believing God is as good as He says He is

Psalm 34:8 says, "Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the [person] who takes refuge in Him." This verse shows up about a third of the way into the psalm. It follows after verses that talk about extoling and praising the LORD, boasting and glorifying Him, and about calling out to Him, and being saved from all of one's troubles. It is followed by poetic promises: if we fear Him, we will lack nothing; that those who seek after the LORD will lack no good thing; and that the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and that His ears are attentive to their cry.

But do you really believe God is as good as He says He is? I believe this, and I struggle to believe this. In all honesty, I have always struggled to believe it deep down. I believe it with my head, but struggle to always believe it in my heart. But this is more complicated. You see, its about fear - fear of the LORD. Not because I fear Him not loving me. No. I fear God because I know that while He loves me, my life is only worth His glory. That is, if it be to His glory, He will allow me to die.

I say this not to disdain the LORD. But instead, I think this is the key to trusting in the goodness of the LORD. You see, only a good God can both love me and allow my life to be to His glory. God's glory is wrapped up in His goodness. His goodness is something of a by-product, if you will, of His love for His creation, for us, for me. His goodness permeates everything that defines our relationship. And it is ultimately demonstrated in Jesus' death on the cross, and underscored by His resurrection. In being baptized in the name of the Triune God, we are invited to partcipate and share in goodness of the LORD.

While the psalmist could never have imagined it, for Christians, everytime we receive the Eucharist, we are tasting and seeing that the LORD is good. Through the sacraments, we are brought into God's goodness, and that goodness is reinforced in our hearts and minds through the word-act and deed-act that are demonstrated for us in the proclamation of the Word of God in both the preaching from the Scriptures and the celebration of the Lord's Supper.

Yes, I still struggle with believing God is as good as He says He is. But it's not because of anything He's done, so much as my need to remember the words and deeds of the LORD; to remember that even if my suffering or death is what will bring Him glory, I will taste and see that the LORD is good when I join Him in glory. When we live within and as part of the body of Christ, the community of faith that is the local Church, we may experience this goodness through the kindnesses and love of other believers. We stand together, we live life together, in part, to remind one another and encourage one another that God is as good as He says He is.

In the end, we can only believe that God is good if we step out in faith; only in "tasting" and "seeing" for ourselves. We must believe, because having faith demands that we do so. The reward is that we find out, even in the midst of troubling and distressing experiences and events, that God is good, and His love endures forever. Amen and amen.

What do you think? Let me know.