitted in total surrender to the Father’s good pleasure with the words:- “Thy will not mine be done.” Luke 22:42

• Grace Thru Faith - STUDY Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.Philippians 1:6
• It is For All For whether it takes 20 years… or 95 years like Jacob to understand God’s process, you can be sure that He who started a good work in you will be faithful.

• For He Who has begun a good work in you will complete it in the day of Christ Jesus.Philippians 1:6
• A Good Work At the point of new birth He who began this new work in you made a promise.
• He promised to perform a good work in you until the day that Jesus comes to take us home.
• He begins to know something of the experience that Paul so graphically describes: “What I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do.” I (Rom.7:15), and in consequence, he feels that the bottom has fallen out of his Christian life; and then perhaps the Devil whispers to him that it is just no good his going on, because he will never be able to make the grade.
• for He who has begun a good work in you will complete it.
• And so rejoice in whatever circumstances of life you find yourself, for He Who has begun a good work in you will complete it at the day of Jesus Christ Jesus.

• The wonderful thing is that whether maturity is sought immediately or delayed – all things in life will be worked together for our good, and for God’s glory.

• We can't lose our salvation but we stray from a spiritual walk into a carnal walk.  We can leave our first love of Christ and be enticed back to the ways of the world – or we can fall from grace, trying to please God through our own good works.
• Walking the way of flesh, worldly living and legalistic good works all deny God’s grace.  But He desires His children to grow in grace and to walk in spirit and truth.

• Soon Forgotten A few have left an indelible mark in the pages of history – some for good and others for ill. Names may be remembered – people will be forgotten as the grass of the field, but today is the day to make your life count. Moses told the Israelites: today you have been ordained for the service of the Lord. Exodus 32:29

• Is it your bank balance – your good name – your power – your health – how you look?
• or perhaps responsible for others? Is it retaining your independence, or perhaps having others dependent upon you? Is it helping others – living a good life – reading 10 chapters of the bible each day? I wonder what is the primary concern and principal interest in your life today.

• Too often we seek to live up to His standard and do good works in our own strength.

• Children of Grace All who have received a new life in Christ, BY grace, must be trained THROUGH grace. Grace brings to our understanding the great love and goodness of God towards us.

• That is no good on this foundation.
• When you think you have arrived at a very good logical conclusion about a matter, something will come along and upset the whole thing.... You never get through that way.

• Nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine (1 Tim. 4:6).

• If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine (1 Tim. 4:6).

• The sin nature often displays itself the ‘works-merit-law way’, by Christians trying to live a good life the wrong way.
• The old sin nature opposes the new life in Christ, but the inner ‘flesh’ often manifests itself through good deeds, which are carried out in our physical body, by trying to do God’s will the wrong way.

• We read in Ephesians 1:5-6 ‘Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the Beloved'.

• We can sin with our mental attitude, where sin is carried out in the mind and we can sin motivationally – where a good deed is done for the wrong reason.

• in my flesh dwelleth no good thing.' Coupled with that is the lesson that God waits with infinite patience, like the potter, to work out a design and beauty with such frail material. -M.H.F.

• If in honesty and sobriety of heart I have judged that in me, that is, in my flesh, dwelleth no good thing,' I shall certainly not expect anything from myself, and it has been well said that where there is no expectation there can be no disappointment.
• They have no idea that they are trying to improve themselves; they would repudiate such a thought; they suppose that they know better than to look for good in themselves.

• It is really not good enough, is it, to be forced to it, compelled to it?

• Their comfort was a pot-pourri of good and evil – a mixture made up of truth and lies.
• God of Comfort But the God of all Comfort in His goodness turns the crumbling situation to good.
• O blessed Love of God,That all may taste and see-How good Thou art, once more I prayLove through me, every day.

• Immediately we get into God hands this thing begins to be brought home to us that we are not much good, we cannot stand up to things, we cannot go through.

• God’s Faithfulness I believe in the fullness of time we will all understand why the Bridegroom tarried, for we know that ALL things work together for good to those that love God. All things – even things we don’t understand and the things that grieve us.
• All things - ALL things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.

• It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait, for the salvation of the LORD.Lamentations.3:25
• Wait on the LORD and be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart.
• Lesson For Today What lessons good Elijah demonstrates to us in these latter times, as we reflect on his unwavering steadfastness of faith.

• But,' it may be asked, are we not exhorted to fight the good fight'?
• Yes, that is so, but you must please finish the text, Fight the good fight of faith,' and faith never struggles for victory.

• It is not striving to live a life that you hope will be good enough to please God.

• But while we have the choice – let us walk in spirit and truth and allow the Holy Spirit to do the good, sanctifying work of conforming us into the image and likeness of the Lord Jesus Christ.

• “According to your faith (in the One Revelation of God Himself) be it unto you.” “According to your faith (in the Lord Jesus Christ) let it be to you.” “Be of good cheer, your faith (in the Son of Man) has made you well.” “Go your way; your faith (in the Son of God) has made you whole.” “Great is thy faith (in Me).

• At the start of his journey, Paul knew what God’s good pleasure was.
• We read in Galatians 1 verse 6 that it was God’s good pleasure to reveal His Son in me” Gal.1:6 But at the end of his life it was as if he knew nothing of his Lord and King.

• We can choose the good or we can choose the evil – but we cannot have both.

• Man’s  Approach There are many people who would argue that they should certainly get into heaven. Many think they qualify to enter into paradise because of their many good deeds. Many consider that their applaudable attempts to keep the ten commandments are sufficient for God to joyfully fling wide the gates to happiness and bid them enter in. Many think that regular attendance at church more than meets God’s requirements, but this reasoning places the burden of responsibility of access to heaven – on ME. This thinking bases qualification to enter into heaven on Self..
• God’s Criteria They place eligibility to enter heaven on the many good things that I have achieved. They point to MY credentials – MY great works – MY religiosity – MY spirituality.
• Only Way It all centres around believing on the Lord Jesus Christ and His work on the cross, for apart from Calvary there is no forgiveness of sin – no salvation – no heaven. Man’s assumption is inevitably that I must win my way to heaven by my good deeds. God’s criteria is believe on the finished work of Christ crucified – and nothing else. The one point men seem to forget is that we are all sinners and estranged from God. Sin is the one thing that separates man from God.
• Spiritually Dead When we entered this life we were born into sin – we were sinners at birth, because we are sinners we are dead in trespasses and sins – separated from God. We are physically alive but our spirit is dead = separated from God; separated forever. Man throughout the centuries has devised many ways to get to God – to please Him, and they are based on good deeds, religious works, keeping the ten commandments.

• As a result, we can produce a harvest of good deeds for God.Romans 7:4
• Growing Pains Growing pains inevitable occur in all believers when our faith in Christ is tried. Sometimes stunted growth is the result of a lack of good teaching. Sometimes spiritual growth is resisted because of carnal desires.

• The one who keeps understanding will find good.
• Outflow of Wisdom And remember:- He Who started a good work in you will complete it.
• Fruit of Wisdom James tells us that, the wisdom that is from above is first pure; then peaceable; then gentle; then willing to yield; then full of mercy and good fruit – without partiality and without hypocrisy.

• Our words are to be wholesome; sensitive; truthful; thoughtful; wise – spiritual... 'let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, that it may give grace to those who hear'.
• Godly Words James reminds us that the tongue is the most unruly member of our body.  It can be used for much good but can be a destructive implement.
• Godly words can do much good but careless speech can only cause devastation.

• He knew he was changed, he was in the good of God rest.... This man was a testimony which was the answer to every argument.
• Your mouth is shut when you have a living person standing there right in the good of things.
• A real answer to every argument so that people say, ell, look here, it is not the teaching they have taken on, the associations they have made: no, no, look at them; you know what they were, you know how little they counted, you know what cripples they were spiritually, you know what liabilities they were, you know how much they were without rest: but look now; they have the goods, they are in the good of things, they are counting, they mean something, and they are in rest, they are in joy, they are in satisfaction, they themselves are changed!What can you say to that?

• Eve had lost faith when she saw that the tree was good for food, and pleasant to the eyes.

• Speak that which is good and edifying, and minister grace to those that hear you – And preach the Word. 2Tim.4:2
• Hold fast that which is good and abstain from all appearance of evil. 1Thess.5:22.
• Follow that which is good and put on tender mercies and kindness.

• The first is via the Word: In me (that is, in my flesh) dwelleth no good thing (Rom. 7:18).
• It is quite possible for every one of us to have a perfectly good conscience.
• Have you a good conscience?
• That means that you have not the answer of a good conscience to God.
• Tell yourself and tell the accuser once for all that in you, that is, in your flesh, dwelleth no good thing, and you never expect to find anything.
• Let us settle it that we can never expect to find any good in our old nature.
• All our good is in another, even our Lord Jesus.

• Because you are a good Christian who reads the bible and prays?
• Because you have done lots of good deeds and witnessed about the Lord?
• Because you have restrained yourself and tried to follow His good example?
• There is nothing so good or worthy that can gain an unbeliever His acceptance – except believing on the Lord Jesus Christ. It never has and it never will depend on man – it all depends on Him.
• Man’s False Perception Many Christians find this total acceptance by God, very difficult to understand. Many spend much time seeking to remain in His good books, by being “good”, They think that if their foot slips, or temptation strikes, that God’s favour is lost – Not so !!

• Job never denounced God’s goodness, though he bitterly questioned Him with tears,  but of necessity, Job had to relinquish some of his long-held understandings.

• God knows that the thoughts in the mind of men are only evil continually - for that there is none that are good..
• All men have turned aside from what is good and true and there is none who does good..
• ot even one - for all have sinned and all fall short of the glory and goodness of God.

• And in the same way, there are those in the Body of Christ today who are not enticed into the worldly ways of the apostate church, but contend earnestly for the faith, fighting the good fight of faith, taking hold of the eternal life to which the Church is called, and conducting themselves in a manner that is worthy of the gospel of Christ.

• And the apostle Peter, that big, blustery fisherman saw the glory of Christ and became a gentle lover of his Lord and a wise instructor to those that follow the Way, the Truth, the Light, and the Life.And Peter reminds us that the 'treats' that Satan strews in our way are passions of our flesh that tickle our fancies and damage our soul – they are lusts that feed our self-life and starve us of the Bread of Life that is the only nourishment that is good for our souls.

• Paul encourages us to be patient in affliction and to share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus, while James instructs us to consider the trials and suffering we go through as a great joy, knowing the testing of our faith produces endurance, which brings our hope and trust in the Lord to its completion.
• However, God in His grace uses all things together for the good of those that love Him, and are fitting into His plan.

• It was not because of their goodness that they were called 'saints', but because of their great salvation through faith in Christ.
• Every sinner who is truly born again is a saint in God's eyes because of HIS goodness, because they have been cleansed by the blood of Christ.

• His mercies are new every morning for He is a good and gracious God.

• We are to move on from the simple understanding that good works cannot save us, to a life that is lived in the power of the Spirit, as we abide in Christ and He in us.
• How vital to mature in the faith and feed on the meat of the Word of God - so that we may progress in the faith, share the good news of the gospel with others, and be ready to give an answer for the hope that we have - to all that are interested.

• But Paul knew that no matter what life threw in his direction: All things work together for good for those that love the Lord Jesus and are called according to His good purpose.

• Jesus wanted to get across the eternal truth that He was the door of the sheepfold; the only Good Shepherd; the one Way to God; the revealed Truth of God and everlasting Life that only comes from God – for He is God in the flesh.
• Jesus had come to the lost sheep of the house of Israel and explained in detail that He was the Good Shepherd Who alone could save His people.
• And Jesus is the Good Shepherd of the sheep Who leads and guides, protects and feeds the sheep that belong to Him.

• Paul's intrepid attitude encouraged other believers to share the good news of Christ's sacrificial death and glorious Resurrection fearlessly, with boldness, and with courage.
• Many of his epistles were written while in prison, and centuries of saints have spiritually benefitted from the letters he penned while being detained for spreading the good news of Christ.
• The fields were white with harvest and as long as he had life in his body, Paul knew he could proclaim the good news of the gospel of grace to those who were dead in sin and preach the Word of truth to babes in Christ and mature men of God, and so we read his thoughts: I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better.

• Those who have done good, by believing on Christ, will participate in the resurrection of LIFE - through the baptism of the Spirit.
• John likened those who would believe to good grain, who would be gathered into God's barn.

• Good is contrasted with evil, right with wrong, wisdom with foolishness, righteousness with folly, - and the benefits of a righteous lifestyle are often placed alongside the disadvantages of a wicked way of living.

• Let us share the good news of the gospel of Christ during this Church age, for the day is coming when Christ will stand up in preparation to return as the promised, conquering King of Israel.

• And God saw all that He had made, and it was very good.

• Only good comes from the Lord but He will permit evil to flourish in order to forward His perfect plans and purposes.
• Let us remember that all things ultimately work together for good to those that love God, but we only see through a glass darkly and we do not always understand why certain things are permitted to happen in our lives and in our world.

• God Himself, in the person of Jesus Christ, became fully human, for God alone was good enough to pay the awful price for sin.

• But ungodly men who refuse to accept Christ's payment for their sin as a free gift of God's grace, will be punished and judged according to their works - which can never be good enough for a holy God: For there is none good, not even one.

• He wanted the good work God has started in the lives of those who believe, to be completed in the day of Christ, for their eternal benefit and God's greater glory.

• When we abide in Christ and He abides in us, the fruit of the Spirit is the product that will flow through us - and the fruit that Christ produces through us will be love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

• In it, he set out the principles and practice for a good and godly Christian life.

• and Israel was the one whom Isaiah described as 'the choicest vine.' Israel was chosen by God to be a fruitful vine, and they were expected to bring forth good fruit for His glory..
• Indeed the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control..
• It is not by personal performance, might or merit that we are 'fruitful.' It is not by our own effort or strength that we produce the good works that glorify God..
• The Lord Himself enables us to be fruitful as we carry out the good works that He Himself has prepared for us to do.
• and He enables us to produce good fruit to the glory of God.
• Only as we submit to God and allow Him to work His good work through us, are we enabled to live as He lived..
• Indeed we know that we are God's handiwork, and are created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God Himself prepared in advance for us to do.

• While the older men were to be self-controlled, worthy of respect, reverent in behaviour, and committed to sound doctrine, Paul similarly gave good instruction and wise advice to older women as well.
• Paul's advice to experienced, godly ladies that were advancing in years, gave emphasis on providing good teaching, sound instruction, and wise advice to those that were younger in age and who lacked practical understanding.
• They were instructed to teach what is good, to be purveyors of godly works, to live life with dignity and integrity, and to be temperate in all their habits and everyday practices.
• They are to participate in that which is good and to avoid all that is evil.

• For those that are called according to His good purpose, God's anger will always turn into His favour.

• God takes every evil perpetrated by men and turns it to good.

• And when He had made purification for our sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, for He also said, I AM - the Good Shepherd, and I lay down My life for the sheep.

• The Mosaic Law, the Feasts of the Lord, the different priestly ceremonies, and various sacrificial offerings, are described in Hebrews as a shadow of good things to come.

• Perhaps one of the most beautiful, yet simple, universal declarations of the good news of the gospel of grace, is found in the book of Joel: Whoever will call on the name of the Lord, will be delivered.
• And then this good news of great joy was repeated to the Gentile nations in the epistle to the Romans, where we, who were dead in our sins, discover the beautiful truth that: Whoever will call on the name of the Lord, will be saved.
• No matter how amazing the gospel of Christ may be, unless lost souls are told the truth about sin and salvation... and unless the good news of the gospel of grace is proclaimed universally, men and women, boys and girls, rich and poor, Jews and Gentiles alike, will remain dead in their trespasses and sins.
• Let us pray that God would send out labourers into the harvest-fields of souls that need to be saved by grace through faith in Christ, and let us ask God to bring into our lives people, with whom we can share the good news that: Whoever will call on the name of the Lord, will be delivered - for how can they call on the Lord, in Whom they have not believed?

• They were chosen to share the good news of the gospel of God with the gentile nations, and proclaim forth the gospel of the kingdom to the whole world..
• What a good and gracious God to be so shockingly used and abused by His people..

• But Paul also goes on to rejoice that in His goodness and grace, God's offer of salvation continues to be extended to Israel and that His punishment for their sin will not remain forever.

