“Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?” (Romans 2:4 NKJV)
“You are good and do only good; teach me your decrees.” (Psalm 119:68 NLT)
“The LORD is good, A stronghold in the day of trouble; And He knows those who trust in Him.” (Nahum 1:7 NKJV)
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.” (James 1:17 NKJV)
“And he said, “Please, show me Your glory.” Then He said, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.” But He said, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live.” And the Lord said, “Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen.” (Exodus 33:18-23 NKJV)
In a recent conversation with someone that I dearly love and deeply respect, we found ourselves in a serious disagreement about the necessity of hardships and difficulties in a believer’s life. In this “iron sharpens iron” dialogue my friend held what is probably the far more common and widely accepted point of view. In our “robust communication” this person with deep conviction claimed that difficulties, hardships, trials, troubles, and struggles are the primary way that God uses to bring us to repentance. The strongly held conviction was basically that these things are inevitable and to be expected due to the fact that without them we will never grow. I agree that these things happen. I agree that when they do occur they have the potential to lead me to repentance and bring growth into my life. However, I adamantly disagree that they need to be considered inevitable, and they are definitely not the best way for God to achieve his desired work in my life. I am fully persuaded that there is a better way.
If the Path of Godly Sorrow is the superior path then why is this path nowhere to be found in the Garden of Eden?
If the Path of Godly Sorrow is the most effective pathway to repentance then why is this path left out of the New Jerusalem?
If difficulties, hardships, trials, troubles, and struggles are of such great value then why are they absent from heaven?
There is currently a less traveled path that exists in an environment with or without sin. The qualities of this path are overflowingly abundant in the Garden of Eden, the New Jerusalem, and in Heaven. If you have eyes to see, these qualities are all around us in this current fallen world. None of the qualities of Godly Sorrow exist in a sinless environment. All of the qualities of the Goodness of God exist in both a sin-filled and a sin-less environment.
Why in the world are we so focused on a path that is so filled with dangers when we are invited to walk a path filled with only good things and experiences?
The Path of the Goodness of God has the power to draw people to repentance before they experience the hardships associated with Godly Sorrow. Jesus said that if he was lifted up (speaking of the cross) he would draw all men to him.
“If I am lifted up above the earth, I will make everyone want to come to me.” (John 12:32 CEV)
Jesus suffered and died for me so that I wouldn’t need to go through suffering and death myself. He revealed clearly the Goodness of God as he ministered to everyone in need.
“And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.” (Acts 10:38 NLT)
Jesus walked the Path of the Goodness of God everywhere he went leading multitudes to the Gateway of Repentance. I can only think of one example of Jesus pointing someone to the path of Godly Sorrow. It was the rich young ruler who placed his possessions above his desire to follow him in discipleship. When confronted with the sorrow of parting with his goods the young man walked away.
Jesus never inflicted suffering or sorrow upon anyone to teach them or make them grow. He never made anyone sick in order to produce godliness or maturity in them. He prioritized the benefits of demonstrating the Goodness of God over the benefits of Godly Sorrow. Perhaps he knew something that so many of us have missed. Perhaps he knew first hand that reaching out with God’s Goodness is the Father’s preferred method to reaching those in need. After all, Jesus said that he only did what he saw his Father doing and only said what he heard his Father saying.
“So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.” (John 5:19 ESV)
“So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me.” (John 8:28 ESV)
“For I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment—what to say and what to speak.” (John 12:49 ESV)
I for one am going to do everything in my power to stay on the Path of the Goodness of God. I am going to anticipate, and even exert my faith to expect, the Goodness of God to keep me where God wants me to be. I am also going to make every effort to promote this path to those that come to me and those the Father leads me to.
In this fallen world there will always be those who need the Path of Godly Sorrow. There will be those who refuse to see God’s Goodness. Both paths can take us where we need to go. But there is definitely a superior and an inferior path. I will shout it from the roof tops, “God is good! His goodness is so unlimited that it is impossible to receive it all. Get on the Path of the Goodness of God, you will never regret it!”
Enough said about…
…Eric’s Life Lesson # 466: Pathway to Restoration – Part 6