Goodwill

Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And thiswill be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: "Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!" Luke 2:8-14 (NKJV)

Anytime a tragedy happens, you can count on a couple of things: 1) There will be people who say that they are mad at God for letting the tragedy happen. 2) There will be people who proclaim that the tragedy is an act of God's judgment. Both of these viewpoints must be oblivious to the message of the angel(s) at the birth of Christ. "For behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people...glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, goodwill toward men."

Really??? "Goodwill toward men." Is that really how God feels about the human race? I am going to let the arguably most popular verse in the New Testament answer the question: "For God so loved the world (Mankind) that He sent His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him, should not perish, but have everlasting life." For centuries the whisper of the Enemy has been this lie: "God detests people." This lie has been perpetrated by people both inside and outside the church. In fact, many Christians believe that God does not like them, but they are thankful that they are not non-believers, because they are convinced that God hates non-believers.

There will be a day of reckoning, where "all" will stand before God and be weighed by His perfect judgment; but until that time arrives, God is in the business of saving and transforming as many as believe on His Son. There is one word that describes the perfection of God's character, that is the word "love." 1 John 4:8 states it as a simple fact,"God is love." This does not mean that God is weak, or that God is unwilling to judge the wicked or chasten those who are His Sons and Daughters. It simply means that God's attitude towards mankind is that of goodwill.

Prayer: "Dear Heavenly Father, You are a God of love, grace, mercy and great patience. Although everyone sins and falls short of Your glory, You are still extending Your goodwill toward men. Thank you for saving me--for lifting me out of my sin--for bringing about changes in the way I think and the way that I live. I will forever be grateful! Blessed be the name of the Lord!" Amen