• It is not wrong to possess the good things of this world, but it is dangerous when goods and money start to possess our hearts, our choices, and our behaviours.

• It is the trusting heart that has confidence in God's character and believes His promises that pleases the Lord, and it is such a man that remains persuaded of God's never-failing goodness no matter what difficulties rise up to confound the heart or confuse the mind.

• The following chapter begins with yet another declaration from Nebuchadnezzar who sent a letter to all the peoples, nations and languages of the world that were under his jurisdiction, declaring: It has seemed good to me to declare the signs and wonders which the Most High God has done for me, how great are His signs and how mighty are His wonders!

• Moses is lifted up in the book of Hebrews as a prime example of faithfulness, for we read: Now Moses was faithful in all his house as a servant, and the Lord used Moses as a testimony of those things which were to be spoken of later.Just as the Law is a schoolmaster which steadfastly points us to Christ and His New and better Covenant, so Moses was a faithful servant whom God used as a trusted sign-post to point us to the coming Messiah, for he testified of those things which were to be spoken about later - the revelation that was to come through Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Son of Man.Moses bore witness of the good news of man's redemption which would come through a greater Prophet than he, a greater Priest than Aaron, and a greater king than David.

• Israel was the nation God chose to be His mouthpiece, to tell the world of the goodness of God and to be the nation through Whom the promised Seed of Abraham would secretly travel, until the appointed time.
• Israel as a nation, may have transgressed 2000 years ago when they rejected their Messiah King and had Him crucified, but God is good and full of mercy and His promise to Abraham through David and his Seed stands forever.

• What glorious grace it is to know that the forgiveness of our sins does not have to rest on our own merit or good works, but is secured on Christ's finished work on the Cross: For His name's sake.

• God is the Father of mercies and Giver of all good gifts and the evil and suffering of today is an indicator of the shocking effect of sin, in individual lives and the world at large.
• But for those with eyes to see, Genesis 3 identifies God as a good God of unimaginable mercy.
• But from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die. Adam and Eve failed to obey God's instructions.
• The moment they sinned they received a conscience, causing them to know what was good without the ability to do good, and to recognise evil without the capacity to avoid it - Oh!
• Despite their failure in Eden, God in His goodness, grace, mercy, and kindness, made a covenant - the Adamic covenant.

• Jesus was popular with the people because He healed the sick, taught them many things, told some good stories, and had fed them with bread and fishes - but His betrayal by one of the men that had accompanied Him throughout His ministry, emboldened the Jewish leaders to arrest Him.
• The goodness and truth of Christ's words and actions exposed the demonic evil lies of His enemy's words and actions.
• His goodness exposed their evil.

• Having spent a good few chapters addressing disorders, dissensions and immorality within the Corinthian church community, together with lawsuits among believers and moral impropriety amongst Christians, Paul continues his epistle by outlining the godly and doctrinal elements that should be the distinguishing marks of a fellowship of believers..

• Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, 'My plan will be established, and I will accomplish all My good pleasure.'

• What is important, is to know the Word of God, to trust the Word of God, and to apply the Word of God in every circumstance of life, knowing that to do so will lead to success in the Christian life; for all things work together for good to those that love the Lord and trust His Word.

• They are ones that acted as under-shepherds, who teach the truth and adhere to the authority of Scripture and the commands of Christ - the Chief Shepherd of the flock and Good Shepherd of the sheep.
• May we be diligent to tell others of the good news of the gospel of grace and rejoice with them in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ, as we cast our crowns before HIS feet.

• Physical circumcision may identify a person as Jewish, but only those who believe in Christ can be called 'the True Circumcision'.In his concluding exhortation to the Galatian Christians, Paul summed up this vital truth with great clarity; Jews who desire to make a good showing in the flesh, try to compel you Gentiles to be circumcised.

• Although it is good and right to help others, we are not instructed to share a social gospel, as so many teach today.
• We are not called to make the world a better place, but to share the good news of the gospel of grace, so that men, women, boys, and girls may be saved out of the world - by grace, through faith in Christ.

• and when He reflected on all that He had made God saw that it was very good.
• but He is also full of mercy and great goodness and we read elsewhere that the eyes of the Lord search to and fro throughout the whole earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him.

• May we never allow wrong motives or fleshly attitudes to influence the calling that God has laid on each one of our lives, rather, let us rejoice that the good news of God is being proclaimed to lost souls who need to hear the glorious gospel of salvation, by grace through faith in Christ.

• Our emotions ebb and flow as we fluctuate between two opinions and question God's goodness depending upon our feelings or our fortune.

• He is JESUS, the Good Shepherd of the sheep, Who knows those who are His, and Whose voice is recognised by the sheep of His pasture.
• Such a person is a good-for-nothing charlatan, who allows the snarling wolf to snatch the defenceless sheep in his care.
• Jesus stressed His identity as Israel's Good and Gracious Shepherd.
• But we have a Good and Gracious Shepherd, Who loves us so much that He laid down His life for the sheep.
• The more we KNOW His Word, the more we KNOW the Good Shepherd and the closer we become to HIM.

• Only a heart that has been made new by the Holy Spirit of God and a mind that is stayed on Christ, is able to resist the temptations of this world and stand fast through all the trials and tribulations of life.God is a consuming fire Who will one day burn away the dross, and refine that which is good.
• And one day, His purifying fire will burn away all that is evil and refine that which is good.Although our eternal life is secure in Him, the consuming fire of God's wrath is waiting to judge the works that we carry out in this life.
• When we live as unto the Lord and fulfil the good work that God has prepared for us to do, then the purifying fire of God's judgement will consume away all carnal dross and refine our good and godly works (producing gold, silver, and precious stones).
• Saved, yet as though by fire.May we take to heart the serious consequences of sin and remove every element of it in our life which may cause us to fall into sinfulness, and may we also be ready and willing to share the good news of the gospel of grace with those who remain dead in their sins, and warn them of the terrible consequences of hell and God's unquenchable fire which awaits all who have not trusted in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

• However, the opposite is true of those that reject the Lord Jesus and spurn His goodness.

• We are not to compromise our faith but to cling fast to that which is good and noble, right and pure - honourable, admirable and lovely.

• We are told that there are none that are good, only God: And God is GOOD to those that wait for Him.
• God is GOOD to the person who searches for Him, for He is not far from any of us and He will be found by us if we search for Him with all our hearts.
• It was Jeremiah who is often called the weeping prophet, who having witnessed the sacking of the holy Temple of God by the Babylonians, the destruction of Jerusalem by fire, and the scattering, slaughter and enslavement of God's people, Israel, that we read: The Lord is GOOD to those who wait for Him and to the one that seeks after Him.
• Yet despite this heart-breaking situation, Jeremiah would proclaim: The Lord is GOOD to those who wait for Him; to those who seek after Him.
• God is GOOD to those that wait for Him, to those that submit to His perfect will, to those that trust in His unfailing Word.
• God is GOOD to the person who searches for Him, for He is not far from any of us and He will be found by us, if we search for Him with all our heart. 

• The Lord our God is faithful and true to His Word, and He satisfies our years with good things so that our youth is renewed like that of an eagle.
• He is good to those who wait for Him, seek Him, trust Him, and love Him.

• No matter what our station in life, there are many lessons that each one of us can learn from this little letter to Philemon. What a joy to know that no-one is excluded from the good news of the gospel of grace, for anyone can be saved through faith in Christ.
• What an encouragement it is to know God works all things together for good, even the bad things that take place in our lives.

• which are only given to those that have spiritual discernment through the indwelling Christ - for the natural man receives not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned, but he who is spiritual, discerns all things - by His goodness and grace.

• Others reject the perfection, purity, plausibility, and person-hood of His humanity, but unless fully God, He would not have been good enough to pay the price of sin, for God alone is good.

• We were not saved because of our goodness or achievements.

• This is the time when the successive ages of man and the millennial rule of Christ, in which the gospel of God and the good news of Christ has reached the distant shores of humanity will be brought to its close – the time when everything will be gathered up together, in Christ, and given back to God.

• The apostles quickly addressed this growing problem by appointing seven men of good reputation to oversee this issue.
• As stones were being hurled at him and smashing his body, we read that a young man called Saul was also being prepared by God to become Christ's chosen apostle to preach the good news of gospel to every creature, to Gentiles as well as to Jews.

• He carries out this refining work in the inner recesses of our hearts, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
• How important therefore to keep our focus on Jesus and to train the eyes of our hearts on heavenly things that are true and honest, just and pure, lovely and wholesome, godly and of good report.
• How true it is that you become like the person with whom you spend time, and whatever has captivated your heart inevitably reflects attitudes and behaviours in life, (whether good or evil), and too often it is not a pretty sight. We are warned not to habitually be immersed in the world but to set our minds on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make Him the central focus of our thoughts.
• The evidence of this lovely transfiguring process is not only an outward disassociation from an ungodly world and the works of the world, the flesh, and the devil, but a life that is good, acceptable, perfect and pleasing to the Father - but note, that transformation is perfected through trials, difficulties, suffering, and sorrow.

• No man can be saved because of his birthright, bank balance, talents, good works or religiosity, for all have sinned and fallen short of God's glory.
• God's faithfulness towards Israel had not become null and void because they rejected the good news of the gospel of grace and crucified their Messiah.

• However, all those who rejected God’s offer of salvation before the Cross and throughout the Church-age, as well as during the 7-year Tribulation, will be confined in hell for a further 1000 years and must partake in the SECOND resurrection – the terrible resurrection of all unbelievers at the Great White Throne of the living God, which will result in eternal separation from God.Let us increase our efforts to tell the good news of the gospel of Christ to as many as we can, before the great and terrible Day of the Lord, for the Word of God through the revelation of Jesus Christ will not fail.

• Paul's message never altered, but his love for the Lord and his passion to share the good news of the gospel of God gathered momentum and intensity throughout his ministry.
• We are blessed to be children of God because Paul, Timothy, many witness, faithful men, and others have shared the good news of the gospel of grace, down through multiplied centuries of time.
• We heard the good news, because the gospel was passed on from Paul through many witnesses, faithful men, and 'others' - and is recorded for our learning in the Holy Scriptures.
• Let us be part of Paul's 'others' as we share the good news of the Christ crucified, risen, and ascended for the redemption of mankind - so that whosoever believes on Him for salvation, will not perish but have everlasting life.

• It is the Spirit of God Who witnesses to our spirit and Who teaches and trains us to do the good and eschew the evil - and it is by the work of the Holy Spirit that we are born from above into the family of God..

• It is good and right to mourn with those that mourn and we certainly miss those that have gone before, but we should never be as grief-stricken at the passing of a saved loved one as those that are unsaved and who have no hope...

• This is not a teaching that describes a God as a worldly judge Who is reluctant to bestow His blessings, but rather a generous Father Who gives good gifts to all His children.
• His delay is not inactivity or disinterest, but a preparation to make all things work together for good, to those that love God and are called according to His purpose.

• May we taste and see that the Lord is good, and wholesome, and sweeter than honey to those that believe.

• Although the Lord warned Jeremiah that the people would not listen to his words, remember their covenant with God, or return to the old ways of righteousness, this weeping prophet was faithful to his calling: Thus says the LORD, he declared, Stand by the ways and see and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; and you will find rest for your souls.

• They will be ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.

• Like Abraham, Sarah was as good as dead, yet from Abraham came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as immeasurable as the sand on the seashore - and Sarah, the barren, desolate woman became the mother of multitudes.

• and share the good news to a lost world.
• The second and third signs were connected with healing those that were sick, for as Isaiah prophesised - the Lord God anointed and qualified Christ Jesus to preach the Gospel of good tidings to the meek, the poor, the helpless and the afflicted.
• No one but the eternal Son of God is good enough to pay the price for sin.

• Rather, we are to be ruled or governed by the Holy Spirit Who brings forth love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

• The fool identifies himself by giving reverence to angelic beings, rulers of the earth, and a plethora of equally false entities, but in this Psalm, David demonstrates his trust in the Lord, for he had discovered Him to be good and gracious.

• It was after his release from a two-year jail sentence in Rome, that Paul and Titus travelled together to Crete and preached about the good news of the gospel of Christ to the Cretans.
• As the good news spread, churches started to spring up around the island.
• Paul knew how quickly error can creep into a fellowship of believers, and his epistle to Titus is one of three, pastoral epistles giving him personal encouragement, reminding him of important issues in ministry, outlining the criteria and character required in a church elder, correcting doctrinal errors that may arise in a Christian church, explaining the roles and responsibilities of believers in their families and communities, and exhorting the congregations towards godly living and good works, both at home and abroad.
• Paul never wanted anyone to become complacent in their faith and always made a point of reminding others of the joy we have in Christ, and so his letter to this 'son in the faith began by reminding him of God's amazing goodness and grace, the privileged peace we have with God through our great salvation, and the perfect peace of God that can guard our heart when our mind is stayed on Him.

• In this psalm, we see a beautiful portrait of God as our good and faithful Shepherd Who leads us by still waters and guides us into the way of peace.
• He is the One Who upholds and protects, Who blesses and comforts, Who bountifully provides good things for us in the presence of our enemies.
• The picture that is painted in this well-loved psalm of David, is that of our faithful God, our merciful and gracious Saviour, our good and caring Shepherd Who keeps us, protects us, and provides for us through all the changing scenes of life.
• Our good and loving God supplies all our needs, according to His riches in glory, through Christ Jesus our Saviour.
• He has anointed our head with oil and our cup of blessing overflows with His goodness and love.

• It provides us with every good word we speak, every good deed we do, and every good thought we think.

• It was at this time of intense sorrow and deep, deep passion that the little flock of Christ heard their Good Shepherd say: A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, so love you one another.

• How thankful we should be that we are His people, For the LORD is good.
• The Lord is good.
• What a glorious triplet of gracious attributes to ascribe to the great, almighty, sovereign, powerful, righteous God of gods - for power and righteousness without goodness, mercy, and faithfulness would be a terrifying prospect for humanity.
• But the goodness of God is eternal.
• The Lord is indeed good.
• In His goodness and grace, He causes the sun to rise on the evil, as well as those who have been declared righteous by faith.
• He is the Father of all mercies and is indeed, a good and gracious God.
• He is our good, merciful and faithful God, Whose promises cannot be broken and Whose Word can be trusted implicitly.
• No surprise that we are called upon to make a joyful noise and sing praises to the God of our salvation, for the Lord is good, His mercy endures forever, and His faithfulness lasts throughout every generation.
• For the Lord is good.
• Let us bless the God of our salvation, for He is good, His lovingkindness is everlasting, and His faithfulness stretches into the eternity of eternities.

• Gentile believers were to become Jewish proselytes and were to be circumcised, adhere to the Law, participate in the feasts, keep the Sabbath day sacred, and worship the Lord in His holy Temple.New Testament believers, however, have been instructed to GO and share the good tidings of salvation with lost men and women, making disciples of all nations.
• While Israel were to bring people into the camp of God, Christians are called to go out into all the world preaching the good news of the gospel of grace, to unsaved Jews and Gentiles alike.Being taught to share the gospel by those early Christian teachers, was the hallmark of the early Church.

• And because we are His sons and daughters, we should make every effort to supplement our faith with goodness, our goodness with knowledge, our knowledge with self-control, our self-control with endurance, and our endurance with godliness.

• Indeed the Lord God in His grace revealed Himself to David as the good Shepherd of Israel and promised that the coming Saviour would one day arise to shepherd His little flock in the strength of the Lord ..and in the majesty of the name of Almighty God.

• And even in those times when our enemies surround us, we will be like a flourishing tree planted by the river of life, whom the Lord will lead along a good and level pathway.

• But because we are justified we are immediately baptised in the spirit, which gives us a good conscience before God.
• When a man or woman turns from their sins to Christ and is cleansed by the washing of the water of the Word of God, the result is a good conscience before the Lord.

• In this verse, we read that the Law was only a shadow of the good things to come.
• Christ's eternal priesthood after the order of Melchizedek and everything connected with the old Law, was simply an inferior representation of all that was to come: For since the Law only gives us a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things.

• Do not destroy with your food, him for whom Christ died, was his clear instruction, Do not let what is a good thing for you be spoken of as evil, he continued, for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.  Paul did not want the liberty some Christians enjoyed to offend a weaker brother or cause them to stumble in their Christian journey.

