June 28 - God is Great, God is Good
June 28
God is Great,
God is Good
Bible Reading: Genesis 1:14-25
14Then God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years; 15and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth”; and it was so. 16Then God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He made the stars also. 17God set them in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19So the evening and the morning were the fourth day.20Then God said, “Let the waters abound with an abundance of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the face of the firmament of the heavens.” 21So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters abounded, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” 23So the evening and the morning were the fifth day.24Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind”; and it was so. 25And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
Psalms 119:68
You are good, and do good; Teach me Your statutes.
See which answer you think best fits the meaning of each word.
Do you know what the word feline means?
The line where people line up to pay parking fees
Harmless
Like a cat
How about the word bovine?
A deep canyon
Like a cow
A vine that grows a rare kind of grape
How about the word good?
To do whatever you want as long as it doesn't hurt anybody
To be "one with the universe"
To be like God
Well, you probably get the point. The word feline means to be catlike. The word bovine refers to a cow or something that resembles a cow. And to be morally good means to be like God.
When God created the universe and everything in it, he looked at what he'd created and saw that it was good. That wasn't just an opinion; it was the truth! He was comparing everything he'd made with Himself, and because everything was pure and perfect and without sin (like He is), it was "good."
Now, of course, when sin entered the world, it messed up God's "good" creation. But one thing hasn't changed: When something is morally good, it is like God. If it isn't like God, it isn't good.
In fact, you can't go far wrong if you measure everything you think, do, or say against the one standard for what is good--God. If you ask yourself, "Is it like God?" before you make any choice, the difference between good and bad will be a lot easier to see ... because God is good.
REFLECT: How many times in Genesis 1 does God call His creation "good"? What was he comparing it to?
Which is easier--to rely on your friends' ideas of what is good or to measure everything you think, do, or say against the one standard for what is good--God Himself? Which is right?
PRAY: "God, I praise you because You are good. You are holy. You are perfect. You are pure. You are righteous in everything you think, do, and say. Help me to remember that you alone are good."