GOD IS GREAT AND GOD IS GOOD!

I remember so well the prayer that we prayed as children, probably, too mechanical at times, but still the simple words are theologically sound:  God is great and God is good, let us thank Him for our food,(1 Tim 4:4, 1 Thess. 5:18), By His hands we must be fed (Luke 12:24, James 1:17), give us, Lord, our daily bread (Matt. 6:11).  Although it may be a simple prayer, I want to focus on the first line and try to explain why that is a profound truth, one that encourages and comforts my heart as...

...I have learned this verse from Ps. 9:10 "And they that know Thy Name will put their trust in Thee: for Thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek Thee."

In Genesis 17, Abram receives the revelation of God as El Shaddai -"I am the Almighty God." El, from the word Elohim, first used in Gen.1:1, the strong Creator, the all-powerful God. (I love the study of names given to people in Scripture with El in them such as Daniel-God is my judge, Gabriel-man of God, Samuel- heard of God, Elisabeth- God of the oath.)

This is the word for God that corresponds to that first  part of the phrase, God is great! Yes, He is!! I think of the Scripture in Isaiah 40:25-38 "To whom then will ye liken Me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high, and behold Who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: He calleth them all by names by the greatness of His might, for that He is strong in power: not one faileth. Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, my way is hid from the LORD, and my judgment is passed over from my God? Hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God (El Olam) , the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? There is no searching of His understanding." Here is just one Scripture and the Book, of course, is filled with those concerning His power, His majesty, His greatness. Just look around today and see evidence of the Mighty God that we serve. Michael W. Smith sings "Everywhere I look, I see You!" Ps. 19 and Col 1:16-17.  He is mighty to create it and to sustain it. It stays on course because of Him.

He's great, He's Almighty God and I believe most of us get a better grasp on that than the second part of that name given in Gen. 17- Shaddai. That term , El Shaddai, tell me not only is He great but He's also good. The remainder of the passage in Isaiah 40 bears that out , I believe. Verse 29 -"He giveth power to the faint, and to them that have no might He increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: but they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength: they shall mount up with wings as eagles: they shall run, and not be weary: and they shall walk, and not faint."

I so pray you see what I am trying to convey here. God is great and would be if He had left us to our own devices, if He had created us and walked away. His greatness would not have been diminished one iota. I fear that we have forgotten or maybe never realized that God is God, He's all-sufficient, He didn't need us yet we live in a culture that believes that if there is a God out there, that He exists to make us happy. No, no, we exist to bring Him glory!  The fact that this world, even this country we live in are denying Him, downplaying Him, and in many ways, blaspheming Him, doesn't change Him from being the great God, "besides Him, there is no other."  AMEN!!

We have seen and still observe world leaders who think they are great and do to some degree exercise power, some to even executing their own people to hold onto that power. Greatness minus goodness equals fear and doubt to the subjects. Greatness plus goodness equals rest and trust, as the word El Shaddai does for us who are God's children by faith in Jesus Christ. A good daily exercise for us believers is to remind ourselves that our God is great and powerful and that He loves me. Elmer Towns explains it well when he says "God is not just a powerful Creator Who is far removed from believers. He's as close as a mother or a shepherd"  The Hebrew word for breast is shad, explaining Shaddai as being The Pourer or Shedder forth. Let me share a Greek story that I read in a book by a man named Andrew Jukes, a writer in the late 1800's. " A baby was laid down near some cliff by its mother, while she was busy with her herd of goats. The baby, unperceived, crawled to the edge. The mother, afraid to take a step, lest the child should move further and fall over the precipice, only uncovered her breast, and so drew back the infant to her."

Oh, dear one, doesn't the fact that He's our Supplier, our Sustainer, our Source of all things pertaining to life and godliness, encourage us to draw close to Him today, to lean on His breast, to rest and trust this great and good God?  I was recently thinking of how our songs of worship reveal both aspects from How Great Thou Art! and What A Mighty God We Serve! to Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing, Tune My Heart to Sing Thy Grace, or Blessed Assurance, Jesus Is Mine, or How Deep the Father's Love For Us, How Vast Beyond All Measure!  Yes, He's great and yes, He's good!

Let me leave you with a verse from Zeph. 3:17 that has become another favorite of mind."The LORD (Jehovah) thy God (Elohim) in the midst of thee is mighty. (He is great!) He will save, He will rejoice over thee with joy; He will rest in His love, He will rejoice over thee with singing." (He is good!)  El Shaddai- He is powerful to fulfill and faithful to perform every word and every promise. Praise His Name!!

   
Looking up, Deborah