• Just as light triumphs over darkness and good triumphs over evil, so mercy triumphs over judgement.

• He has provided all we need for life and godliness, by preparing good works for us to do which, when carried out by His sovereign power and sufficient grace, earn for us a glorious reward and eternal weight of glory.He who started a good work in each of us has promised to finish all that He began.
• He not only caused us to become new creatures, by faith in His sacrificial death and glorious Resurrection, but supplied us with good seed to sow into the lives of those who do not know His goodness and grace – and then to carry out His own good work in our lives, through the power of His indwelling Holy Spirit.Paul rejoices that God is able to make all grace abound to us so that always having sufficiency in everything, we have an abundance for every good deed, and he reinforces this truth by quoting from the Psalmist: He scattered abroad.
• His righteousness endures forever.Jesus Himself reminded us that HE is the Sower and God is the One Who provides the good seed in its season, for us to sow.
• The principle of generous sowing and abundant reaping reminds us that we are destined for rewards when God carries out His good work in our lives, and we die to self and live for Him.God is the One Who multiplies the seeds we sow, to bring forth much fruit; some thirty, some sixty, and some a hundred-fold.

• That good and great shepherd of the sheep was the one Who would be called Faithful and True.

• Let us never forget that His thoughts and plans and ways and works are all working together for good to those that are the called according to His purpose.

• Paul's passion is to share the good news of justification by grace in simple steps, which gently leads to a conclusion.
• The precious promises of God are poured into our hearts by the Spirit, and Paul cements his argument with the assurance that while we were weak and ungodly, without strength and without hope – Christ, the good and gracious God, died for us ungodly sinners who were dead in trespasses and sins.
• Our weakness is in opposition to His strength, our lack lies in contradistinction to His great bounty, our disinterested ungodliness starkly contrasts with His goodness, gracious humility, and deep, deep love.

• This glorious verse of comfort sparkles with reassuring radiance, that the future plan God has for all of His people, both for Israel and the Church, are for our eternal good and spiritual welfare, as well as our temporal and physical needs.
• We have an assurance that whatever we may have to face today, God's thoughts toward us are only good continually: 'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD. 'They are plans for peace and not disaster, plans to give you a future filled with hope.'

• Every good and perfect gift is from above, and God in His grace, He gave His eternally beloved Son to be born into the human race as Jesus - the Root and Stem of Jesse.

• This verse is rejoicing that the silver-haired head of a godly old man, is a thing in which to rejoice – for it is a crown of splendour and a garland of glory.Similarly, this is not to insinuate that only older men who have grey hair are crowned with glory, but that an older man (irrespective of his hair or lack of it) who has trusted God in his life, is graced with certain wisdom and sound judgement that comes from above and deserves the respect and honour of the younger generation.There are many older people who mourn the loss of their good looks or bemoan a decline in their physical fitness, and although physical beauty and youthful strength are often held up as desirable, it is rather the godly wisdom of a mature man-of-God or elderly lady-of-faith that should command the respect and reverence of those that are younger.
• His desire is that they grow in grace and mature in the faith, explaining that when the Word of God abides within their heart, they will overcome the evil one and mature in their faith as they advance in age.Paul reminds us that although physical fitness is good, we should not only strive after bodily discipline and physical health, but rather engage in our spiritual development by fixing our hope on the living God and trusting in His Word, by faith.May we all recognise the benefits of a grey head or sagging muscles, knowing that it is a crown of glory when found in the way of righteousness.

• Christ was the good Shepherd Who laid down His life for His sheep.
• Just like us all, Judas was give a free-will to choose the good or do the evil.

• In this chapter, man's scheming wickedness is seen to be the antithesis of the goodness of Christ.

• We could follow the satanic path where both good and evil is repaid with evil.
• We could live our lives on a moral human level where we respond to good with good but recompense evil with evil.
• However, the third option, which is the divine standard, is rooted in the love of Christ and the example that He left us, where evil is repaid with good and where blessings are the response to an insult, for that is what God has called us to do and He will bless us for it.

• He knows every step we take, and no matter what difficulties we encounter, or what the enemy of our soul schemes against us, the Lord knows the way of His righteous ones, and He works in every circumstance of life for our eternal good and His greater glory.

• John is often referred to as the apostle of love while Paul is seen as the apostle of grace - but the truth of the gospel of Christ is rooted and grounded in love and grace - together with mercy and compassion, goodness and faithfulness, joy and peace in believing, patience and self-control.
• May we, like the children in this Epistle, walk in the truth of God's Word and keep his commandment knowing that God, Who is rich in mercy and of great goodness, demonstrated the great love with which He loved us... in that although we were dead in our transgression and sin, He made us alive, together with Christ, and saved us by His grace. 

• A true friend loves at all times, in good circumstances and during times of greatest difficulty and hardships, and Jesus reminded us that the greatest of all love is expressed when a friend is prepared to give up his own life for that of his friend or to forego his own desires and needs for the sake of his dearly beloved friend.

• He began his good news of the gospel of Christ, based on authentic and corroborated eyewitness accounts from servants of the Lord.
• Luke wrote of all that Jesus started to do from the beginning of His earthly ministry until He ascended into heaven from a mountain, close to the little town of Bethany, leaving His disciples to rejoice in hope while giving praise to God for all His goodness and grace to them.

• While we, who are in Christ, are blessed with every spiritual blessing, God is His grace provides many temporal blessings to all humanity, for God causes His sun to rise on both the evil and on the good, sending rain on the just and on the unjust.
• Every good and perfect gift comes to us from the Father of lights, and Christ is the greatest of all Gifts to be bestowed upon humanity.

• They all forsook the ways of the Lord and denied God's goodness, justice, holiness and mercy.

• In this verse, after reminding the Corinthians of his and his co-workers great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; through glory and dishonour, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; Paul is able to conclude that he and his co-workers were sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.
• Like Paul, we are all ministers of the good news of the gospel of Christ to the people that God has placed within the sphere of our lives and each of us are living epistles that God can use to speak into the lives of others.

• The Lord Jesus is the good Shepherd of the sheep and He knows all the needs of His little flock.
• He was their good Shepherd, and He is our good Shepherd Who has the words of eternal life within Himself.

• Is it right or wrong to tell a lie in order to forward a good cause or for the protection of others? 
• Despite the positive outcome, and even though the spies were enabled to escape safely from the fortified city of Jericho, there is no justification in lying, even for a good cause.
• May we always remember that He causes all things to work together for the good of those that love Him and have faith in Him.

• We are to love those that oppose us and are hostile towards us, and we are exhorted to do good to them.
• Jesus even calls us to do good and to lend to others while expecting nothing in return.
• We do not become children of God by being good or offering interest-free loans to other people.

• He sent them to preach the gospel of the kingdom of God - and to proclaim the good news that God's anointed King was here.

• But just as we, who have been saved by grace through faith in Christ, were born in the image of the man of dust, so too we will also bear the image of the heavenly man; for He Who started a good work in us at salvation will complete it in the day of Christ Jesus.

• Jesus came as the GOOD Shepherd to the lost sheep of the house of Israel and He led out as many as received Him from the Jewish sheepfold to join His other sheep, His Gentile sheep.
• And there shall be one sheepfold and one Good Shepherd of the sheep, for there is now no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female, for we are all one in Christ Jesus.
• We are not appointed to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Good Shepherd Who will take us to the heavenly home He has prepared for all who love Him so that we might have life and have it more abundantly. 

• It is as we permit the Holy Spirit to carry out His good work in and through our lives, that we can become a channel through whom His love can flow out to others.

• He despaired, for the wicked hemmed in the righteous and justice was perverted, good was called evil, and wickedness was hailed as being virtuous.

• May we hold fast to that which is good and look to JESUS moment by moment and day by day - to His praise and glory.

• The disciples had to shift from the narrow lens of Judaism and the gospel of the kingdom, to the all-embracing truth of the glorious gospel of grace, the good news of the glory of Christ.

• He was carrying out the work that God had prepared for him to do, with a Christian maturity that caused John to acknowledge, your soul prospers, your life is honouring to the Lord.It also sounds as if Gaius had a physical disability or some health problems, for in his initial salutation, John expresses a certain concern by saying, Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers.
• Such teaching is false and biblically incorrect.May we seek to be more like the beloved Gaius, who walked in spirit, truth, and love, and was faithful in whatsoever good works he undertook, for the sake of saints and strangers alike.

• through time and into eternity - And because we are in Him we are enabled to bear good fruit to the glory of God.

• Measured against the goodness of God, humanity stands condemned.

• We should rejoice in our calling and our birth, our salvation, and our sanctification, knowing that death has been conquered, and we are kept by the power of God unto good works and words.

• All that is evil is of the devil and all that is good is of God.
• Temptation comes from the evil desires that lurk deep within the heart of all men, for we all have an old sin nature and we can allow these temptations to lure us away from what is good and entice us into sin.
• How important therefore not to yield to temptation, but rather to turn away from fleshly desires and resist temptation, for all that is evil is of the devil, but all that is good comes from our Father Who desires that we are holy unto the Lord, set apart unto Him for He is holy.

• It was David who knew this to be true in his own life, and we find him reflecting on the wonder of the Lord as he prayerfully considers the goodness of God and His faithfulness in meeting sinners and teaching them the way of truth: All the paths of the LORD are lovingkindness and truth, he writes, His ways lead to gracious love, and He shows His fidelity towards those who keep His covenant and His testimonies.
• The faithfulness, mercy, goodness, and grace of God, are no less true today than during that time when David discovered the Lord was his Shepherd Who gently leads him beside the still waters, faithfully guides him into the way of peace, guards him in the valley of the shadow of death, and prepares a plentiful table of good things in the midst of all his enemies.
• It is only as we remain in Christ, rest in His love, and walk in the path He has planned for us, that we will discover all His paths are strewn with goodness and grace.

• Despite witnessing the miraculous plagues which caused Egypt to let God's people go, they forgot His goodness, hardened their hearts, and began decades of complaining. 

• So pervasive was this false, Judaistic encroachment into Christian teaching, that even Peter and other Jewish Christians, were influenced by its deceptive qualities and had to be openly challenged by Paul: As soon as I saw they were not walking uprightly in the spirit of the Good News, I said to Peter, before them all, 'If you, though you are a Jew, live as a Gentile does, and not as a Jew, how can you make the Gentiles follow Jewish customs?' 

• His prophetic ministry was not only to Judah, but he became God's spokesman to Gentiles and worldly kingdoms as well.He felt ill-prepared for such a responsible role, and argued that both his young age and his lack of good oratory skills, disqualified him from this tremendous task: Ah Lord God!

• Jesus used stories like the good Samaritan, the wise and foolish builders, and a fishing dragnet, to illustrate some of His teachings, while Paul utilised the patience of a long-distance runner or the courage of faithful soldiers in the fulfilment of their duty.
• We are all familiar with the parable of the sower, where the good seed represents the pure Word of God which is being sown throughout the world, together with the four different types of soil symbolising the different responses from those that hear the gospel.

• Money is a good servant but a bad master and Jesus needed to point out that it is impossible to live for God if our priorities are focused on something or someone else.

• Time after time, we discover our faithful God restoring His people and leading them by a straight way until they reached a city in which to dwell, for the Lord is good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon His name, and His love endures forever.

• And so, we are instructed not to let what we personally regard as good, to be spoken of as evil.

• Paul also reassures us in Philippians, that when God starts a good work in the life of a Christian, He promises to bring it to completion.
• Peter is explaining to his listeners that when the unsaved are captivated by the enticing lies of a false teacher and presented with a distorted view of the gospel, they are given a taste of the good news of Christ without being brought to a saving faith in Him.

• He was told to proclaim the good news to his own people.

• This gave Paul immense freedom to share the good news of the gospel of Christ to any person or group, in whatsoever way would help them understand and believe.

• Jesus is the rightful King over all the earth, for His redeeming blood paid the purchase price for lost humanity, and in His goodness and grace, He has appointed all who believe in His sacrificial death and glorious Resurrection, to rule and reign with Him in His coming kingdom.

• Nevertheless, God in His wisdom caused the many imprisonments Paul endured, and the multiplied attacks that were made on the truth of the glorious gospel of grace to be used for our good, for by it we have a large portion of the New Testament, written by Paul, that give us clear teaching on our position in Christ and how to live our life in this Church dispensation.

• The salvation message of Luke's Gospel is: Good tidings of great joy to all people, and the core content of Luke's Gospel is that Jesus Christ has come to seek and to save that which was lost, both Jew and Gentile, male and female, young and old, rich and poor.

• Paul had confidence in the faithfulness of Christ to finish the good work that had been started in his own life, knowing that a day is coming when Christ will return for His Church, to complete His good work in us.

• It was for this reason that the psalmist's great song of joy and rejoicing rang out with the words: O taste and see that the Lord is good.
• This call for men to trust in the Lord, to taste of His faithfulness, and to see that the Lord is good and gracious, stands in the centre of a psalm that begins by blessing the Lord at all times and praising Him continually.
• But he also wanted to encourage others to taste and see for themselves that the Lord is good and blesses those that trust in Him.
• And like David, we would do well to hide under the shadow of God’s protective arm, to seek Him in the midst of our trials and tribulations, and cry out to the Lord for deliverance from the enemies into whose path we run, so that we too may rejoice with great joy and encourage others to: Taste and see that the Lord is good and to know how truly blessed is the man, who takes refuge in the Lord.

• Paul found it necessary to use this illustration to address the issue that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh.
• My old, former sin-nature was bound to the Law of sin and death and there is nothing good to be found in that old sinful, fleshly part of me.
• There is no good in the old sin nature.
• Nothing that is good dwells in my old, fleshly self.
• As a member of the fallen human race, the Law is able to identify my sin but it can never give me the power to do good things.
• The Law helps me to understand what is good and holy, but can't make me good.
• My fallen sin nature is powerless to carry out good things that please God.
• As Paul wrote in this verse: For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not.
• No part of the old creation in me is good because every member of the human race is born dead in their sin.
• Like Adam, we have knowledge of what is evil, but no ability to avoid it and do something good.
• Similarly, we have knowledge of what is good and an inner desire to do good things, but the old sin nature has no capacity to do anything that pleases God, even when we really want to!
• Paul makes it clear that on the one hand nothing good dwells in me, (in my fleshly self).
• No wonder he insisted in his letter to the Philippians, we have NO confidence in the flesh, and that it is GOD Himself, who does the good work IN US, both to WILL and to DO for His good pleasure.
• Paul also points out on the other hand, we may desire to do good and nurture a heart that is willing to be righteous, but we cannot do the good we wish to do.
• This is a truth we need to recognise and take daily, for Scripture tells us that there are NONE that do good - not even one.
• But at salvation, God started a good work in each of His children and HE has promised to finish the good work in us.

• He uses evil rulers to deceive the world of the truth about God's goodness and grace.

• It is often hard to go through unjustifiable suffering and persecution for the sake of Christ, but Peter wanted to teach us that no matter what situation we are in, it is not only important to be good and gentle, but to be prepared to suffer wrongfully - for when we are moved by our consciences to honour God in this way, it is a fine and honourable thing to do in the sight of the Lord.

• Satan's prime objective is to turn the human race against the One Who made them in His own image; with a mind to think, emotions to express feelings, and a free-will to choose between the evil and the good.

• There was no other good enough to pay the price for sin.

• If he delays there is a reason, and any delay pours an additional stream of grace into a Christ-rejecting sinful world, enabling sinners to turn to Christ for salvation, allowing the prodigal son to return to the Father's embrace, permitting the saint to grow in grace and a knowledge of his lovely Lord Jesus, for everything that God does is VERY GOOD.

• The good news of salvation and life eternal, is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.
• All that God has revealed to us through holy men of God is just and good and true, and Scripture is designed to be a sure foundation upon which to build.
• May we never stumble when situations seem to go amiss, and may we be firmly persuaded: He who started a good work in each of our lives is well able to bring it to completion.

• Christian friends with flawed doctrine do not always offer good advice, and we should not judge the spirituality of another brother-in-Christ based on external circumstances.

• Paul wanted to emphasise that salvation is a free gift from God and not something we can earn through good works of the flesh.
• The only good work that secures our salvation is Christ's finished work on the Cross, and the only way we can receive salvation is by faith.

