The Definition of Good

The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. This is not just poetry. This is the definition of the goodness of God.

When Moses asked to see God's glory on Mount Sinai, God passed by and proclaimed these very words. This is who I am, God said. This is what My goodness looks like. Gracious. Merciful. Slow to anger. Abounding — not just possessing, but abounding — in steadfast love.

We throw around the word 'good' so casually. Good weather. Good food. Good news. But when we say God is good, we mean something far deeper. We mean He is gracious when we deserve judgment. We mean He is merciful when we have earned wrath. We mean He is slow to anger when we have tested His patience again and again. We mean His love is steadfast — it does not waver, it does not run out, it does not depend on our performance.

Psalm 119 says that God is good and does good. His good works flow from His good nature. He cannot do anything that is not good because He is good. Every breath you take today is a gift of His goodness. Every sunrise. Every meal. Every moment of grace. All of it is common grace — grace extended to all, whether they acknowledge Him or not.

But here is the tragedy: many receive His goodness and never thank Him. They live in a world drenched in the kindness of God and never lift their eyes to praise Him. Paul says in Romans 2:4 that it is the kindness of God that leads us to repentance. His goodness is meant to draw us to Him.

So today, let us be among those who see His goodness and respond with thanksgiving. Let us be the ones who taste and see that the Lord is good, and let us tell others to do the same.