Good and Bad

09/10/15

Lamentations 3.38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come? – Jeremiah, the prophet

In the Epistle to the Romans, St. Paul wrote the following benediction: “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! “For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor? Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?” For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen”

In Lamentations, Jeremiah the propjet wrote: “Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come?” Both Jeremiah and Paul are right. The rub comes, perhaps, with our interpretation of what we consider good and bad.

Yours truly and his bride are often nuevos; we jump on the train after it has left the station. My point: we have recently discovered that we like hummus. Who knew! And so we’re shnackowaving in the kitchen the other night and yours truly remarks, “Man! I love this stuff!” Really Paul, love!? Hummus might be the in-thing in our kitchen these days, but is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come? I have my preferences, but God also has His and His override mine.

God is truly a good God. But His choices may not match up with mine. I may call bad what God intends for my good. Who has known the mind of the Lord? There seems to be this culture in the Kingdom that has to do with the end – which is really the beginning. The end of earth is the beginning of Heaven. The real test for us is our attitude toward God’s doings. And God NEVER does anything but good.

Well then Turk, how then can you quote a verse that claims: is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come? Because the valuation of good and bad on earth is measured by us and our good-and-bad-meter is faulty because we are faulty. That doesn’t mean we’re all reprobate sinners, it just means that sometimes God does stuff and we don’t understand why. Usually, the misunderstanding is where we come up with the assessment of good or bad.

Jeremiah witnessed the destruction of His people. Jeremiah said: “The hands of compassionate women have boiled their own children; they became their food during the destruction of the daughter of my people.” We would call that bad. We ought to! But God dealt with His people because they wouldn’t deal with themselves. Does God boil children!? Nope. God did, however, invite them over and over and over again to cooperate with Him and they didn’t. They boiled and ate their children.

God is faithful. Always. If bad happens to us, then we can be assured, whether we measure correctly or not, God is faithful. God does what God does because He is faithful to Himself, His ways, and His will. And He is faithful to His people as well. Bad isn’t the end; perhaps it’s just the beginning of the good.

Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” Only the Lord knows the outcome of Bad and Good. And despite how we interpret it, He is always good.