• I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living, are the words that bring Psalm 27 to a close They were written by a man who demonstrates a living faith in the living God.
• The confident opening of this psalm continues throughout, and the psalm ends with an equally stirring affirmation of God's great goodness in the land of the living, as well as the eternal advantages for those that trust in Him.
• Rather than starting to write from a position of weakness for fear of wicked men and enemies that encompass him round about, and allowing his spirits to be lifted as he reflects on the goodness and faithfulness of God, this Psalm begins from a point of victory, because God IS good, His mercy endures forever, and He is the God of our Salvation.
• What a good example David gave us in this psalm to remember the goodness and grace of God and not bemoan the passing problems of this transitory life.

• He was the Good Shepherd of the sheep and the only Door of the sheepfold.

• Only by grace through faith can we experience the beautiful fruit of the Spirit in our hearts - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

• The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and all who follow His instructions have good insight.
• Trusting the goodness and grace of the Lord with reverence and awe, ensures safety from all that would seek to harm or destroy us.

• my soul craves for the living God, who can claim with surety: He has satisfied my thirsty soul, and my hungering heart He has filled with many good things.

• There is only ONE that is good, and that is God.

• How important to build up our faith on a sound foundation, to fight the good fight of faith, and keep ourselves in the love of God.

• This meant that Adam knew what was good without the power to do it, and knew what was evil without the ability to avoid it.

• It was to be their mission to share the good news of redemption which comes from God alone.
• They were to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation that was blessed by the God of Israel so that others would follow their good example and place their trust in the Him, because when the Israelites obeyed God, they were blessed, but when they rebelled against Him they were punished.
• It is the Body of Christ who has been entrusted to share the good news of the gospel to a lost and dying world in this present dispensation of grace.

• He earnestly prayed for the Christians at Thessalonica, asking both God the Son and God the Father to comfort and encourage the hearts of these believers and to strengthen and establish them in every good work and in all they say.
• We often think about the good works we do, to the glory of God, but let us remember how impactful our words can be.
• May we read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest the Word of God so that we too may be comforted and encouraged: May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.
• May we also be strengthened and established in every good work and word, to the praise of our Lord Jesus Christ and our Father in heaven.

• Without the sufficiency of Christ, I can do nothing for it is only as God works in me, to will and to do His good pleasure, that I can do all things through Christ.
• Let us stop relying on self and start living in total dependence on God, Who is all sufficient, and Who will work through us: Both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

• Today and every day, may we unite our hearts and voices in prayer and praise to our good and gracious God Who has established His throne in the heavens and Whose kingdom rules over all.

• Through his royal line was born the Lord Jesus Christ - the Good Shepherd of the sheep.
• The Old Testament is filled with references about good and faithful shepherds, who nurture the little flock of God, in their care.
• Jesus came to shepherd His people Israel, and is universally identified as the Good Shepherd, Who gives His life for the sheep.
• God is a generous Giver of all that is good and perfect in this life - and in the world to come, His gifts of grace are eternal and His generosity is never-ending and beyond our comprehension. 
• Whether this is only given to those who are under-shepherds in a Church fellowship, or whether it is a crown that may be awarded to all who have faithfully served the body of Christ, and cared for the people of God in the graciousness of their heart, under the guidance of the Spirit is not clear, but may we all in humility of heart carry out Christ's will faithfully and fervently, by caring for the Church of Christ, as we look for that glorious day when we will be with our Good and Faithful Shepherd, Who died and rose again so that we might live eternally.

• David, the shepherd king of Israel, was described as a mighty and virtuous man, a man of battle, intelligent in word – and Jehovah was with him.Ruth, the grandmother of David, was known as a virtuous woman in Bethlehem, and the good seed in the parable of the sower, is identified as one who, having heard the Word of God, holds fast to it in a just, noble, and virtuous manner, having a worthy heart that brings forth much fruit to the glory of God.Perhaps the best known passage that outlines the exemplary life in virtuous living, is the woman described in Proverbs 31, where a vast array of noble, godly, gracious, and wise attributes are listed.She is a woman of faith, who serves God with her whole heart, mind, soul, and strength.
• She works diligently to carry out the duties of wife, mother, friend, and good neighbour.The most precious attribute of a virtuous woman, must be when her sons rise up and call her blessed.

• All of us are sinners, and children also have a sin nature and are in equal need of redemption, but little children are a wonderful example of a heart that is ready to hear the good news of salvation and a mind that is ready and willing to receive the good news of the gospel of grace.

• Paul's desire for their ongoing sanctification and maturity in the faith was so strong that He prayed often and continuously that the Lord Jesus Christ and God the Father (Who loved us and gave us eternal encouragement by His grace), would encourage their hearts and strengthen their souls in every good work and word.
• And it is the Lord Jesus Christ and God our Father Who have given us a good hope by His grace, and in the world to come, life everlasting.

• The love of God pours forth a fountain of graces that are each uniquely attractive, but which intertwine together into a complimentary oneness that so exemplifies the gracious goodness of our God.
• Let us be genuinely joyful when others rejoice, and not resentful of their good fortune.

• He has filled the hungry with good things, but the rich have been sent empty away.

• The verse in question, not only deals with the immense power of speech, for good or ill, but also touches on the issue of ones controlled actions or unguarded reactions to the words, behaviour, language, and speech of others.
• Although this proverb is applicable to every category of humankind, and if used in the corridors of power, the interactions of everyday life, or the privacy of our own homes would impact our local community and the wider world for good.
• How much influence for good this proverb would command if it were applied within the churches of Christendom and practiced in the individual lives and homes of Christians?
• Not only does this first verse highlight the need for good, gracious, and gentle answers, but five further verses in the same chapter give greater insight into the need for godly interactions and wise words rather than ungodly speech or careless remarks.

• The Eastern Gate, opposite the Mount of Olives, is the gate through which the Lord Jesus - the Good Shepherd of the sheep - will enter, when He returns to earth at the end of the Great Tribulation, to set up His eternal kingdom on earth.

• The cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, stand as an example of the punishment of eternal fire that awaits those corrupt individuals who indulge in ungodly perversions and reject the Lord of glory.The destruction of these cities was an example of the fate of all unbelievers who willingly turn away from God, deny His grace, refuse the truth, and ignore His warnings of the judgement to come.Jude's warning of heresy, apostasy, and the subtle infiltration of the Church by false teachers who deceptively creep into churches, deny the Lord Who bought them, and peddle a false, watered-down, feel-good, unbiblical gospel, has morphed into an apology for what is termed 'Christendom' today.The serious warning that Jude shared in his little epistle, should be taken to heart by everyone that is sanctified by God the Father and preserved in Christ Jesus our Lord.The best way to recognise a false teaching is to know the truth.

• Men search in many places to discover eternal life outside of Christ, but it is not found in good works, denominational membership, philosophic teachings, scientific discovery, religious leanings, educational qualifications, legalistic practices, genetic modification, or any of men's other attempts to attain perfection and everlasting life outside of God's declared way.

• They are guilty before God, and therefore eternally separated from their Creator and all that is good, for the wages of sin is death.

• Having reiterated the principal that God is the source of all wisdom and believers are the privileged recipients of His illumination, we are reminded that no teacher of the good news should have pretentious claims to personal wisdom, for all are all are servants of God, all are equally equipped from above, and all should be wholly united in humbly proclaiming the wonderful wisdom of God, by grace through faith in Christ, to all who believe.

• Loving the Lord with all our heart, and soul, and mind, and strength, is a progressive love that builds and develops in our Christian walk, for as we grow in grace and in a knowledge of our Lord and Saviour, so we grow in love for the Lord our God and are enabled to have that love translated into the good works that God has prepared for us to do.

• Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?
• But this is untrue, and as the story progresses we discover this attitude besmirches the name of the Lord Who is the Author of all that is good, for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and He sends rain on the just and the unjust.
• No doubt she had been a virtuous wife, a good mother, a respected lady, and one that enjoyed the benefits she received through her highly esteemed husband.

• Is it better the do good or to do evil on the Sabbath?

• But following His pronouncement of wrath against these sin-ridden nations, the Lord proclaims His justified punishment on Judah and Israel - for His own people had broken His covenant, and His chosen inheritance had spurned God's goodness and grace.
• But God is a God of loving-kindness, great-goodness, and generous grace.
• It is good to be watchmen on the wall who warn the ungodly about the coming wrath of God - which Scripture calls 'the Time of Jacob's Trouble'. Let us seek discernment from the Lord, knowing that He has revealed to us all we need for life and godliness in His written Word, for the Lord God does nothing unless He reveals His secret counsel to His servants, the prophets.

• It may be Satan who throws suffering our way in an attempt to bring out the worst in us and shipwreck our faith in the Lord, but it is God Who takes our suffering and turns it into a test for good, for our faith is always tested by God in order to bring the very best in us.

• I AM the Good Shepherd, to lead and guide, to feed and protect.
• And all who feast upon the Lord are promised the eternal benefits of this life-sustaining heavenly Manna; that true Bread Who satisfies the hungry heart with all good things.

• God has prepared good works for each of us to do, but they can only be carried out as we submit to His leading and guidance.
• The more we know of God's goodness and grace towards us, the more we are prompted to labour in love for the Lord.
• May we follow in the footsteps of the Christians of Thessalonica whose good works were energised by faith, whose service was motivated by love, and who maintained an unwavering hope in the return of our Lord Jesus Christ.

• There are no coincidences in God's economy, for in His grace God works ALL things together for good - even terrible and evil things - even those problems and disappointments that we do not understand.
• All the things that Satan uses against us, to tempt us and to cause us concern, the Lord uses for our greater good and for His eternal glory.
• Ruth was a woman who chose the good, rejected the evil, and walked humbly before the Lord.
• He knew the plans HE had for her were for good and not for evil - to give her a future and a hope.

• They were His chosen people, but did not carry out His instructions to be a light to the Gentiles or to tell the nations that God is the eternal Lord, the great Creator of the heavens, and He formed the earth.As well as bringing God's punishment upon themselves because of their sinful idolatry, Israel refused to share the good news of salvation, as instructed.
• Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other.There is only one way to be saved, and God Himself proclaimed this to the nations: I have sworn by Myself, was His sovereign challenge, the Word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness and will not turn back – that to Me every knee will bow, and every tongue will swear allegiance.God in His grace, extended His hand of salvation to the Gentiles, if they would turn away from their idols of wood and stone, and trust in the Lord for the forgiveness of sin and eternal salvation.That same gracious hand of reconciliation continues to be extended today, to whosoever will hear, answer, and believe in the One Who paid the price for the sin of the world – the shed blood of a perfect sacrifice – Jesus Christ the righteous.In the light of New Testament revelation, we know: At the name of Jesus every knee will bow, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.The message of salvation is one of hope and blessing to those that believe, and one of condemnation and eternal separation from God for those that refuse to confess His name.May we be ready and willing to go into the world, whether at home or abroad, and tell the good news of salvation to the lost – to Jew and Gentile alike: For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

• But every one of the hundreds of privileges that have become ours by faith in Christ contain a supernatural element, for we have been 'blessed with all spiritual blessings' because we are His workmanship and are one with Christ, created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand, that we would walk in them.

• Unlike Israel, we all have the indwelling holy Spirit of God Who is working in us to will and to do His good purpose in our lives as through life's trials and tribulations, He is conforming us into the image and likeness of Christ.

• The deceitful heart of man delights to judge his own 'goodness' against the 'evil' actions of his fellow men, but God remains true to His immovable standard of truth and righteousness, rendering man's judgement of others to become man's own accuser.
• Let us seek to share the good news of the gospel of grace with many who remain dead in their sins and under God's righteous condemnation.

• What refreshment these simple words have bestowed on many little lambs who have listened to the voice of their Good Shepherd; that Great Shepherd of the sheep Who opens His arms wide to embrace all who will trust in His name.
• He is our God Who satisfies our years with good things, and renews our youth like the eagle.

• But God turned evil to good and caused their complacency to be replaced with a resolve to trust in the Lord and fight for their nation's integrity and right to survive.
• Anti-Semitism, severe persecution, and the threat to exterminate the Jews, was the evil intent of the enemy in the days of Mordecai and Esther, but God turned satanic evil to good.

• The Bible advises virtuous living and prudent planning for we read, those who plan good find loyalty and faithfulness and, plans are made by seeking wise and godly advice from others. 
• Paul was a man who often spoke of his plans to visit certain Churches and wrote of goals he wanted to achieve, but Scripture shows that although Paul made many good travel plans and purposed in his heart to visit certain Churches, not all were accomplished, for the Lord was the one that directed his path.
• Sometimes the plans we make may be good and honourable, but God knows the end from the beginning and may take us to a different destination with a different expected outcome.

• May we read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest the instructive and informative teachings in Hebrews and take special heed of those passages that war us against insulting our God and Saviour Who died for our sin and rose again so that through faith in Him we might be born from above, declared righteous, and receive the riches of His goodness and grace freely and without cost.

• He would rise from the dead and, in so doing, break the power of sin and Satan, death and hell, for all who would trust in Him.And early in His ministry, He stood up in His hometown synagogue to declare, The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor.
• He has sent Me to proclaim freedom to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free the oppressed.Jesus pronounced the fulfilment of this ancient prophecy from Isaiah, and the people there wondered at the gracious words that fell from His lips, yet they sought to slay Him for they could not accept the truth – but He passed through their midst, for His time had not yet arrived.Although Jesus was rejected in His hometown of Nazareth and an attempt was made to kill Him, He fulfilled this and many more astounding ancient prophecies, over the course of His life.The Spirit of God was indeed upon Him, for He submitted to the leading of the Spirit throughout His life, spoke only those things He heard from the Father, carried out His Father's will, and fulfilled every prophecy relating to His first advent.He did preach the good news of salvation to the poor, proclaiming freedom from sin, Satan, death, and hell – by faith in Him.
• He raised the dead, turned water into wine, fed multitudes of men and freed those who were oppressed through the good news that He came to bring – and He gave His life as the ransom price for the sin of the world on a wooden cross, two thousand years ago.

• All that we are in Christ and all that we have in Him is not based on our merit, nor does it rest on our good deeds or works of the law.
• We are all one in Him and have been commissioned to be ministers of reconciliation who share the good news that Christ died for our sin, was buried, and rose again the third day, and all who believe on Him will not perish but have everlasting life.

• The Lord is indeed rich in goodness and grace, mercy and love, wisdom and knowledge and power, and in Christ, we too have been made rich in everything, for He has bestowed on us the riches of His grace in Christ Jesus our Saviour and, by faith, we have a rich reward that is kept for us in heaven.

• Not only do we find Paul challenging the manipulation of the good news of Christ by legalists, liberalists, and gnostics alike, but he also identifies others who were jealous of his apostolic calling.
• And those who valued Paul's ministry and proclaimed the truth in a gracious manner were also spreading the good news far and wide.
• Let us share the good news of the gospel in truth.

• His gospel was recognised and endorsed by the other apostles, for the gospel of grace was the good news that was turning the world upside down.
• There were many good men that accompanied Paul on his various missionary journeys, and many more, including the apostles in Jerusalem, who were 'with' Paul in body, in spirit, in truth, and in the furtherance of the one and only gospel of God. 

• He was a good man who faces tremendous hardships.
• Every good and perfect gift is from our Father of lights.
• But in His grace, He works ALL things together for the good of those that love Him and are fitting into His plan.
• The fear that Job expressed, his regret of being born, his desire to die, the accusations he received from his friends and his assumption that the nature of God had changed, show that this man and his friends had a significant lack of understanding about God's character, His goodness, His grace, His sovereign authority, and the fallen state of the world in which we live.
• He seeks to engender despair in God's servants and deceives both the saved and unsaved, with deceit and lies about God's gracious nature and eternal goodness. 
• His desire is to shipwreck our faith by causing us to doubt God's goodness and question His Word.
• One particular false teaching the enemy used to exacerbate Job's distress, cause his wife to despair and inflame his friend's criticism, was the false doctrine of retribution which teaches that God only rewards those that are good and only punishes those that are evil.
• Retribution teaches that the blessings people receive show they are good people, while bad things that happen indicate a person has sinned and needs to repent or do penance to get back into God's good books.
• This is UNBIBLICAL and casts a great slur on the goodness and grace of God for He blesses ALL people both the good and the bad.
• May we acknowledge Him in ALL things and allow the Lord to direct our paths in the difficult times as well as the good.

