Only God Is Good — TDW Kids

God Alone Is Good

☐

When the ruler called Jesus “Good Teacher,” Jesus answered, “No one is good but One, that is, God” (Luke 18:19). Goodness starts with God. To learn what good means, we look at Him.

What good means. When the Bible calls God good, it means He is right, pure and kind all the way through. There is nothing wrong in Him at all, not even a little. He is never cruel, never unfair and never mistaken.

Good all the time. People can be good on some days and not on others. God is not like that. A psalm says the Lord is good and does good (Psalm 119:68). His goodness is who He is, so it never changes.

Good in creation. When God finished making the world, “God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good” (Genesis 1:31). Every sunrise, tree and animal was made by a good God.

Good to everyone. The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all He has made (Psalm 145:9). He sends sunshine, food and families to people everywhere, even to people who never thank Him.

Good in hard times. The prophet Nahum wrote that the Lord is good, a safe stronghold in the day of trouble, and that He knows those who trust in Him (Nahum 1:7). God's goodness does not stop when life is hard.

Better than the best people. Even the kindest mom or dad sometimes does wrong. God never does. His goodness has no wrong mixed into it at all.

Goodness that follows you. David wrote that God's goodness and mercy would follow him all the days of his life (Psalm 23:6). For everyone who trusts the Lord, His goodness goes along every day.

The greatest good. God's greatest gift to us is His Son. “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all” (Romans 8:32). Jesus died on the cross for our sins and rose again, so that we can know our good God forever.

What to do. Thank God today for one good thing He has given you. Then tell Him that He is good and that you trust Him.

“Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God” (Luke 18:19). Jesus' answer sets goodness where it belongs. God is not good because He measures up to some standard outside Himself. He is the standard.

Agathos. The word for good in 18:19 is agathos (say: ah-gah-THOS), good in nature and good in what it does. When Scripture calls God good, it means His character is perfectly right and kind, with no mixture of evil at all.

Good in being and doing. Psalm 119:68 says the Lord is good and does good. His actions flow from who He is. That is why His goodness never changes from one day to the next.

Very good. At creation, “God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good” (Genesis 1:31). The world was good because a good God made it.

Good to all. Psalm 145:9 says the Lord is good to all, with tender mercy over all His works. Rain and harvests, families and friendships are His gifts, even to people who never thank Him.

A stronghold. Nahum, writing to people facing danger, said the Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble, who knows those who trust in Him (Nahum 1:7). God's goodness is not a mood that comes and goes. It is a refuge.

In a class of its own. Human goodness is real, but it is mixed. The kindest parent still sins, and the best friend still fails. God's goodness has no mixture at all, and every good thing in His creatures is borrowed from Him.

Goodness that follows. David wrote that goodness and mercy would follow him all the days of his life (Psalm 23:6). God's goodness does not only surround those who trust Him. It follows them.

Good when life hurts. God's goodness does not mean that nothing hard will ever happen to us. It means that He is right and kind in everything He does, and that He stays near to those who trust Him, even in the day of trouble.

Application. Trust the goodness of God when life is easy and when it is hard. The cross settles the question: “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all” (Romans 8:32). The good God gave His own Son for people who were not good.

Why Do You Call Me Good?

☐

The ruler called Jesus “Good Teacher.” Jesus asked, “Why do you call Me good?” (Luke 18:19). His question taught two big truths: none of us is good in God's way, and Jesus is.

None of us. Paul quoted the Psalms: “There is none who does good, no, not one” (Romans 3:12). We all do some good things. But every one of us has sinned, and our hearts are not good all the way through.

The ruler's measure. The ruler probably thought he was good because he had kept many commandments. But good in God's way means perfect, the way God is. By that measure the ruler needed help, and so do we.

Was Jesus saying He was not good? No. Jesus never sinned. He once asked a crowd, “Which of you convicts Me of sin?” (John 8:46). No one could name one wrong thing He had done.

No sin at all. Peter, who walked with Jesus for years, wrote that He “committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth” (1 Peter 2:22). Jesus was good all the way through.

Good because He is God. If only God is good, and Jesus is good, then Jesus is God. Jesus said, “I and My Father are one” (John 10:30). Many Christians see Jesus' question as an invitation for the ruler to think about who was standing in front of him.

Good enough to die for. Paul wrote, “For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:7-8). The good One gave His life for people who were not good.

The cross and the empty tomb. Jesus died on the cross to pay for our sins. On the third day He rose again. Now He forgives everyone who trusts Him and makes them right with God.

Goodness growing in us. When we trust Jesus, His Holy Spirit lives in us. One fruit He grows is goodness (Galatians 5:22). He makes us more like Jesus, day by day.

What to do. Do not try to prove to God that you are good enough. Come to Jesus, the only truly good One, and trust Him. Then ask Him to grow His goodness in you.

“Why do you call Me good?” (Luke 18:19). Jesus' question cut two ways. It showed the ruler that he was not good by God's measure, and it asked him to think about who Jesus is.

None good. Paul gathered words from the Psalms: “There is none righteous, no, not one” and “There is none who does good, no, not one” (Romans 3:10, 12). Doing some good things does not make a person good in God's sense.

The ruler's ladder. He had kept the commandments he could see. But goodness in God's sense is perfection, and no amount of rule-keeping climbs that high. Only God is good like that.

Not a denial. Jesus never said He was not good. He challenged His opponents, “Which of you convicts Me of sin?” (John 8:46), and no one could answer. Peter wrote that He “committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth” (1 Peter 2:22).

Following the question through. If no one is good but God, and Jesus is good, then the Good Teacher is God the Son. Jesus said plainly, “I and My Father are one” (John 10:30). Many Christians see His question as an invitation to the ruler to follow that thought all the way.

Good enough to die for. Paul wrote, “For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:7-8). His goodness is not only that He did no wrong. He gave His life for people who were not good.

Two kinds of good. The ruler had done good things, and Jesus never said they did not matter. But doing good is not the same as being good all the way through. Only God is good in that full sense, and only God can make a sinner good before Him.

Goodness given. The ruler hoped to bring God his own goodness. The gospel runs the other way. Jesus, the good One, died for our sins and rose again, and God counts His righteousness as ours when we trust Him.

Goodness grown. The Holy Spirit lives in every believer, and goodness is part of His fruit (Galatians 5:22). God does not only forgive us. He begins to make us good.

Application. Stop measuring yourself against other people or against your own list. Measure yourself against God, see your need, and run to the only good One. He will not turn you away.

📖

Complete all sections to finish!

Read each section and answer the questions correctly.