Good as God is

“You gave your good Spirit to instruct them and did not withhold your manna from their mouth and gave them water for their thirst”

Nehemiah 9:20

What does it mean to be good? Does it mean to look out for others? Does it mean to give to your local food bank? Or does it mean to be good to self and family?

The reality of it all is that in the terms of man there are a variety of definitions for good. We see “good” as merely being an adjective and not a state of being. We utilize the word “good” to describe a situation or condition, when we should be utilizing the word as the title of a state of being.

When we say a person is good, it should not be in reference to their acts, but in reference to what they are. I know this may be difficult to differentiate, but it is essential in understanding the “goodness” of God.

God is not good because of what He does, but because of who He is! When we begin to understand this fact then we begin to understand the true Spirit of God.

Notice Nehemiah stated that God gave His good Spirit and this Spirit was to instruct. Again, today, we see that God has given His good Spirit and this Spirit is to instruct. What is He to instruct us in? Simply, He is to teach us how to be good, not as an adjective, but as a being.

Now take notice to the second portion of this scripture. A quick examination here will show how the Holy Spirit instructs. He instructs us through manna (bread) and water. Have we not learned that Christ is the bread of life and His spirit is like living water?

It is important for us to accept that in our natural state we are not good. But when we accept Christ and receive His Holy Spirit we can be. As we take in more and more of his Word (manna) and drink in more of His Spirit (water) then we can be transformed into something more than what we once were.

As we grow from not good (I hesitate to say bad) to good we understand the source in which we are tapped into. As man we can only use the word “good” to describe something, we fail to hold the capability to actually be good. However, with Christ we can become good not because of who we are, but because of who He is. Keep that in mind this week as you draw closer and closer to being good.