• At redemption we were positionally sanctified and set apart for Him, but throughout our life on earth we are in a process of being sanctified, for He who started a good work in us has promised to complete it in the day of Christ Jesus.

• It is far more likely to harden the heart of an unbeliever toward the good news of salvation and cause them to distrust godly ministers and be wary of genuine believers.

• They were to tell pagan nations the good news of God and bring them into the camp of salvation.
• They were to testify of the goodness and grace of the Lord to those who were dead in their sin.
• It is not because of Israel's great goodness that God remains faithful to them, but because of HIS great goodness and never-ending kindness.

• Many good-looking young Israelites of royal descent, were forced to serve in the Babylon court.

• I AM the Good Shepherd; I AM the True Vine; I AM the Living WATER; I AM the Way, the Truth, and the Life; and Before Abraham was - I AM. 

• But there were other sheep in different sheep-folds for the Good Shepherd to care for, and so the Father also GAVE the same unique Son of His love because He loved the world so much that whosoever would believe on His name, would not perish and be condemned, but have everlasting life and be forever free from God's condemnation.
• The beautiful figure of the Good Shepherd gently attending to the needs of his flock, feeding them, defending them, guiding them, protecting them, and correcting them is pictured here, for they were to be inheritors of the kingdom, but how few enjoy the true benefits offered to this tiny flock, for most are only interested in earthly provision and temporal needs.
• But this little group of Jews were to be guided out of the sheep-fold of Israel to join the other sheep under the care of that great Shepherd of the sheep – for this Good Shepherd gave His life for all His sheep.

• Praise God for His goodness and grace towards the children of men.

• He has also promised to finish the good work of salvation He started in ALL His children, and has given each one the in-dwelling Holy Spirit as a guarantee that He will fulfil His promise.

• Christ came to earth to reveal God's goodness and grace, and His death on the cross opened the way for fallen man to find peace with God - to be reconciled back to Him through faith in His Son.

• What a comfort to know that the good tidings of great joy, which spoke of the glorious gospel of Christ would not grind to a bitter halt at His departure, but that the Spirit of truth would come to guide them into the many truths that they were not yet ready to receive; truths that could not yet be manifest before the victory on the Cross had been finally won.

• But fallen man who lives in a fallen world, will sometimes look to around and wonder where God is in all our difficulties and pain and cry out: Who will show us any good?
• But all good and perfect gifts are from our faithful Father in heaven, and all the evil that has engulfed this fallen world has its root in sin.

• Let us pray and keep on praying that our brothers and sisters in Christ would be used mightily by God in the work of the gospel, to the glory of His name, so that He who started a good work in their lives would complete it in the day of Christ Jesus.

• The fruit of the Spirit are not 'works' that are done for God, however good and commendable they may be.
• The trio of patience, kindness, and goodness, are predominantly attributes that are displayed in gracious conduct towards other people, while the trinity of faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, are hidden facets, deep within, that God alone can truly discern. 
• But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
• The GOODNESS of a spirit-filled Christian is often demonstrated through gracious acts that put others before themselves while FAITHFULNESS is seen in the godly individual who exhibits unconditional reliability.
• While some people are adept at perfecting certain of these spiritual characteristics in their own strength, the fruit of the Spirit, which is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, can only be genuinely manifested in a spirit-filled man or woman.

• We are to spread the good news of the gospel of grace to lost sinners.

• Man was given a mandate to subdue the earth and take care of it because everything that God had made was very good.
• Sadly, due to disobedience and sin, the God-ordained authority that man had been given over the earth was transferred to Satan, who is the 'god of this age'... for a season... but the Lord in His omniscience knew that man would sin and in His goodness and grace formulated His amazing redemption plan that would span 7000 years of human history.

• May we be faithful soldiers and servants, standing fast on the Word of God and unshaken by a world that is out of control due to their enmity with our good and gracious heavenly Father.

• But no man is good enough to act as mediator between God and man.

• Our dependence upon His person and His provision is what He is seeking from all His children, if we are to grow in grace and produce good fruit to His praise and glory.
• Work that we do for the Lord is good and important.
• Indeed, we are told that God has prepared good works for us to do, and we are also told that we will be rewarded on our works (or suffer loss) at the Bema Seat of Christ.
• Work that we do for the Lord is good and profitable, but it must be combined with worshipping at His feet, looking to Jesus, listening to His Word, and seeking that deep and intimate communion with Him that Mary found as she sat at His feet and looked to her Saviour.

• No matter what sufferings and difficulties we may face, our Heavenly Saviour is able to work everything together for our eternal good and for His greater glory, and He does this because of His great love for each one of us.

• Although Peter was chosen to start the worldwide ministry of Christ and was the one God chose to open the door to Jews, Samaritans, and Gentiles, we are all ministers of reconciliation who are called, by God, to carry out the good work that God has prepared each of us to do.
• May we be faithful in our calling and tell forth the good news that Christ died for our sin according to the Scriptures, was buried, and rose again according to the Scriptures.

• It was an admission that light has no fellowship with darkness and evil cannot commune with good.

• Some try to please God through good deeds and worldly works.
• Christians who try to live in their own strength or rely on their own good works do not please the Lord, because they are not trusting His Word - for faith is the evidence of things NOT seen.

• It was a simple parable about a good landowner and His evil tenants that Jesus used to expose His critics and restate His own divine authority.

• God did not have to explain Himself to one of His created beings, nor do any of us have a right to question God's perfect plan or know the reason WHY He permits bad things to happen to good people.Although this incredible soliloquy from the Lord, provides humanity with many insights into areas such as science, geology, cosmology, geography, oceanology, and anthropology, none of Job's questions were answered, and yet it brought that man into a deeper understanding of the very God in Whom he trusted.God alone was there when the foundation of the earth was laid, and however much man likes to speculate on the creation of the heaven and earth, God alone was present and, in His grace, has recorded it in the Scriptures for our learning – but how few trust His Word?

• He could not express his confidence in believers who were dressed up in 'good works' of the carnal flesh.

• Our desire and delight should be to share the good news of the gospel of grace with all who cross our path, but it should be done with clarity and simplicity.
• Let us make the most of every opportunity we have to share the good news of the gospel of Christ as we seek to walk in wisdom and truth so that we may practice living prudently in all our relations with others.
• Let us redeem the time and make the most of our opportunities to share the good news of the gospel of Christ, Who died for our sin and rose again to give us His life so that we might become children of God.

• Paul, the servant of Christ Jesus, who was called and set apart to proclaim the gospel of God to Jew and Gentile alike, was not ashamed to take the good news of the lowly carpenter Who died for the sin of the world and rose again the third day, to the sophisticated capital of the Roman empire.

• Indeed, He not only knows us each by name, but He also calls us by name, for He is the Good Shepherd of the sheep Who gave His life for His little flock.

• In the Scriptures, the oil of gladness and incense of joy, are so often seen as the adornment of the man or woman that loves righteousness and hates wickedness, while the perfumer's ointment and sacred anointing incense is frequently seen in Scripture, ascending up to the Lord as a good and acceptable freewill offering, a love offering, a burnt sacrifice and sweet-smelling savour that is so pleasing in the sight of the Lord. 
• How true that the genuine counsel, caring words, or gentle correction of a good an honest friend, becomes the oil of gladness and a sweet-smelling perfume of costly spikenard.

• You believe in God (GOOD!) Believe also in Me.
• In this world, you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world.

• In the beginning, God spoke the first creation into being and God saw that it was very good, until sin entered therein.

• It was a mocking sign of weakness and as they derided Him and made sport of Him, they sneeringly and sarcastically hailed Him as King of the Jews for sport. 'Greetings, good health, and long life to You' was the sneering and contemptuous meaning.

• Jesus completed God's gracious revelation to mankind in many ways, but perhaps the most memorable way that Christ unveiled God's name, God's character, and God's attributes was when He said, I AM the good Shepherd; I AM the Vine; I AM the Door; I AM the Bread of Life; I AM the Resurrection; I AM the Way, and the Truth, and the Life, no man cometh unto the Father but by Me.

• We are not to repay evil for evil but always to pursue that which is good, for both believers and for unbelievers.

• Many today do not consider that they are sinners but see themselves as good people, especially in comparison with others they consider less worthy than they.
• Many try to find an alternative route to heaven, believing that their 'good' deeds, generous giving, and acts of kindness to others, will earn them a place in God's heavenly home!
• They would prefer Romans 6:23 to read: While the wages of sin is death, the wages of good deeds is eternal life in heaven.
• In God's perfect economy the good deeds, generous acts, philanthropic behaviour, and kind conduct that fallen man is able to generate, falls far short of the glory and perfection of our holy God, for faith in Christ Jesus our Lord is the only Way. There is nothing we can do that could earn us a place in the heavenly realm.
• From God's perspective, no one is good and so not one person could merit forgiveness of sin through their good own works.
• No one but GOD Himself is good enough to pay the price for sin.
• Salvation, which includes eternal life, is not something that can be bought or earned with our 'good' deeds, generous giving, a mountain of money, or acts of kindness.

• Intermingled deep within His eternal character of love, there is a multiplicity of godly attributes and divine graces, for He is good and gracious, He is patient and kind, He is long-suffering, and abundant in truth.
• And by His grace and goodness we discover ourselves to be His beloved children, by faith in Christ.

• A good man leaves an inheritance to his grandchildren, and the legacy of a godly grandfather should have eternal consequences in the lives of later generations.

• Indeed, it is good to praise the Lord for the wonderful works of His mighty hand.
• Psalm 118 is a very important Messianic psalm that points directly to God, Whose goodness and grace lasts forever, and it identifies JESUS as Israel's Messiah, Who has become their strength and stay.
• This is the day when there will be a resounding chorus of great joy, as all God's people unite together with one great chorus of praise, as we sing in unison, This is the day that the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it. Oh give thanks to the Lord for He is good, His mercy endures forever.

• It reiterates much of the content in first Timothy and lays important emphasis on the doctrine of grace and its necessary relationship to godliness and good works.

• Abiding in Christ and sharing in His suffering produces much good fruit, and is the means to lift us high above the storms of life.
• The one who is prepared to give up the good for the very best will discover the inner joy of Jesus that is reserved for those that can say from their heart: The life that I now live in the flesh is not mine to live but Christ Who lives in me.
• Christ spoke many things to His disciples so that His love and peace could reign in their hearts and that their joy might be full to overflowing, but the joy of the Lord is often couched in the fellowship of His suffering and pain so that the good purpose of the Lord is fulfilled to their eternal benefit and to the glory of God.

• Although there is a wide variety of spiritual gifts It is one and the same Spirit Who works all these things, distributing (gifts) to each one individually just as He wills. Christians do not choose their preferred gift or gifts. They are distributed to believers as the Spirit chooses. Spiritual gifts are not awarded for good behaviour, earned by a man's meritorious works, achieved through academic excellence, or purchased for a handsome sum of money.
• The gifts of the Spirit should be exercised for the edification of the whole Body of Christ and for the furtherance of the good news of the gospel.

• God was to use Paul to bring the good news of the gospel of grace to lost sinners, whose minds are blinded by the god of this world and whose eyes are closed to the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ: To turn them from the dominion of Satan to God and tell them that through faith in the Lord Jesus they would receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Christ. 

• This much loved story of the woman at the well has become a favourite with many Christians who recognise the beautiful way that God in His goodness and grace has approached each one of us, and has slowly and gently brought us to a deep and saving understanding of Who He truly is.

• The goodness and purity that was inherent in Christ, exposed the ugliness and evil that is inherent in man, and so He was despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows Who suffered and died at their hands.

• And God saw all that He had done was good, very good: For every good and perfect gifts comes from our Father above, Who alone is our Light, our life, and our hope of salvation.

• We either choose the good or we opt for the evil.

• There can be no shadow of change in His decrees, for God is merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness; and the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
• Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?

• The Age of Israel ended at the cross when they were set aside for a season, and the Age of the Grace (or the Church Age) began. The Church was born at Pentecost, so that the good news of the gospel of Christ would continue to be shared through a new group of people - the Body of Christ, which is the Church.

• He emphasises the need to develop patient endurance and shows that the goodness in the heart of the Lord is the antithesis of the evil in the heart of man.
• Whoever holds the reins of a horse determines the direction it takes - whether for good or for bad.
• In the same way, the words that proceed from a man's mouth will influence his life, for good or ill, as well as the lives of many who listen to him.

• But throughout Israel's chequered history, there has always been a prayerful remnant who have earnestly sought the Lord and made confession of their continuing trust in Him and His never-failing goodness to Israel.

• And yet in His goodness and grace, the total initiative to reconcile man back to Himself was set in motion by God, and rests entirely on Him.

• The gracious attitude and godly conduct of a believer is of more significance to our Heavenly Father than the good works that we carry out for Him.
• God has prepared good works for all His children, but they can only be carried out profitably in the one who is walking in spirit and truth, trusting the Lord wholeheartedly, and not relying on their own understanding.

• Not because of any good thing that we have done, but because of His great goodness.

• They will want to have their ears tickled, with a watered-down and compromised gospel, he continues, and they will accumulate for themselves teachers, who say the things they want to hear, by preaching a feel-good credo instead of teaching the plain truth of the gospel of grace, about sin and salvation and about Jesus Christ as the one and only way to be justified by God.
• We see an evolving gospel which focusses on a feel-good factor and we hear of ungodly aberration in the Body of Christ.

• And so Paul spent time opening up the good news of the pure gospel of Christ for a special reason: So that no one will delude you with persuasive argument.

• Just as the Lord Jesus suffered without complaint for doing good on our behalf and for the glory of God, we too are called to suffer for righteousness' sake, which also glorifies our Father in heaven.

• Men may not be able to see the Lord, but they can witness His goodness and receive His love through the called and chosen, and that is you and me.

• Like all of fallen humanity, they were sinners, at enmity with God, knowing what was right without the ability to do what was good and knowing what was evil, without the capacity to avoid it.

• Man's body also started to die immediately and man's soul was corrupted and tainted with sin... such that man knew what was good yet was unable to do it... and man knew what was evil but was unable to avoid it.
• Good deeds that are carried out by the old sin nature, however commendable they appear to be, are utterly rejected by God.
• Once we have been saved by grace through faith in Christ, any good works that we undertake are to be done through the new, Christ-given nature which we receive at salvation, and not the old, sin nature which was imputed to us due to our membership of the first creation in Adam.
• Any good works that are undertaken by means of our 'old man' are unacceptable to the Lord and can never honour His name.
• Any good actions or kindly deeds that are carried out in our original, fleshly sin nature which we received from the first Adam, will never, ever be acknowledged or accepted by the Lord.
• If our sacrifices are selfish, our self-denials are fleshly, our prayers are self-righteous, our preaching is self-elevating, or our good words are self-seeking, then God cannot and will not have anything to do with them because they emanate from the old sinful nature.

• But we are children of the light and children of the day, and we do not belong to the night or to the darkness, for the fruit of the light consists in every kind of goodness, uprightness, and truth.

• There was no-one who was good enough to pay that tremendous price, for sin for God alone is sinless.

• Just as He used David's sling, Gideon's pots, Balaam's donkey, and the staff of Moses, God used the chains that bound Paul and his imprisonment in Rome as the most effective tool to spread the good news of the death and Resurrection of our Saviour Jesus Christ to many Roman guards.
• One benefit of the various imprisonments to which Paul was subjected were the number and variety of people with whom he was able to share the good news of salvation.

• And as we live as strangers in an alien world where Satan has become the god of this world for a season, we are blessed indeed, for it is God who works in us, both to will and to do to His good pleasure.In other words, the good works that we do in spirit and truth are not our own good works, for of ourselves we can do nothing that is worthy of God's praise.
• The good work that we do is the new-life of Christ within us that is working through us.
• It is the new, born again life of Christ that we received when we were born from above that carries out any good works that we do so that others may see our good works and glorify our Father Who is in heaven.
• Indeed, we have this light in earthen vessels to demonstrate that the good works that we do are from God, and not from us.Christ is the true Light that came into the world: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
• Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

• Abraham was not justified by good works... his righteousness was gained through faith in God's Word.

• Such love applauds the good qualities they find in others while speaking the truth in love.

