Welcome back to our second study on GOODNESS. God’s goodness is evident throughout all of His creation. This week we’ll look at the genesis of our planet and His masterpiece: Man. In spite of the Fall of Man, God’s masterplan to redeem us overflows with His goodness.

“And God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good.”

Genesis 1:31 a NKJV

Click HERE to read Genesis 1-3

What is the truth about creation?

Who is the creator of the universe and the earth? In public school, the textbooks tell a man-made story that denies a creator in its Big Bang Theory. The true story, however, is recorded in the Word of God.

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”

Genesis 1:1 NKJV

On the first day, God created light to separate the darkness and called them Day and Night. “And God saw the light, that it was good; ” (v.4). This is the first reference to a reflection of goodness, one of God’s main attributes.

The next reference to goodness happens on the third day of creation when God commanded the dry land–the earth–to appear, separated from the seas. He also created mature fruit trees with its seeds as well as seed-bearing plants. “And God saw that it was good” (v.10 and v.12).

On the fourth day, He created the sun, the moon, and the stars. Their purpose was manifold: to map out signs and seasons, and to mark days and years. The sun ruled over the day and the moon over the night. “And God saw that it was good” (v. 18).

God created all sea life and birds on the fifth day. “And God saw that it was good. And God blessed them, saying, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth’ ” (v.21-22).

On the sixth day, God created cattle, creeping things, and beasts of the earth. “And God saw that it was good” (v.25).

God’s masterpiece…

God’s masterpiece, however, was the creation of man, made in the image and likeness of God the Holy Trinity.

“Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’ So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’

And God said, ‘See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food’; and it was so. Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good.”

Genesis 1:26-31 NKJV

And on the seventh day, God rested. The creation of the heavens and earth was finished. He blessed and sanctified this day “because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made” (Genesis 2:3 NKJV).

The second chapter of Genesis describes Adam and Eve living in a perfect world inside a lush garden. God had lavished his goodness on everything He had created (Click HERE to read).

After reading this chapter, wouldn’t we expect to read, “And they all lived happily ever after?” So, what spoiled their perfect life?

The Fall of Man…

The serpent deceived Eve to eat from the one forbidden tree in the garden, and she shared the fruit with Adam. In an instant, shame overcame them as they saw that they were naked. They didn’t experience physical death, but instead, they died spiritually, which resulted in separation from God. (Read the account HERE).

We can only imagine how their sin must have broken the heart of God. But out of His goodness poured justice and mercy, a two-sided coin. You can’t have one without the other.

God’s judgments flow from His goodness…

God first dealt out just punishments to Adam, Eve, and the serpent. Below is a summary of His judgments (Click HERE to read the Scriptures).

• God cursed the serpent to always crawl on his belly and eat dust. But He also promised that the head of the serpent would be crushed in the future through the sacrifice of His Son on the cross (Genesis 3:14-15).
• Eve would experience pain and sorrow in childbirth, and her husband would rule over her (Genesis 3:16).
• The ground would be cursed on account of Adam’s sin, and he would have to do hard labor in the fields to grow food (Genesis 3:17-19).

God’s mercy and lovingkindness flow out of His goodness…

God’s new creation, Man, had created a terrible problem–sin now separated them. God had the power to erase His creation and begin over, but He didn’t. He mercifully planned to redeem mankind by sending Jesus to pay the price for sin that Man couldn’t pay.

The first blood sacrifice…

A holy God cannot look on sin without a blood covering. Out of His innate goodness, God showed His mercy and lovingkindness by first covering Adam and Eve’s nakedness. This is the first recorded blood sacrifice for sin in the Bible. “Also for Adam and his wife the Lord God made tunics of skin, and clothed them.” (Genesis 3:21 NKJV).

Today God covers us with His blood when we repent of our sins at the foot of the cross. As the song lyrics say, “Oh, the blood of Jesus that washes white as snow.” Jesus died once for all sins of mankind, and payment was made in full to satisfy our debt to God. Now we can commune fully with our Father in heaven and be secure in our heavenly home when we die.

What Satan meant for evil in the Garden of Eden, God turned around for our good. As a result of Adam and Eve’s disobedience, we’re all born in sin, but each of us has the opportunity to repent and accept Christ as Savior and Lord. Let’s be grateful and thank God for His goodness toward us.

Psalm 33:1-8…

“Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous!
For praise from the upright is beautiful.
Praise the Lord with the harp;
Make melody to Him with an instrument of ten strings.
Sing to Him a new song;
Play skillfully with a shout of joy.
For the word of the Lord is right,
And all His work is done in truth.
He loves righteousness and justice;
The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.
He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap;
He lays up the deep in storehouses.
Let all the earth fear the Lord;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.

Psalm 33:1-8 NKJV

Dear Father, we thank you for being such a good, good God to us. Thank you for creating the earth and everything in it to fully enjoy. We didn’t deserve Your mercy and grace, but You loved us enough to save us from our sin and redeem us back to You. We praise You for rescuing us from spiritual death and making us alive through Jesus, our Savior. In Jesus’s Name, Amen.