Day 2 - God's Intentions Are Good
- Pastor b.Side
- Feb 2
- 3 min read
“But as for you, you meant evil against me; [but] God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as [it is] this day, to save many people alive.” - Genesis 50:02
The Bible teaches in 1 Corinthians 13:5 that “love” does not intend harm upon others. It also teaches in 1 John 4:8 that God is “love.” How do we reconcile those two ideas, given that bad things happen? People harm other people, sometimes in the name of “love” or even in the name of God. The Bible is true, so how do we practically apply these principles?
“You meant evil against me; [but] God meant it for good…”
When we observe God’s work in the beginning, we recognize that He created everything in a “good” condition. There was no harm or evil until people introduced harm and evil into the world by rebelling against God and His purposes. Adam pursued goodness and knowledge separate from God. He wanted to live by his own standards of right and wrong. That’s where the problems originate—not from God.
God didn’t want evil in the world. There’s suffering in the world as a consequence of our sins. The marvel of God and His love is that He is willing and able to take the evil circumstances of life and somehow use them for His good purposes! God can produce good fruit from things with evil roots. How does He do it? That’s part of God’s “wonderful” nature. It’s impossible to understand fully. In Genesis 50:20, God used Joseph's miserable life circumstances to save many lives. This was God’s plan for Joseph’s life, and God began that work when Joseph was a young boy. God took Joseph from the comfort of his home into the home of a stranger to live as a servant, to a prison cell as a wrongly convicted man, and to the seat of authority over a nation! All of Joseph’s hardships, as documented in scripture, were the result of jealousy, deception, and injustice. Still, God used those circumstances to lead Joseph to the place He always intended, saving lives and souls along the way.
“To save many people alive…”
The devil seeks to use sin and darkness to steal, kill, and destroy. God can take the consequences of the devil’s influence and the effects of our depravity and produce good results anyway, ultimately saving souls from sin, death, and hell! The Bible reveals that God manifests His glory and majesty by revealing Himself through our hardships, proving that He can save us from death and the condemnation of our souls. That’s why the love of God is beyond our understanding. That’s who God is as “love.”
Prayer for today
Our heavenly Father, we are thankful to learn about Your unique and incomprehensible love. We know that the quality of love people show doesn’t always yield good results. We admit that the things we do in the name of “love” often harm ourselves and others. Thank You for showing us a better way. Thank You for loving us differently, transforming our condition, and saving us from the corruption in our hearts. LORD, we acknowledge that we don’t always appreciate the circumstances You allow and seldom understand what You’re doing in those times. Help us trust that You can AND WILL produce good where evil tries to destroy. Help us to remember that You ALWAYS intend to do good according to Your supreme standards to save corrupted souls from sin, death, and hell. We pray these things in Jesus’ name. Amen.
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