• It begins with an explosion of praise and thanksgiving where David proclaims God's goodness and grace... and calls on each one of us to extol His holy name and trust in His everlasting mercy.
• David was a man after God's own heart who desired to pass on the truth of the glorious goodness of God to the next generation... and he calls on us to taste and see that the Lord is good.

• It is not sufficient to believe that Jesus was simply a good man and a moral teacher whose life should be emulated, but to know that He is the eternal Son of God Who was born into His own creation as the perfect Son of Man.

• He is with us in the good times and throughout those difficult days, and He has promised never to leave us nor forsake us, but to be our constant Companion and our ever-present Comforter.
• It was by divine design that the Lord Jesus is so beautifully represented as a tender shepherd; the Good Shepherd Who gave His life for His sheep; the Great Shepherd Who loves His own with a deep compassion; the Chief Shepherd that rescues His scattered straying sheep and gives them life, eternal life, abundant life.
• Surely His grace and goodness and unfailing love and mercy will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of my LORD forever.

• There is a false righteousness that we think we can try to achieve in our own strength and through our own abilities and strength until we discover that there are none that are righteous, and the things that we consider to be virtuous and good, are like filthy rags in the eyes of God Who alone is righteousness.

• Our life-walk should be a reflection of His goodness and grace, His righteousness and integrity, His kindness and gentleness, His truth and His sincerity.
• Having been saved by grace, we are living in the light of the Lord and the fruit of His light is discovered in all that is good and righteous and godly and true.
• May we walk as children of light and shine the light of the love of God's goodness and grace into the lives of all we meet, knowing that we who were once lost in darkness, and estranged from the light of God's eternal love because of the inner darkness of our fallen nature, have, by His grace been made light in the Lord.

• The carnal behaviour of some and the bitter wrangling of others, had necessitated Paul's strong rebuke, and yet his dear desire for this group of believers was that they grow in grace, mature in the faith, and live as shining lights with a good conscience before the Lord.

• Throughout the psalm, there is the sad recollection of the rebellious, disobedient, and ungrateful nation of Israel who forgot the goodness of God and disregarded His loving-kindness to their ancestors.
• Praise God that He continues to be long suffering and of great goodness towards all His children - but surely, as we think back over Israel's faithlessness and ingratitude, there is much for us to learn from the lessons of their past failure.

• And the Holy Spirit moved these disciples to tell forth the good news of the glorious gospel of Christ that although He has been crucified, Christ is RISEN from the dead.

• Every good and perfect gift comes from God above, but there is no more precious and lasting gift than that of the forgiveness of our sins.

• At the darkest point in His life, Jesus set us a perfect example by calling to remembrance the goodness of His ever-faithful God by reciting the Scripture that met His deepest point of need.
• Never forget the everlasting goodness of God during those darkest periods of your life when perhaps you imagine that God has turned His back on you.

• He brought good tidings to the poor and bound up the wounds of the broken-hearted.
• May we cultivate an attitude of humble gratitude and joyful thanksgiving, for it is good to sing praises to the God of our salvation: For He hath clothed us with the garments of salvation, He hath covered us with His robe of righteousness.

• But we, who have been permitted to look down the telescope of time, are able to witness God's wisdom working all things together for good for those that love the Lord - for those that are fitting into His plans.

• God in His goodness and grace gave His only begotten Son to be born into the human race so that by living a sinless life, He could die as the substitute for the sin of the whole world.

• The King of Israel had arrived and the good news of His kingdom was being proclaimed far and wide.

• The psalms so often call upon us to bless the Lord with our whole being and never to forget all the multiplied benefits of His grace and goodness that are poured down on us in such abundance, day by day.
• He satisfies our years with good things and renews our youth like the eagle.

• It should be a deliberate choice and not an action performed for the praise of men, but rather to glorify our Father Who is in heaven, for God loves a cheerful giver: And He is able to make every grace overflow to you so that in every way, always having everything you need so that you may excel in every good work.

• Abraham is the supreme example of a man of faith whose life bears witness of the never-failing faithfulness of our good and gracious God and whose life experience encourages us to maintain the hope we have in Christ; our sure and steadfast anchor, on Whom to secure our soul.

• Only God was good enough to redeem us from the slave-market of sin.

• However, it ends with him glorifying God and offering thanksgiving and praise for His goodness and grace.
• But Christ Himself encouraged us with the words: But be of good cheer for I have overcome the world.

• Christ died once for all on the Cross; therefore let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, which streams forth from a grateful heart that has been washed clean by the redeeming blood of Christ and is shown forth through the fruit of our lips when we give thanks to the Lord for His goodness and grace, and sing praises to the God of our salvation.

• Love believes all things by looking for the good in others rather than suspecting the wrong.

• But in a world that is at enmity with God and has rejected the good news of the glorious gospel of Christ, this is no easy matter, and we are likely to come up against much resistance to our message of hope and personal rejection from our fellow-man, and even hatred, abuse, or death.
• It is through a life of holiness, empowered by the Spirit, that we proclaim the good news of the gospel of grace throughout the world.
• He instructed us: Let your light so shine before men, that the world may see your good works, and glorify your Father Who is in heaven.
• In the power of the Holy Spirit, we should seek to do good.

• But Christian hope is founded on an altogether different principle, which is rooted in God's trustworthy goodness and the gracious promises of our Heavenly Father.

• The beautiful perfume of frankincense is said to signify His sacrifice, priesthood, and perfection, while the bitter taste of myrrh depicts Him as Prophet and represents His suffering and death on the Cross.Whatever their symbolism, these gifts from Gentile sages who had journeyed from the east to find Jesus, gave Joseph the means to provide for Mary and Jesus during His sojourn in Egypt – as Herod carried out his murderous attempts to destroy His life.However, the beautiful picture of these Gentile sages arriving from faraway lands with gifts, was one that was foretold by Isaiah the prophet, centuries earlier, for he wrote that Gentiles will come bringing gifts of gold and frankincense and will bear good news of the praises of the Lord.

• The heavens and earth, which was created, fashioned, formed and filled by God, was cursed because of man's sin, and the icy fingers of death continue to strangle and suffocate all the good things that God has made.

• The Lord is long-suffering and of great goodness and He knows that doubts and discouragement can be triggered by so many things that mar our lives, and so He often expands His words of comfort with a beautiful postscript, underlining and emphasising His great goodness and loving-kindness: Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.

• All that He had created was very good, yet only 10 generations after Adam sinned, we discover the shocking, moral decline of the human race, for every intent of the thoughts of man's heart was only evil continually and God was grieved in His heart.This shocking and disturbing indictment against the human race in the antediluvian age, and the exponential increase of wickedness in the heart of men, demanded humanity's total termination.The giants, or 'nephilim' named in the previous verses, were the unnatural offspring of fallen angels and human women – a race that was totally contrary to God's order – man was to reproduce after his own KIND.

• John realised that the destiny of humanity rested on the breaking of those seals, but no one was good enough to open it, not even one - until the 24 elders comforted John.

• He is merciful, kind, long-suffering, and of great goodness.

• Jesus had been teaching the good news of the gospel of the kingdom to the lost sheep of the house of Israel for over a year.
• But how like the world in which we live today, where Jesus is hailed as a great teacher, a moral man, a charismatic character, a good influence, a person to be emulated, and even a prophet from God.

• We are to stir up one another to love and good works and engage in fellowship with other believers, as we worship our God.
• We are to lay up for ourselves treasure in heaven as we carry out the good works that God has prepared for us to do, to His praise and glory.

• From the fall of Adam, every man inherited an empty life, devoid of all that is good and pure, perfect and holy; a life without hope and a life without God.

• They gave an appearance of being alive through a bustling programme of good works and an impressive schedule of charitable deeds.
• Their good works were not perfect in God's sight, because they were carried out in the flesh. Their good works were done for the gratification of the soul and were not acceptable by God.
• Works, whether good or bad, that are not accomplished through the strength of the indwelling, Holy Spirit can never be perfect; indeed, they are identified as filthy rags to the Lord.

• They implored Him to look down from heaven on His people with loving kindness and great goodness.

• In Ezekiel 37, we read of another impossible situation that God will use for good.

• Nathanael showed some serious skepticism and jibed, Can anything good come out of Nazareth? But Philip insisted that his friend come with him to see Jesus.
• Earlier, Nathanael had responded to Philip with a somewhat scornful retort, Can anything good come out of Nazareth?

• The instruction to treat others the way that we would like to be treated by them, is the final directive to believers in a list which requires us to love our enemies, to do good to those that hate us, and to bless those that curse us.

• It was man and not animals, angels, or any other created being to whom God gave dominion over the works of His hand, and it was when man had been finally fashioned and formed by the hand of his Creator, that God pronounced that everything He made was: Very good.

• Like Martha and all good Jews, they knew the dead would be raised incorruptible on the last day, so their uncertainty was not related to the doctrine of the general resurrection. 

• Peter instructs servants to be submissive to their masters, irrespective of whether they are good and gentle men or unreasonable overlords who cause their slaves unjust suffering.
• He reminds them of Christ's teaching that there is no reward for being nice to those that are good to you.

• for her price is far above rubies, and another favourite verse is, A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
• Believers are often referred to as sheep and lambs, while Jesus is seen as the Good Shepherd of the sheep.

• The pagan deities that the Athenians worshipped, needed human beings to build their temples and bring them things, whereas the great God of the universe needs nothing from men – since He Himself gives life and breath to all people and all things.There is no correct way to introduce the gospel of grace to unbelievers, but there does need to be willingness to tell others about Jesus and bring God's message of salvation to the lost – and many missionaries have found that a good starting point is to give others a correct understanding of the God of creation Who made heaven and earth and everything in it, and of man whom God created in His own image, but who sinned and needs to be redeemed from sin and death and hell.May we, who have been saved by grace through faith, make ourselves available to the leading and guidance of the Holy Spirit so that lost sinners may be given the opportunity to hear the gospel and believe, through our ministry – for how shall they hear if no one is willing to tell them?

• On the one hand, he is a jealous, avenging, wrathful God Who is protective for the well-being of the ones He loves, while on the other hand He is shown to be long suffering and of great goodness.

• God's divinity and His divine goodness is clearly understood: By the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead.
• Those who profess themselves to be wise become utter fools with a good-for-nothing, reprobate, degenerate mind when they say in their heart: There is no God!
• Since they have not seen fit to acknowledge their Creator and have substituted His true glory for gods of their own choosing, God has given them over to a good-for-nothing, reprobate, degenerate, and debased mind, which they themselves have chosen to adopt.

• God is good, and in the beginning He created the visible light of the sun, the moon, and all the heavenly bodies.
• Everything He did and everything He created was good - very good, and He chose to make man in His own image and likeness and to make man His personal representative on earth. 
• It is reasonable to imagine that when man sinned, God would rearrange His plan and install a different regent to govern His creation, but God is gracious; He is the Author of everything that is good and the Finisher of every perfect gift.
• He is the bountiful Giver of all good things and sheds on us the light of His love and purity.
• Despite our faults, He never fails us nor forsakes us, and readily bestows on us the gifts of His goodness and grace: For every good gift and every perfect gift come to us from the Father of lights.
• He is our Heavenly Father Who is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and Whose goodness and grace towards the children of men never changes.
• Surely, if this good and gracious God did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, will He not with Him also freely give us all things to enjoy?
• But although the enemy of our soul may afflict us with temptations and trials, God is good, and in His grace He will use those trials to test our faith and develop in us spiritual endurance that brings us into a maturing faith in Him.
• He is our God Who will never renege on His promises nor will He default on His goodness and grace, for there is no trace of turning with Him.
• He is the immutable God Who is eternally unchanging, never altering in His character, never failing in His promises, and never ceasing in His goodness and love towards us: For every good gift and every perfect gift comes to us from our Heavenly Father of lights, in Whom there is no variation, and no shifting shadows, for as He proclaimed of old, I AM the Lord and I change not.

• It emboldened certain believers to proclaim the message of Christ fearlessly and even Ceasar's elite, praetorian guard, heard the good news of Jesus Christ and Him crucified, because Paul was in their custody.
• Paul was convinced that God would use his confinement in Rome for good and that it would result in his eventual deliverance.
• Paul firmly believed the good work God started in his life would be completed in God's time and in His way.

• God wanted His people to understand that all things come from Him and the small tithe that was offered back to Him was a tiny portion of the bountiful goodness He showered on them.
• He wanted them, and us, to know that all good and perfect gifts come from our Father in heaven, and it honours the Lord when we give Him our offering of praise and thanksgiving freely and cheerfully.
• May we give freely and cheerfully to the Lord for all His goodness and grace to us.

• A mind of goodness, grace, and forgiveness.

• He has been expounding the length and breadth and depth and height of the good news of God's grace towards us, and the over-abounding riches we already have in Christ, by faith in His sacrificial death and glorious Resurrection.
• And so Paul draws this inspiring and exhilarating section of His letter to the Ephesians to a climatic close with a doxology of praise proclaiming God's goodness and grace.

• It was through the perfect Law of Moses that God showed mankind what is good and acceptable in His sight.
• The Law and sacrifices given to Moses were copies of heavenly things and foreshadowed God's better Sacrifice; for the Law was only a shadow of the good things to come and not the actual form of those realities.
• The good sacrifices of the Mosaic Law foreshadowed the Lord Christ Jesus, Who is the better Sacrifice.

• We do not have access to our Heavenly Father by works of the law, or through our own righteous deeds, good works, or merit, but by God's grace, we have access, by faith in the precious blood of Christ on Calvary's Cross.

• The story of Esther is remembered as one of the greatest victories in Scripture when the evil plots of Israel's enemies were set to exterminate the entire Jewish race, but God turned around this harrowing situation for good.
• But we also rejoice for the wonderful way that God used Esther and her uncle in bringing good out of evil, and forwarding His plans and purposes, despite the evil ways of man and the compromises of His children.
• Perhaps our focus should be on God's great goodness and amazing grace in using sinners such as Esther, as a channel of His blessing.
• Perhaps we should stand in awe of God, Who used a whole range of natural and supernatural circumstances to permit this woman and her uncle to restrain the evil that was coming upon God's people, and turn evil to good.
• May we eschew the evil and do that which is good in the eyes of the Lord.
• May we thank God that He works all things together for His good purpose and may we worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness and live a life that honours Him, for His greater praise and glory.

• They were being led away from the good news of salvation by Israel's arrogant leaders.
• God is not fooled by an outward show of piety, charitable giving, flowery prayers, or an array of good works.
• He had been anointed by God to tell the good news to the poor, to announce freedom to the prisoners, to give sight to the blind, and set oppressed people free.

• BUT although Israel broke covenant with God, the silken thread of His goodness, grace, and comfort continued to be woven into the history of Israel – which would finally produce an amazing tapestry of salvation for every human life who would trust His Word.God in His grace, sent His only begotten Son to pay the enormous price for their sin and the sin of the whole world, and in Isaiah chapter 40, this great prophet of Israel begins to write his beautiful, prophetic words of comfort to God's people which would eventually be manifested in the birth, life, and sacrifice of the incarnate Word of God.

• In His grace, He has seated us together with Christ in heavenly places to be His ambassadors on earth as we proclaim the good news of the glorious gospel of grace.

• Having led us step by step to the realisation that we are all unrighteous sinners in need of a Saviour, and having made it crystal clear that we are saved as a gift of God's grace through faith in the unchangeable Word of truth, Paul guides us through the meaning of justification (which means being declared righteous by God through faith in Christ), and he outlines reasons why we can only be proclaimed righteous by faith in Christ alone, and not because of our own merit or any good works that we do.

• The love of God must never be disconnected from His righteousness, His holiness, His goodness, and His perfect nature, for to do so is to reduce God to a figment of man's imagination.
• But herein is God's LOVE (as well as His righteousness, holiness, goodness, and grace), not that we loved God (for we were dead in our sins and at enmity with Him), but that He loved us so much that He sent His only begotten Son into the world to be the propitiation for our sins so that all who believe on Him, would not perish but have everlasting life.

