Jul 30 2008
Wednesday, July 30th
Reading for Today: Exodus 17:1-7, 1 Corinthians 5:7
“And the people thirsted there for water, and the people complained against Moses, and said, ‘Why is it you have brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?’” Exodus 17:3
Again, we see God’s chosen people complaining about physical needs. Jesus said that if we asked him, He would give us living water so that we would never thirst again. Have you asked Him for a drink yet?
In Exodus 17, the Israelites were questioning God’s goodness when they complained to Moses “Why did you bring us up from Egypt, to kill us and our children?”
Here is an excerpt from a previous teaching by pastor Greg Laurie on the goodness of God. Please continue your prayers for the Laurie family. Many people have already given their lives to Jesus because of the example of Chris’s life.
” Why does God allow tragedy? We’ve all heard it stated in many ways. Why does He allow babies to be born with disabilities? Why does He permit wars to rage? Why does He seem to turn the other way when innocent people are being killed? What about all of those horrible injustices in our world? This hurricane. That epidemic. This wildfire. Why do these horrible things afflict our world? If God can prevent such tragedies, why does He allow them to take place?
Here is the classic statement of the problem. Either God is all-powerful but He is not all good, therefore He doesn’t stop evil. Or He is all good but He is not all-powerful, therefore He can’t stop evil. And the general tendency is to blame all of the problems of the world on God. To say that God is the one who is somehow responsible.
“If God is so good and loving,” people will say, “why does He allow evil?” Now the first part of that question is based on a false premise. By even stating it in that way, what I’m really saying is that I don’t believe God to be good and loving.
By questioning God’s goodness and love, I am in essence saying that I know more about it than He does. The fact is, God doesn’t become good because that’s my opinion of Him, or because I happen to personally agree with His actions or His words. Nor does He become good because we vote on it and all agree that is the case.
God is good because God says He is good. And it’s not up for a vote.
Jesus said, “No one is good except God alone” (Luke 18:19 NIV).