We all talk about loving what is good, being good, and doing good. We all know that good is the only thing that can change the world. But I’ve asked many people how to define good and they struggle with giving a good definition of Good.
As one who enjoys learning about this area of philosophy, I’ve spent some time thinking and researching and would like to share what I’ve found to be the most powerful and defining attributes of Good.
Before I proceed to share these attributes, let me first say that Good is indescribable. Good is so deep and so awesome we can fill libraries with books about Good and never exhaust the depths of Good. I think to do it justice, I will also use personification. Being male myself, and aspiring to be good, I will personify him as male.
Good is:
- Self-existent. Don’t ask, “where did Good come from?” Or assume that He evolved. Good just is. Good is self-existent.
- a Spirit.
- Sovereign. Good rules over everything. In all of the universe, every knee bows to the truth.
- Omnipotent. There is nothing more powerful than Good. An ounce of Good can defeat a pound of evil anytime. All evil in the universe can be overcome with a little Good.
- Holy. Good is morally right. Good is pure and blameless. Holiness encompasses all the other attributes of Good. Good wouldn’t be good if He wasn’t holy.
- Omnipresent. We can lie to everyone, but Good is always with us, staring us in the face. We cannot separate ourselves from Him. We cannot lock ourselves up in a room, runaway, or hide from Him. Even though we cannot see Good, He is always with us. He beckons us to avoid evil and embrace him.
- Omniscient (all-knowing). If you want to know everything, be full of Good.
- Wise. Wisdom wouldn’t be wise if it were not good. All wisdom proceeds from Good. In fact, a person becomes wise when he allows a seed of Good to germinate in the soil of his life and produces fruit.
- Immutable. It never changes. You can bury Him in a pile of evil that is 6 feet deep, cover it up, and press it with all the power in the universe. Yet, He will rise up unscathed and shine as brightly as ever. In fact, where evil and darkness abound, Good overabounds and shines all the more brightly.
- Love. Good is unconditional and sacrificial love.
- Grace. The heart of Good is grace.
- Truth. Truth is the blood that flows through the veins of Good. Good can be nothing but true.
- Just. We have said that Good is sovereign. He reigns overall. As a king, justice is the scepter of his kingdom.
- Life-Giving. When you have an encounter with Him, life is infused into you and your youth is renewed. Instead of botox, you will reach for Good.
- Good is indescribable. Good is just Good.
On separate occasions, I once shared these attributes with a couple of friends, one was an atheist and the other a Christian. They both asked me if I was simply describing God as Good.
I wondered why they would say that and came to the conclusion that those who think God is Good will see God in my description of Good. For those who think God is evil (or at least not good), the image of God will not come to their mind when they read my attributes of Good.
If I paint a picture of beauty and you see your mother in my painting, it’s because you think your mother is beautiful. Don’t blame me for painting your mother because I may never have met your mother.
Besides, this is what I think Good is. Not everyone will agree with it and I don’t claim that I have special knowledge of Good that is unavailable to everyone else. Take it as my definition of Good. What is yours?
My list of the attributes of Good is by no way exhaustive. I think it covers some core features of Good. What do you think are some other important attributes of Good that I’ve not addressed above?
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