• But as we abide in Christ and remain in Him (and He in us), He will do His good work through us so that we will produce the spiritual fruit that only flows from Him.
• As a natural vine-branch should bear sweet grapes, so we who are spiritual vine-branches should bear forth the spiritual fruit that comes from our true Vine: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

• Salvation in all its stages has nothing to do with our own merit or good works, but has everything to do with faith in Christ and HIS good work.
• He paid the price for sin on our account, freely and without cost, and He broke the power of sin in our life so that He could live in us, carry out His righteous work through us, and produce in us the fruit of righteousness as a living testimony of His goodness and grace.
• However, we have a responsibility to produce the fruit of personal righteousness during our Christian life (through a process of sanctification), as we carry out the good work God has prepared for us to do.
• In Galatians 5, Pauls presents us with a comprehensive list of spiritual fruit; love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

• Everything God created was very good, and I am sure that the tree of knowledge produced delicious food and was a delight to behold.
• However, God placed one restriction on the man created in His own image, to test him: You are free to eat from ANY tree of the garden, Adam was told, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for on the day you eat from it, you will certainly die. Adam was made with a 'mind' to think and a 'free-will' with which to make choices, but he was also given one command to follow, to test his fidelity: Do not eat from the tree of the knowledge.
• The garden of Eden contained numerous trees dripping with tasty fruit for both her and her husband to eat, but the cunning enemy came and cast doubt on the veracity of God's Word and the goodness of His character, by asking a loaded and suggestive question, Did God really say, 'You can't eat from ANY tree in the garden?'
• Her beautiful relationship with the Lord had been severed, and she discovered a shocking reality; she had the knowledge of evil without the ability to avoid it and the knowledge of good without the ability to do it.

• And verse 9 speaks of the advantages of fellowship, partnerships, self-control, and mutual encouragement between two people: Two are better than one, he writes, because they have a good return for their labour.
• When Christ sent his disciples out to minister to the lost sheep of the house of Israel they were sent two by two: Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labour.

• He wants them to eat of the good things He has prepared, and to let their souls delight in the abundance of His grace.
• He is slow to anger and desires to restore to them the joy of their salvation - but they must listen to His voice, hear His word, partake of what is good, and delight their soul in the abundance of His blessings.
• And woe to those who say that evil is good, and good is evil, who substitute darkness for light, and light for darkness, and who say bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter.

• God is good and the very first recorded words of our great Creator were spoken on that first day of creation: Let there be light, and there was light.
• The beauty and goodness of light is always contrasted with the ugliness and disturbing features of darkness, for men love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil.
• Light is always identified as holy and good, for Christ is the light of the world Who has poured the light of salvation and the light of His eternal life into the heart of all who believe in Him.
• But it also points us forward to Jesus the light of the world and the light of life, for we read in the Bible that the fruit of the light results in all goodness, grace, righteousness, and truth

• Paul in this passage contrasts this amazing, divine love that staggers the imagination with the very best of human love, for he rightly points out: A person would hardly die for a righteous man; although there is the possibility that one would dare to die for the good man.
• And although he adds that it is possible that someone might be prepared to die for someone whom they love or admire, very few would be prepared to give their own precious life, even for the sake of a really good person.
• The love of God towards you and me is a supernatural love, for His love not only embraced us when we were weak, helpless, and hopeless, but also when we were neither righteous nor good.

• Moses recognised that despite the mighty miracles they had all experienced, the goodness and greatness of God was far beyond anything they had experienced.

• Jesus is the good Shepherd of the sheep Who laid down His life for us, and just as the blood of the Passover lamb was smeared on the lintels of their house to cover Israel's sins and redeem them from Egyptian slavery, so the blood of Christ cleanses us from all wrongdoing and redeems us from the slavery of sin.

• It is here in John's first letter, that the joy of the Lord in his heart compelled him to write of the good news of Christ.

• James charges them with indulging themselves in hedonistic luxury and immoral practices while brutally exploiting their fellowman and oppressing those that are upright and good.
• Not only are the lives of many 'snuffed out' in order to forward the wicked plans of these wealthy tyrants, but reputations have also been destroyed, and the characters of good men have been devalued and disgraced by these ungodly people.

• They had discovered Him to be the Good Shepherd, the Water of life, the Messiah of Israel, and the living Bread Who came down from heaven.
• Christ interceded for His chosen disciples who would lay the foundation for the fledgling church and who would share the good news of the gospel of Christ to the Jew first and then to the Gentiles, to the uttermost parts of the earth.

• And so, oppressed in his soul and with bitter weeping and eyes that grew weary of looking up to the heavens, he pleaded the Lord to stay His hand and restore his health, and Hezekiah rehearsed his many good deeds and service to the Lord.
• It is right to plead our case before the Lord and it is good to expect the desire of our heart to be fulfilled.

• We have been called to share forth the good news of the glorious gospel of grace to a lost and dying world, for God in His omniscience, knew who would accept His gracious offer of salvation, by faith.

• We are not informed when or why these other articles were removed, but it is likely that Israel was unaware of the glorious antitype, to which they pointed (Jesus, the living Bread of Life; Jesus, the Good Shepherd of the sheep; Jesus, the High Priest after the order of Melchizedek; Jesus, the coming Judge of those who rebel).

• It is unbiblical to teach that to gain salvation one has to keep the Law, or that one is justified by engaging in a religious ritual, or undertaking a good work.

• Good governance in the home results where the man is responsible for loving and caring for his wife with the same self-sacrificial, godly love that Christ loves the Church – and gave Himself for her.Similarly, when the wife responds to her husband's leadership as the Bible teaches, and becomes his most responsive and devoted helper, then the relationship between husband and wife reflects God’s initial plan and purpose for the whole of humanity.Sadly, the blurring of the sexes and the demands of the supposedly 'liberated' women of the 21 century, is diametrically opposite from God's plan and purpose for the human race.

• He was a skilled singer and a poet, and although a man of faith who acknowledged that God is good to Israel and to all who are pure of heart, Asaph became discouraged and found that his faith wavered when he constantly saw how wicked men seemed to prosper and get away with all sorts of evil practices.
• Let us not allow the circumstances that surround us and the apparent successes of the ungodly to cause us to doubt the goodness of God.

• Nevertheless, this Word from the Lord is as true for us today as it was so many centuries ago, that God Who started a good work in us will complete it in the day of Christ Jesus: 'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the LORD.

• We do not approach God in our good name but through the saving name of Jesus.

• Earlier in this Psalm, we are told not to fret about evil-doers nor to be envious of those that work iniquity, for when our mind is correctly focused on the Lord, then our hearts are not weighed down with the troublesome behaviour of the wicked, nor overwhelmed with the continuous influx of evil in the world.Rather, we are instructed to keep the eyes of our heart upon Jesus Who has promised to carry all our burdens and to comfort us in all our affliction so that we may offer solace to others who are also weighed down by the cares of this world and oppressed by evil-doers.As we change our focus onto the Lord, so our faith in Him is excited within our heart and we are encouraged, by David, to trust in the Lord and do good – to feed on His faithfulness so that we may become strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.

• May we, who have been forgiven of our sin by faith in Christ, be quick to forgive others their trespasses, shortcomings, and debts - in the same way that we have been so graciously forgiven by our Father in heaven so that we may maintain sweet fellowship with Him and show forth His goodness and grace in our lives.

• But like the Philippians Christians it is also good to be prompted by the Holy Spirit to give support to our brothers and sisters in Christ who may be facing hardships or other types of difficulties - and to thank others and God if others are prompted to give aid to us.

• There is nothing in fallen man that can ever please God, and even good deeds that impress other people are not pleasing to the Lord.
• And although we are still able to carry out 'good' works through our sinful flesh which may impress others, they do not and cannot please God.
• For those that are spiritually minded carry out their good works from their new born again nature from Christ which is imputed to us at salvation, rather than reverting back to their old, carnal nature which was inherited from Adam - a fallen, sinful nature is the birth-right of all humanity.
• Those that are saved have a new life; the life and nature of Christ which can only do good in the sight of God (although until our physical death we can choose to slip back into an ungodly, carnal mind-set.)

• And God saw all He had made in that glorious week of creation, and it was very good.

• How like the times in which we live, when a feel-good, watered-down, prosperity-driven, works-orientated, 'all-things-to-all-men' gospel, together with a bloodless Saviour, has become the main diet for multitudes of believers in Christ today.

• It is because we are accepted in His Beloved that when God looks at you He sees you as being placed in Christ and identified with His righteousness.Some Christians suggest that God's freely bestowed grace is reserved for 'good' Christians or 'spiritual' believers, but this distorts the character of God for it implies that you have to do something to stay saved or to remain accepted in the Beloved.

• They had shared the good news of the gospel of grace and brought them out of darkness into Christ's glorious light.

• However, the failure of Israel to faithfully follow God's instructions and diligently teach His Word to their children when they sat in their houses, walked by the way, lay down to sleep, and rose in the morning is a sober lesson to us all, for we are increasingly bombarded from all sides with a godless, pagan, worldly mindset, that is at enmity with God and all that is good and true.

• And throughout the book of Isaiah, we hear an ongoing call to repentance and a plea to turn from their wicked ways and to learn to do good.
• They were not to reason with the Lord by defending their behaviour and arguing their innocence, but were to admit that His ways are perfect, good, and righteous altogether.

• Paul had been entrusted with the good news of the gospel of grace and the hidden mystery of the Church, which is His Body, and had been commissioned by God and Lord Jesus Christ to share these glad tidings of great joy to Jew and Gentile alike.

• The valley of the shadow of death becomes the pathway to life and peace to all Who follow the Good Shepherd Who gave his life for His sheep.

• When Samuel had anointed Saul as king, it was his tall stature and good looks that caught the prophet's attention, and yet Saul turned out to be a real disappointment to Samuel, for his heart was not pure before the Lord.
• But God, Who alone can read the heart, attitudes, and motives of a man, is not influenced by our outward façade nor the good works we manufacture, nor even the exemplary words that may flow from our lips, for the heart of everyman is full of deceit.

• While God saw His entire creation was good, Adam was unique within His creation because the Lord formed man to be like Himself, with the capacity for moral, intellectual, and spiritual choices.
• Mankind was further entrusted with sovereignty over the whole earth, and because everything that God made was very good, mankind was created with the capacity to think, speak, will, act, and to feel. 

• God is a good and a righteous God and He dealt justly with Sodom and Gomorrah when they were destroyed by fire and brimstone.

• Jesus was teaching that good works aren't sufficient to gain salvation and riches can't buy salvation.
• Only saved people can enter, but the young ruler thought his good works and keeping the Law should be sufficient, and asked if there was anything else he must do - but nothing man does can achieve perfect goodness.
• Jesus used the man's own words to show him that God alone is good.
• Even if we are morally upright, generous, kind to others and an example to all we meet, there is always something lacking in the heart of fallen man, for there is no one that is completely good, not even one.
• The rich young ruler was zealous in keeping the commandments and he was righteous in all his ways, as man counts goodness. All these commands I have kept.
• How important that the good man does not rely on his philanthropic works, but trusts in Christ.

• When God created the world, it was good.
• Indeed, God saw that all that He had made was very good.

• Adam was told: Of every tree of the garden you may truly eat but of the tree of knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for the day on which you eat of it you will surly DIE.

• Only God can see the heart, so only God can see the root of salvation (faith), but when a Christian is walking in spirit and truth, they will produce the fruit of salvation (good works which God has prepared for us to do).
• Many Christians take this verse and use it to accuse their brothers or sisters in Christ of not being saved because they can see no outward sign of good works, but that is distorting the gospel of grace and twisting what James is saying into a form of accusatory legalism.
• For although the genuine faith of a spiritual believer will indeed be accompanied by good works as James indicates here, a carnal believer may have a genuine saving faith and yet be walking in the flesh and not showing forth any good works in their lives, similar to the carnal Christians that Paul described in 1 Corinthians 3.
• Only the fruit of saving faith can be demonstrated through the good deeds that are carried out to the glory of God by the spiritual Christian who is walking is spirit and truth.

• For the Christian, faith in Christ is simply trusting God to finish the good work that He started in our lives when we were first saved, trusting God's Spirit to work in us for our Christian growth.
• We do this by trusting God to work His perfect will in and through our lives, and not by trying to live a good life or trusting in ourselves and our own abilities.

• The riches and poverty, pleasures and passion, beauty and bitterness, fame and shame of this perishing world are short-lived, but the things of the Lord are permanent, pure, good, secure, and of everlasting value.

• The angel calmed the women's fear and proceeded to tell them the good news, reminding them that Jesus had already said He would rise from the dead on the third day.

• He is to be 'prudent' by giving godly wisdom, offering good advice, or showing careful forethought and far-sightedness.
• He is to be respectable and hospitable; an upright man of good repute; a gracious, warm-hearted person who is sociable, helpful, welcoming, and accommodating.
• This does not mean he must have the gift of 'pastor-teacher', but that he is a good communicator to those in his charge and is able to provide biblical answers for the hope he has in Christ.
• And may we study to show ourselves approved unto God, be willing to share the good news of the gospel of Christ with others, and be ready and able to give a biblical answer to anyone who asks us about the hope we have in Christ.

• Despite this unparalleled onslaught, Job maintained his integrity and would not accuse God of evil against him: Shall we indeed accept good from the Lord and not accept adversity?

• However, no man is good enough to become Redeemer, for all men have sinned and all fall short of God's glory.
• God the Son was good enough to pay the price of sin, but God is Spirit, and spirit is spirit and flesh is flesh and blood!
• As the eternal Son of God, Jesus was good enough to pay the price of sin, and so He came into the world as the sinless Son of Man.
• He became the God-Man, Who walked in spirit and truth and Who alone was good enough to be the sin-sacrifice.

• And James also teaches about the effects of true and false wisdom – the cause of covetousness and its righteous cure.And here in this verse, the apostle simply explains to his readers the consequences of knowing what is godly and honourable in the sight of the Lord, and yet refusing to carry it out... therefore, he warns, to the one who knows the right thing to do yet does not do it, to him it is sin.The man or woman who has become a child of God by faith, may not be under the law of Moses, but we are most certainly under the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, and James teaches that to know what is good but to do what is evil – whether in thought, word, or deed, dishonours the Lord Who bought us with His precious blood and blemishes our testimony for Christ.As children of God, our motive and attitude should be to live for Christ every moment of the day – to present our lives as a living sacrifice to Him, to trust His Word and walk in utter dependence on Him, moment by moment, and for His greater glory.Living the Christian life as God intended and instructed, should be the main aim of the Christian, and failure to do so is identified by James as a sin which should be confessed to the Lord and addressed in our life if we are to remain in holy fellowship with the Father and grow in grace, to His honour and glory.

• Whether we are faced with fleshly temptations that rise up from our old sin nature or testing trials that come from above, we know that God takes all things and weaves them beautifully together for good, to those that love God and are called by grace through faith in Christ, according to His good purpose.

• God's ways are not our ways and His thoughts are so much higher than our thoughts, but it demonstrates His divine wisdom - for Christ's suffering fulfilled the righteous requirements of God’s justice and exemplifies the superabundance of His goodness, His grace, His love, and His merciful-kindness.Only the shed blood of a perfect Man was sufficient to satisfy God's wrath against sin.

• One cannot get away from the Jewish nature of Matthew's Gospel and for good reason, for salvation is from the Jews because salvation must come through faith in JESUS, the Jewish Messiah.

• What a good example this unnamed son of Korah has given all the people of God in Psalm 85, and what lessons we can learn from the words he penned and the attitude he fostered.
• He was quick to acknowledge the superabundant goodness and grace of God toward himself and his people, and was ready and willing to acknowledge that many perils lurk in the dark shadows of sin.

• The Galatians had been so quickly and easily deceived into believing a false gospel, that Paul felt it necessary to validate his own, God-given apostolic authority, by reminding them WHO gave him the gospel he preached and WHERE the good news came from so that he could legitimise his teachings.
• Surely the people in Galatia should see that his own conversion was by God's grace and not because of Paul's good works!!!

• Indeed, songs have been written with the unbiblical words, 'money is the root of all evil' rather than the truth: The LOVE of money is A root of all sorts of evil.Money can be used for good as well as for ill, but it is the LOVE of money which is being spoken of in this verse.
• Some have lost their grip on the things of God and foolishly turned back into fleshly carnality, which inevitably causes much grief and heartache, and severs fellowship with our Heavenly Father.These warnings in the Bible about the love of money and desire for wealth should be heeded, but we should also be careful that we do not distort God's Word, by taking a verse out of context or allowing Biblical truth to be distorted by a worldly interpretation, for it is the love of money that is a root of many kinds of evil.As children of God, we have His assurance that He will provide for all of our needs, according to His goodness and the riches of His grace.

• And He causes all things to work together for our good and for His own glory.

• But he was trying to win salvation and favour from God by all the good things that he did.
• Man's way, and the way of every single religion and sect on earth (other than biblical Christianity), tries to get to God through good works, by doing things to please Him and hoping that the good deeds outweigh the bad things.

• But no man was good enough for all are sinners.
• But in His goodness, grace, mercy, and love, He gave His beloved Son to live a perfect life and die a sacrificial death so that all who believe in Him will not be condemned, but live eternally.

• But if we suffer for doing what is right in God's eyes; obeying His Word, holding fast to that which is good, proclaiming the good news of the gospel, or simply placing our faith in Christ as Lord and Saviour, we may well have to face mocking, threats, persecution, and death. 
• The good news of the gospel is deeply offensive to prideful man because it unceremoniously unseats king self from the throne of his heart.

• As God's chosen nation, they were to tell the good news of the Saviour to a lost and dying world.
• God is long-suffering and of great goodness, but the day is getting closer when every knee will bow down to the Lord and every tongue will give praise to God: At the name of Jesus, every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

• He knew that the good works that we do to the glory of God have no effect on our salvation - for salvation is exclusively by grace through faith in Christ's sacrifice.
• He knew that the good works that we do to the glory of God and not for the honour of self will result in spiritual rewards as the Bible clearly teaches.

• He knows that unless our Christian life produces the fruit of the Spirit; long-suffering, patience, love, and joy, as well as humility, goodness, kindness, and self-control, it will profit us nothing and will not glorify our Father, Who is in heaven.

• Similarly, pleas that flow from a double-minded man who uses prayer as a good-luck charm or as a means to manipulate the Lord, are displeasing to Him.

• May we maintain a heart of grateful thanksgiving and praise for all His goodness and grace to us, and may we be anxious about nothing, but in everything through our grateful prayers and entreaties make our requests known to Him, and we will discover His peace that passes understanding, guarding our heart and mind, as we abide in Christ and He is us.

• Those that are begotten of God do what is righteous because the Lord our God is righteous and we are born of His Spirit, washed in His blood, filled with His goodness, and identified with His Son.
• It contrasts good with evil, right with wrong, love with hate, and even draws a comparison between righteous Abel whose sacrifice to God was acceptable to Him and wicked Cain who secretly slew his brother out of jealous hatred and pride. 

• He is our Good Shepherd and our Blessed Hope.

• The Lord Jesus went about doing good.
• He raised the dead, forgave the sinner, gave relief to the poor, and brought good news of great joy which is for all people.
• He knew all about this man's hopeless condition, and in His goodness and grace said to him: Rise up, take up your bed and walk.
• They did not recognise that the Lord Jesus was not only a good Man but that He was indeed their long-awaited Messiah-King Who was the Lord of the Sabbath, Creator of the universe, and God Incarnate.

• The earth had yet to be formed, fashioned, and filled with all that was good: And darkness was upon the face of the deep.
• By His will and power He formed and fashioned all that He made, and He saw that it was very good.

• Here we are called to: Test all things, examine everything carefully, and to hold fast that which is good, genuine, and true.
• May we make it a priority to test all things, to hold fast that which is good, and may we do so in godly love and in humble submission to the Holy Spirit.

• May we be ready and willing to share the good news of the gospel of grace with all who are dead in trespasses and sins and under God's eternal condemnation.

• Good parents always want the best for their children.

• Christ is the Good Shepherd.

• One in their eternal goodness, one in their eternal attributes, one in their eternal unity, one in their indescribable love.

• This man has become a worthy witness of God's goodness to many of his friends and neighbours, as he joyfully proclaims, I will come in the power of your mighty acts, and remember that You alone are righteousness.
• While we rejoice in our great salvation, may we go forward in the strength of the Lord our God, and make mention of His goodness, His grace, and His eternal righteousness.

• After his advice on periods of temporary abstinence from sexual intercourse as an agreed concession within marriage, Paul turns his attention to those who are not married: But I say to the unmarried and to widows that it is good for them if they remain even as I.

• When the enormity of God's oath to our father Abraham takes root in our heart and mind, how can we ever doubt God's goodness towards us or question our eternal salvation and the eternal security that is ours in Christ.

• And were this the only verse in scripture describing God and displaying His dependable and faithful character, what an amazing array of evidence we would have of His dependability and great goodness.

• The Lord Jesus was not simply a good man, a great teacher, a renowned prophet, or a charismatic miracle-worker.

• God alone was good enough to pay the price for humanities sin, but God is spirit and only a perfect, sinless Man could become the Saviour of humanity and redeem imperfect, sinful men.

• The truth of the good news of the Lord Jesus Christ and the many precious promises that surround the beauty of His Person can only be described as the sweetest and most beautiful truths known to mankind.

• He came as the Son of Man to display the goodness of God and to die on the Cross for the sin of the world so that He could rise as the firstborn from the dead and become the one Mediator between God and men.

• Purity and grace only comes through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit, but in Him we have everything we need for life and purity, goodness, and grace.

• The old priest had been filled with doubt when the angel announced the good news, but with the birth of his son he was filled with the Spirit and inspired to articulate a most beautiful hymn of rejoicing and prophesy of the imminent arrival of Israel's longed-for Messiah.
• When a man offers the Lord blessings and praise, it is an acknowledgement of God's goodness and greatness, His dominion and glory, His might and majesty, dominion and power, and it speaks of His unfathomable kindness to us who are totally undeserving of His mercy and grace.

• David knew that the wonder and beauty of God's creation is the greatest testimony to the goodness of God.
• We should make known His deeds among the people, for He is good and His mercy endures forever.
• We should praise the Lord and give Him the thanks that are due to Him, for He is good and His mercy endures forever.

• We do not know who initially shared the good news of the gospel of grace with the people of Rome, but we do know that the epistle to the Romans that Paul wrote to the saints there, was the most comprehensive and structured exposition of every aspect of our Christian faith which we would all do well to read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest - to be established in the faith and grounded in the truth of the glorious gospel of God.

• Paul puts it this way: Whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.
• We are to set our mind on the things of God and to reflect on whatever is true and honourable, good and praiseworthy.
• Let us choose to focus our mind on that which is right and pure, lovely and of good repute, for all these attributes are the fruit of the Spirit and point us to Christ Who alone is good and true, honourable and pure, righteous, virtuous, and praiseworthy.

• And because of His goodness and grace which delighted in righteousness and eschewed evil, God anointed Him with the oil of gladness beyond His companions.

• Paul had been commenting positively on the good works that were being carried out by the Corinthian believers, and the motives behind the generous things they were doing.

• Christ's response to His fearful followers was instantaneous and designed to fill their hearts with hope, for He called out to them saying, Be of good cheer!

• Paul's passion was to reinforce the good news of the gospel with clarity and remind us that as part of God's new creation, we are aliens in a foreign land; living in deteriorating earthen vessels with a heavenly hope.

• Israel was to tell the nations about God's goodness and teach the good news of the kingdom.

• They called evil good and good evil.
• While a good man produces good things from his storeroom of good, an evil man produces evil things from his storeroom of evil.
• Oh, there are some good 'actors' that can manifest a form of godliness through strict discipline, human programming, or legalistic behaviours, while denying the Lord Who bought them.

• They are already clothed in spiritual honour, glory, immortality, and Christ's righteousness, and will also receive rewards for any good work carried out in spirit and in truth, but they will also suffer loss of reward for fleshly works.
• However, all who have rejected God's gracious offer of salvation are under condemnation and will be judged according to their own good works, and not the good work that Christ accomplished for them on the Cross on their behalf.
• But they will be found wanting, for all good works carried out in the flesh are filthy rags by comparison with Christ's finished work on Calvary.

• Whether it was seeking refuge from His enemies, in deep repentance for His transgressions, or to worship and glorify God, the foundation upon which the prayer and praises of David rested, was the righteousness, faithfulness, and goodness of God.

• Every other good thing that pertains to spiritual life; eternal life, eternal love, eternal hope, eternal joy, eternal peace, eternal prosperity, and eternal grace, is also given.

• Only those that are born again believers who walk in spirit and truth, are enabled to display the good and godly attributes that come from above, through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit.
• Throughout his writings, we find James comparing and contrasting the good with the evil, the holy with the satanic, the wise with the foolish, the sinner with the saint, and the stable man with the one who is tossed about by every wind of doctrine.
• Through his epistle, the apostle James is seeking to direct us in the way of wisdom and peace, together with humility, goodness, and grace, whilst he desires to warn us against foolishness and hostility, selfish ambition, and every evil thing.
• May we strive after the wisdom from above, which is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits – unwavering and without hypocrisy.

• But Paul's confidence was in the Lord. He firmly believed the One who started a good work in these believers would faithfully complete it. 
• Paul knows God is able to work all things together, for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose and so he was able to write: I have confidence in you in the Lord, that you will adopt no other view. 

• But as a good steward of the manifold grace of God, through faith in Christ, Peter urges us to live a God-honouring life, reminding us that as a soldier of Christ we should not be surprised when we suffer for His sake, but consider it both a privilege and an honour.

• In Psalm 36 David bemoans men's wickedness before contrasting it with the loving-kindness and great goodness of God.
• David grieves that sinful man has ceased to be wise and good.
• Rather, he devises wicked plans, sets his face against that which is good, and does not abhor evil.
• David exposes the unbridgeable gulf between man's wickedness, which is voiced in the first few verses of this psalm, and God's unsurpassed goodness, recorded in the second section which begins, Your lovingkindness and great mercy O LORD, extends to the heavens.

• By God's grace, He is using the Body, the Bride of Christ - which is the Church, to stand in the gap for Israel by prayer, supplication, and through the proclamation of the good news that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and Saviour of the world.

• As Paul draws his second, lengthy epistle to the Corinthian Christians to a close, he reiterates his earlier exhortations to seek after unity within the Body of Christ, to be of good comfort to one another, and to remain encouraged in the truth of the glorious gospel of God.
• He enables us to carry out the good works that God has prepared for us to do, and He graciously bestows on us spiritual gifts which are used for God's glory.

• Such friends are rare indeed, but even the sting of death can remove such a good and loyal friend from our lives in a split second of time.

• Sometimes the urgent things of life have to give way to the thing that is really important, and sometimes the good has to be set aside or renounced for the best.

• Having already chosen His twelve disciples, Jesus encouraged them to pray for labourers to be sent throughout Israel, to tell of the good news of the kingdom of heaven.
• The Messiah, Who was to be the Saviour of the whole world, instructed His disciples NOT to go and tell the Gentiles the good news.
• How shocking it appears that the Redeemer of the world forbade His disciples to tell the good news of the kingdom of heaven to Gentiles that were lost in their sin and outside the sheepfold of Israel!
• Why were the Gentiles and Samaritans excluded from this good news that the kingdom of heaven was near?

• They responded to the good news Paul taught, by placing their faith in the Lord Jesus.
• The good news of the glorious gospel of grace has been systematically undermined by many contradictory rebuttals from Satan.

• He praised them for their constant witness and concern for the gospel and rejoiced over the good work that God had started in each of their lives.
• He wanted to reassure these dear believers that God is able to take ALL life's circumstances, both good or evil, and use them to forward His eternal plans and purposes, for His greater praise and glory.

• They were not to be pugnacious or fond of sordid gain, but hospitable, loving what is good, sensible, just, devout, self-controlled, and holding fast to the gospel which is in accordance with sound teaching.

• This was in tribute to God's long-suffering, praise for His goodness and grace, thanksgiving for His everlasting mercy, and demonstrated a united reverence towards His holy name.
• God had proved Himself to be faithful to His people in the past, and they were confident of His continuing goodness and grace towards them.
• Like Israel, we too can look back to God's unfailing mercies and look forward to the day when He Who started a good work in us will be completed, in the day of Christ Jesus.
• Like Israel, we too give grateful thanks and praise to Him for His faithfulness to His children, and we too rejoice in His long-suffering forbearance towards us: His goodness, His grace, and His everlasting mercy.

• And we are certainly called upon to differentiate between what is good and what is evil, for we are not to have any connection with the destructive forces of evil, but to hold fast to that which is good.
• We are given wisdom, discernment, and the indwelling Holy Spirit to judge between the good and the evil, and we have been given the Word of God to judge between truth and error.

• It is David who calls us to: Taste and see that the Lord is good, and we who have trusted in Christ as Saviour have truly tasted of the goodness of God in our own lives, and have seen in abundance the loving-kindness and forgiveness of our gracious Heavenly Father.
• How blessed is the man who tastes of the goodness of the Lord and takes refuge in Him.
• And since we have been born from above and have tasted of the goodness of God, we are entreated by Peter to live our lives in submission to Him so that we may grow in grace and increase in spiritual wisdom and knowledge.
• Peter calls us to rejoice in Christ and His sufficient grace, since we have tasted and seen that the Lord is good: For the Word of the Lord endures forever, and we are His people and the sheep of his pasture.
• But since we have been partakers of the goodness of God, and since we have been born into a living hope in Christ Jesus, we are called to earnestly desire the milk of the Word, to guard against the lust of the flesh, and to flee from selfish pride and a carnal life-style.
• If as born again believers we have indeed tasted and seen that the Lord is good, we should be motivated to live as unto the Lord, to thirst after the pure milk of the Word, to abstain for ungodly actions and attitudes, and to walk godly in Christ Jesus.

• Paul had come to understand that in this world we will have tribulation, but we are to be of good cheer for Jesus has overcome the world by means of His sacrificial death on the cross and glorious Resurrection.

• Christ was uniquely qualified to apply this glorious prophecy to Himself, for He had indeed been anointed of God to bring good news to the afflicted, to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to those that were captive to sin, and freedom to those that were enslaved by Satan.
• Christ was indeed uniquely qualified to proclaim: The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, because the LORD has anointed Me, to bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to captives and freedom to prisoners.

• The fruit of the Spirit is LOVE, which fragments into joy, peace, patient-endurance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, and these will last forever and ever and into the eternal ages to come, for LOVE NEVER FAILS.

• While money can be an excellent servant of man and is able to do much good, the writer to the Hebrews identifies the love of money as a key hindrance to inner contentment. In his letter to Timothy, Paul also warns that the love of money is a root of all sorts of evils and that some believers have so hankered after money as to be led astray from the faith.

• Titus was a prominent minister of the gospel, and Paul recognised that the out-working of his life could be offered as an exemplary model of the Christian faith for others to imitate, for his godly lifestyle was a practical demonstration of the doctrine he taught: In all things show yourself to be an example of good deeds, Paul urged, Conduct yourself with purity in doctrine and be dignified and sound in speech, which is beyond reproach.
• Paul knew that a principle of 'do as I do' rather than 'do as I say' is a most effective way to train others in the things of God, and he advised this trusted colleague to present himself to his brothers and sisters in Christ as a worthy pattern of the good behaviour and the godly conduct that should be the hallmark of every spiritual believer.

• But accusing Job of being punished for sin was an indirect accusation against GOD's goodness! 
• But Eliphaz had failed to understand that God is good and that only good and perfect things come from Him - not evil.
• However, Eliphaz and his friends, believed that God only sends evil to the wicked, and only gives blessings to the good - a complete distortion of God's character.

• Others may consider a bruised reed or smoking flax to be good-for-nothing, except to be snuffed out or trampled underfoot.
• But the Lord Jesus is God's good and gracious Servant Whom He has sent to heal the broken-hearted, to proclaim delivery to the captives, to recover sight to the blind, and to set at liberty them that are bruised and broken.

• For we know that by His grace He has set us all apart for His good purpose so that in His strength, we may complete the good work that He foreordained that we should walk in.

• But as much as we rejoice that all good things come from God and delight to quote this verse as an encouragement to one another and as a testimony to God's gracious provision, it is important to read this verse in its correct context and discover why Paul gave this great promise of abundant supply to his readers.
• All good and perfect gifts come from our Father in heaven Who is our great Provider. Indeed, not one of us could draw another breath without His provision and grace, but God is no man's debtor and Paul wanted these dear believers at Philippi to KNOW that their generosity to Paul would be honoured by the Lord Who would supply all their needs according to His riches in glory - in Christ Jesus.

• And as we examine the life and times of David the king, we see God working all things together for good. We see troublesome events and various trials in David's life, which God took and used for his own good.